I am getting ready to teach my class Turn and Talk tomorrow and I came across
this video, which is really helpful for preparing to use them as a language and learning tool. I introduced my kiddos to their assigned carpet spots today and I am going to give them some opportunities to share with partners tomorrow so we can spend some time practicing that routine before we officially start reading the week after next. I definitely want to use Turn and Talk a lot this year to help my ELL student advance their language skills.
I also like this information about Turn and Talk I found from
Teacher Toolkit...
How to Use
1. Question
Pose a question or prompt for students to discuss and tell them how much time they will have. A one-to-two minute discussion is most productive.
2. Turn
Have students turn to a specific partner. Pair students using Eyeball Partners, Shoulder Partners, or Clock Partners (see variations below). Partner assignments should be set up beforehand so that students can quickly and easily pair up.
3. Talk
Set a timer for the allotted time, and have students begin discussing the assigned question or prompt. When time is up, ask partners to share out thoughts and ideas from their discussion.
When to Use
Use Turn and Talk at any time during a lesson to encourage accountable talk:
- As a warm-up activity to discuss previous lesson or homework assignment
- After five to seven minutes of oral or written input, to help student process what they have just heard or read
- During class discussions as a way for students to discuss ideas before sharing them with the class
- As a closing activity so that students can review what was learned in the lesson
- As a clarification tool for a complex problem or new guiding question posed by the teacher
Variations
Eyeball Partners
When students are seated at tables or in groups, “eyeball partners” are students who are facing in front of each other.
Shoulder Partners
When students are seated at tables or in groups, “shoulder partners” are students who are seated next to each other. This may also be done when students are seated in rows.
Clock Partners
Using a clock template, have students “make appointments” with four other classmates, one for 12 o’clock, one for 3 o’clock, one for 6 o’clock, and one for 9 o’clock. Partners may not be repeated. When ready to use partners, simply say “Work with your [choose one of the times] partner.” In Primary Grades PK-1, partners should be assigned by the teacher.
Simple Beginnings
To start, I set aside a few minutes after lunch each day for working on partner chat skills. I begin by showing the children how to do the most basic things, such as sitting "knee-to-knee" and looking at their partner. Then I pair them up and the pairs sit together to practice.
Our first conversation topic is "What did you have for lunch?"—a question I know each child will definitely be able to answer. At first the partners simply tell each other, one at a time, what they had for lunch. We work up to something that looks more like a "real" conversation:
Partners Susanna and Brendan sit facing each other.
Susanna asks, "What did you have for lunch today?"
"I had chicken nuggets," Brendan replies. Then he asks, "What did you have for lunch?"
"I had chicken nuggets, too," says Susanna, "and chocolate milk."
Once both partners have shared, they move to the rug and take a seat in our circle.
After a few days, I also start having students report back to the group. For instance, after partners share with each other, we'll do a quick around-the-circle share about what our partners had for lunch. This gives the children an added reason to listen carefully to their partners and remember what they heard. It also gives each child a chance to practice speaking to the whole class.
Building More Complex Skills
I build on these simple beginnings all year with additional mini-lessons and lots of chances to practice. Students talk with a partner many times each day: during
Morning Meeting sharing, during read-alouds, during math when they compare solutions, etc. I scaffold my teaching so that when the children begin talking with partners about academic work, they are ready to do so independently. By the end of the year, they will become skilled conversationalists—able to engage in rich dialogues with each other, with the older students who are their book buddies, and even with adults.
, Stephen Covey gives the metaphor of an emotional bank account. If we are going to be making lots of “withdraws” in the form of correction and discipline, we need to be making plenty of “deposits” by encouraging them, complimenting them, and showing them we care.