Mod 9 Discussion: Oral Language Support in My Classroom

Several of the key principles for academic discussion are already in place and used multiple times a day in my classroom.  Key principles for academic discussion that I already implement in my classroom are:

• Pre-reading 
• Model examples
• Provide sentence starters to frame ideas and prompt students into an academic response.
• Monitor student progress and offer them ample, often additional, time as needed to fully participate in the discussion.
• Have students use new vocabulary in their discussions, or offer additional points to do so.
• Circulate the room to facilitate discussions, prompt, and generally oversee their movement toward learning targets, objectives, and use of the assigned protocols.
• Call on students randomly to invoke full participation from all.
• Remind students to use their "lunch room voice" or "public voice" for appropriate group discourse as needed.
• Encourage their use of academic vocabulary when appropriate and relevant.
• Always provide a focus question.
• Accountable talks

I would like to use a reporting strategy to deepen students understanding and increase accountability for accountable talks.  I think I would need to preplan the reporting activity to ensure it is one that will deepen their understanding of a specific benchmark/learning concept.  I also feel that I need to review accountable talks because my students think that just agreeing with another is an accountable talk.  I want students to understand that accountable talks are more than just saying "I agree/I disagree."