Group Discussion: Hear With the Ear

Students worked together to draw and label a model of the ear through discussion. I showed students an animated 3D model of how sounds moves through the ear. I also I showed them a video of students having a discussion. The purpose was to provide a model for students of good speaking and listening skills. I also referred them to a poster on the board of good listening strategies. By providing the video as a model, students were able to identify characteristics of a good speaker, i.e., take turns speaking, and apply it to their own discussions.  Having the characteristics posted enabled students to reference them as they worked.

Students used talking chips to facilitate their discussions. The talking chips had a variety of discussion sentence stems. Students were able to use them as conversation starters and elicit responses from their partners. It ensured they took turns speaking and hearing from each other. Additionally, students used them to check for understanding from the group and get agreement.

Students were also able to manipulate the 3D model as a visual reminder of the process and to aid in identifying parts of the ear.

Students assessed themselves on how well they listened and took turns speaking. This also served as the closing of the lesson as students reflected on their work.