Elementary Matters: conversation

Do you have a talkative group like I do?

Do you have kiddos that have so much to say they have trouble holding it in?

Isn't it tough to find class time to let them get out what they want to say!

So I decided to try Speed Chatting. It works sort of like speed dating, without the dating part.

I have the children make 2 circles. They partner off, and get a couple of minutes to talk! Then one of the circles shifts, and they have a new partner for chatting. They'll shift a few more times until they've had a several chances to talk.

Sometimes I give them a topic, and sometimes I let them choose whatever they want to talk about.

Topics could be:

Tell about the book you're reading.

Why do we need to regroup to subtract?

What did you do this weekend?

Talk about your favorite thing to do.

Tell what you know about _________.

Tell about a place you'd love to visit someday.

What pet do you wish you could have?

If you had plenty of money, what would you buy?

What is your favorite subject in school?

What do you wish you could have for homework?

What do you like to do after school?

What makes someone a good friend?

What is something you wish more people knew about you?

I'm sure you can think of plenty more!

Right after the holidays, the kiddos were busting at the seams, wanting to tell about their vacations, staying up until midnight on New Year's Eve, and their new toys.

We did Speed Chatting. We had to... there was no option, they were going to talk about their vacations no matter what. They needed to get it out. Either they'd be sneaking it in all day, or I'd let them get it out of their systems first thing in the morning.

I chose to put Speed Chatting into Morning Meeting that day.

Then they were ready to get back to work!

Honestly, I don't think kids get enough time to speak their minds these days. We're incredibly busy between testing as well as teaching an overloaded curriculum. This is a nice way to get them talking without missing much class time.