Socratic Circle

I focused my attention on the Socratic circles in my last blog post, but since we changed the set-up style I think there is a lot to be discussed. The larger, whole-group Socratic circle seemed more successful than the one we did in the previous week. I think probably the biggest reason for this change was that everyone was involved and contributing to discussion the whole time. Although there were some good characteristics of our last discussion that were lost in the transition, I think this week’s circle better benefited our understanding of the text. Individuals who were in the inner circle the first week didn’t bear the responsibility of keeping discussion going, even when the group was hard pressed for something to talk about. For this reason, I sensed this week that conversation was a lot less forced and that our discussion topic didn’t digress from the reading. The only disadvantage was that individuals didn’t have to contribute as much to discussion, because fitting everyone’s comments in required more listening than talking.

The larger group Socratic circle worked better for our class, but I wonder if a class with a different personality would prefer the inner and outer circles. Most the people in our class feel comfortable sharing their thoughts, so there is little fear that our ideas will be rejected or ridiculed. In a shier or more timid class, they may prefer being put on the spot so they feel it’s required of them to share thoughts about the reading. I think it would be a smart idea to try different forms of the Socratic circle within your own class, in order to find out which one best suit its needs. This week also shows what improvements can be made with a little practice; since we had a broad idea of what was going on, it was easier to have more meaningful, in-depth discussion. I’m excited to try this discussion type in my future classroom!


QUESTION: In our discussion about Dora, there was some disagreement over the teacher’s choice to let a lot of her major grammar errors continue. Is there any specific step you would have done differently in Dora’s grammar and writing learning process?

More on What I've Learned

This last week in class I learned a couple new things that will help me facilitate discussion and teach grammar rules in the English classroom. Using the socratic circle as a means to discuss the text and bring everyone into the conversation was an effective route towards a student-run classroom. I use the term “student-run” to illustrate the idea of a classroom where the teacher is as much part of the background as possible, and the students lead their way through learning the subject matter. In previous classes I've learned the importance of being a facilitator of student learning, not serving as the one person in control of every thought and idea that enters the classroom. A teacher who guides learning experiences and brings it back on route when the class digresses from the learning objectives is one who encourages students to think critically and voice opinions.

Monday was the first time I've ever participated in or even heard of socratic (or fishbowl) discussions. I thought it using this activity was beneficial to the classroom atmosphere because everyone felt the need to contribute to the conversation and answer the overarching question about the day's lesson. Although there are some kinks that need to be worked out, I thought it was an effective way at delving into the text and sharing thoughts about the reading. Also, knowing that high school classrooms are really embracing this discussion type is beneficial to up and coming teachers; We must all be aware of what's emerging as effective teaching practices for middle and high school educators.

The lesson on sentence structures was educational and was a good refresher on subject, direct object, and verb placements. Making different sentences out of magnetic poetry was a fun activity and did tap into the creative side of my brain. Although, after labeling the parts of speech and having Barbara look over them, I found out I made a couple mistakes. I had some trouble identifying intransitive and transitive verbs, but after Barbara explained my mistakes it made better sense. I think that it would be helpful to have more review on these concepts. Going into an English classroom as an English teacher, I want to be 100% confident not only in my ability to teach, but also in my knowledge of grammar rules and types of verbs.

Question: Will you use the socratic circle in your classroom? Why or why not?

Replying to a question

In response to the question: Is Microsoft Word a good tool to learn grammar? My answer is a yes! Although this program can at times be faulty, it's especially useful in picking out awkward phrases and sentence structures. It might not fix the errors correctly with the suggestions it gives, but at least attention is called to the area that needs work.

What I've Learned...

I’ve learned a couple useful grammar rules in the small amount of time spent in class. One tidbit of information that really sticks out in my mind is the new rule (or trend) for apostrophes. Since the fifth grade I’ve been using -s’s to show possession for words ending in –s, but due to new information on the subject I’m now using –s’ in my writing. This simple change has thrown me off a couple times over the last two weeks, but I know over time and with practice it will soon become a habit. Along with changing my own style, I learned effective ways to teach this rule. The graphic shown in class, which is boiled down to the simplest possible terms, will be useful in my classroom and in teaching students.

As far as developing methods for teaching grammar, I’ve found the style used in this class is best for learning rules. Giving a quick lesson on the rule and spending time learning it in the context of reading and writing has been particularly effective at internalizing this information. In elementary, junior high, and high school I learned grammar through exhaustive worksheets and lectures given by the teacher. Although I didn’t have many problems learning this way, it would have been easier to understand and apply grammar rules to my writing if I’d learned it in context. I plan on having workshops, much like we do in this class, where students edit their own writing and discuss the process with peers.

After seeing the picture of the hamburger stand menu which had numerous apostrophe mistakes and no consistency, the idea that wrong grammar rules are often internalized changed my outlook on grammar teaching. Thinking back through my education on language arts, I can’t begin to count the number of times teachers have stated, “The English language is confusing because of all the exceptions to its grammar rules.” As part of his or her lesson the teacher often let us students in on a “trick” to remembering a grammar rule, but right as everyone was starting to understand, an exception was presented that threw everyone off. If students remember a grammar rule wrong then it makes it that much more difficult to correct it, that’s why there should be careful contemplation in planning grammar lessons.

The concepts we’ve discussed in class thus far have been straightforward and easy to understand. I haven’t had any trouble with the subject matter or confusion with what we’ve all learned. I especially enjoyed working on the grammar scrapbook, the house style section was interesting and fun! I’ve been looking through newspapers (with special attention to The Daily Evergreen) for errors in print, but have had no luck finding anything! This particular section is the most important, so I’m a little worried about not being able to find an acceptable number of examples. Hopefully I’ll have better luck as the semester moves on, but so far that’s my main concern with this class.



QUESTION: Why do you think it’s important to teach word classes?