Strategies for Integrating SEL in Discourse Development

Have brief debriefing sessions with the whole class after a complicated activity. English learners will benefit from listening to other non-English learners who were also wondering about specifics. The whole-class debrief can help support all students.

Instead of reteaching vocabulary or other skills that English learners and peers might have missed the first time around, there are many different cooperative learning strategies that teachers can use to further develop student discourse, enhance learning by processing information at a deeper level, and demonstrate student strengths. The following strategies are intended for use in any content area.

Four Corners

The teacher chooses four different discussion questions about the content students are learning. The teacher places the discussion cards in each corner. The teacher assigns students to each corner. The students go to the corner and discuss the topic for the allotted time. One student shares out what the team discussed.

This strategy supports the social awareness competency by helping students see different perspectives about a topic. It also supports relationship skills by supporting effective communication and teamwork. This strategy supports English learners by ensuring they have a small team to practice communication skills with.

Vocabulary Buddies

Tier 2 vocabulary buddies is a quick way for students to meet with a partner to discuss their learning. Students receive a card with a list of five to ten tier 2 words on it (subsequently, notwithstanding, and effect are good example words for this exercise); content-specific words work well too.

To begin, students write the names of different classmates next to each word on the list. When the teacher wants the students to talk about a topic, the teacher directs the students to take out their tier 2 vocabulary buddy sheets. Then the teacher announces a word and tells the students to go with that buddy. The words and buddies can change with each unit. Having this system ensures that students always have a partner and don’t have to go looking for one. It gives students an opportunity to meet other students in the class that they may not have met before. It supports social

awareness by hearing from peers and getting different perspectives and relationship skills by working as a team and supporting peers.

Inside-and-Outside Circles and Concentric Circles

Divide the class into two equal groups. One group makes a circle and faces out. The second group makes a circle around the other circle and faces in. This should set students up to be in partnerships. Students discuss a topic with their partner. The teacher sets a timer for the time that the students should discuss the topic. The outer circle then steps to the right, and each student ends up with a new partner. The teacher can play music during the transition to add an element of fun.

A variation of this strategy is to form a conga line rather than circles. One group stands in a line parallel with the other group. As in inside-and-outside circles, the two lines should set students up to be in partnerships. The partners can discuss the topic, and then one line takes one step to the right to make new partnerships. The concentric circles and conga lines set students up in partnerships so that they can discuss the topic with a peer. This strategy supports social awareness and relationship skills through students learning about other perspectives, supporting peers, and practicing effective communication skills. See figure 3.5 for an illustration of these circles.

FIGURE 3.5: Inside-and-outside circles.

Categorical Lineup

The teacher poses a line order to the class. For example, students line up in order of their respective birth month. Then starting with January birthdays, students stand in line according to where their birthday falls. Then students figure out where to stand in the order, so each says their birthday as they go in order down the line. It’s always fun to see if there are any duplicate birthdays. Then once in line, students count off by the number of groups the teacher wants, and the students sit together in those groups. So if the teacher wants seven groups, the January birthdays start with one and when it gets to the seventh student, it will start back at one. Then all the students assigned ones get together, twos get together, and so on. This strategy is great for

pairing up random groups of students and helps support social awareness. Students could be in a group with classmates they may not normally work with, providing them an opportunity for seeing different perspectives.

Roundtable Summaries

Have students sit in groups of four. After reading or participating in a lesson, students summarize what they learned verbally as a group. This could be at the end of the day or the end of a lesson. The teacher provides sentence starters, such as first, then, next, and last, to guide the summary then moves to more challenging transition words as the year progresses, such as initially, following that, subsequently, and finally. The teacher may provide table tents with the transition words and starters or have them on a slide or poster for all to see. This strategy supports relationship skills as students have to work as a team by listening to what was already said and to add to the summary.

Table Tents as Discussion Frames

During teamwork, have table tents with the sentence frames listed in figure 3.6 for team discussions. Having table tents available helps students who may need the language to engage in the discourse. These tents can have starters, questions, phrases, or key words to help support the discussions. Remove these scaffolds once students display an understanding of how to engage in the discourse.

Asking for information I’d like to know . . . Do you know . . . ? I’m interested in . . .

Would you tell me . . . ?

Requesting confirmation If I understood correctly . . . In other words . . .

Does this mean . . . ?

Interrupting

Illustrating

Excuse me . . .

Sorry, but . . .

For example . . . For instance . . .

Moreover . . .