There are many ways of promoting discussion with children: in pairs, in small groups or with the whole class. It can be used as an introductory activity, where the children identify all the ideas associated with a particular topic. This is a useful way of assessing what the children know and of establishing where gaps exist in their knowledge. The ideas can be recorded and used as the basis for further exploration.
A discussion can also be used as the principal activity in a lesson where children are encouraged to explore a topic or theme in some detail by presenting their own viewpoints and listening and responding to the opinions and views of others. The conclusion of an activity or the reflection stage can equally take the form of a discussion, where ideas and suggestions that emerged from a class activity can be teased out and clarified. This will enable children to reach a deeper understanding and to derive greater meaning from a particular activity.
Discussion is an element of almost all activities, but particularly useful strategies for promoting discussion and dialogue with children are
- open-ended statements
- brainstorming
- circle work
- agree or disagree
- creating pictures and posters
- debates, quizzes or soapbox
- interviews
- stories
- poems
- exploring a piece of music.
The following exemplars illustrate how some of these strategies can be used to explore aspects of SPHE. The emphasis in all the activities is on interactive exploration among the children in the class and between the child and the teacher.
EXEMPLAR 16 - Open-ended statements/questions