S.

Cristal Ouedraogo
Rachel Brailov
Maria Stamatogiannakis

Common Core/Socratic seminar Lesson Planner

Text: Charlottes Web by E.B White

Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.A Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that
preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.B Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others
with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion).

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.C Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments
to the remarks of others.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.D Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.

Lesson Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4

Component Explaining the Socratic Serialized Questioning Analyzing the text Conducting The
Seminar Socratic Seminar

Objectives: - Discover different ways of -Critically analyze the - Engage in

Scholars - Identify the differences
will... between a whole group
discussion and a
Socratic Seminar
- Analyze an example of
a Socratic Seminar to
visualize key elements
- Reflect on initial
questioning
- Identify the difference
between yes/no questions
and open ended questions
- Understand how to
respond to peoples
questions
- Be introduced to a variety
assigned text : collaborative
Charlottes Webb, discussion with their
These texts are teammates
rigorous and promote - Ask teammates open
critical thinking, but ended questions about
not so challenging the text, Charlottes
that they are Web
inaccessible to the - Collect data on
 thoughts about engaging of different ways to students teammates discussions
in a Socratic Seminar disagree, agree, add onto, (CLayton,2013). and analysis of
and provide clear evidence questions
for their thinking - Engage in - Ask questions, cite
collaborative evidence, and add onto
discussions building other teammates
upon others ideas and answers
expressing their own - Have an open
clearly to create and mindset about possible
answer questions. changing their thinking
throughout the
discussion

SET-Up Engage: Students will Engage: Students will Engage: Students will Engage: Students will
(Connect & watch an example of an listen to an open ended examine the illustration set up chairs for their
Engage) elementary classroom question and a yes/no on the cover of Socratic Seminar.
engaging in a Socratic question and discuss which Charlottes Webb
Seminar one they would be more projected on the Connect: Students will
Connect: Students will excited to answer. whiteboard. After being write a number on a
engage in stand up, Do you like pizza? given time to examine sticky note to express
hand up, pair up to What is your the illustration, each how they are feeling
express their initial favorite type of student will formulate 2 about the Socratic
thoughts on the video of pizza and why? questions about the Seminar: a 5 is excited
the Socratic Seminar. characters ,write them and ready to go, a 3 is
The teacher should be Connect: Students will down on a sticky note OK but a little nervous,
listening for themes engage in a turn and talk and place on the and a 1 is not ready at
being stated across answering the two whiteboard. all!
answers. questions and discuss
which one they learned Connect: Students will
more from. randomly select a sticky
note from the
whiteboard and engage
in a turn and talk with a
partner to answer the
questions.
Presentation - On the first day the
(I do) teacher will guide will be introduced to the
students through an
activity in which they list
what a whole group
discussion is and is not.
This will help students
find a foundation to
compare a Socratic
Seminar to.
- On day two the teacher
will guide the class
through a discussion
about key elements of
whole group discussion
in the classroom. This
will lead students to be
able to write this portion
of their venn diagram.
- On day three the
teacher will introduce the
video of a Socratic
Seminar and students
will be identifying the
main elements through
watching the video.
- On day four the teacher
will lead the students
through a discussion of
the main elements that
will be present in their
Socratic Seminar
therefore students can fill
out this side of the venn
diagram.
- On day five students
will complete the venn
diagram by adding any
missing elements they
learned about that week
and filling in the middle
- On the first day, students
students will answer an
guidelines on Socratic
Seminar. The guideline are
pivotal to the success of
the Seminar, and must be
explicitly taught (Clayton,
2013). Many of these
guidelines involve student
interactions, such as
looking at each other when
speaking and know when it
is OK to jump in and talk.
Students will T&T about
what they notice in the
guidelines, and eventually
get to the point that it is all
student led. Teacher will go
through each one and give
a brief explanation.
Teacher will then introduce
the idea of serialized
questioning, and how it will
help the flow of Socratic
Seminar. Teacher will
explain that students may
already know how to ask a
question, but through this
type of questioning,
students will learn how to
listen better, help
themselves and their
teammates explore their
ideas, and build onto each
other's answers.
- On day two, the teacher
will give the students a
handout with the different
types of sentence stems
and what they can be used
-On the first day - On the first day,
teacher will go over the
opening question after essential guidelines
the engagement and one more time, and
connecting activities- students will sign a
copy of them saying
What would you do if that have read and
one of your friends were understand them. The
in trouble? essential guidelines
are: take turns
Teacher will circulate speaking, listen
and guide students carefully by tracking the
through asking speaker, speak to each
answering the questions other, not the teacher,
according to the socratic ask questions, and
seminar format. speak at least once.
The teacher will also
-Teacher will introduce choose the leader to
general themes and ask the first question.
concepts of the text and
relate them to student - On the second day,
respsonses. the first group of
students will bring their
-On the second day ( book and their
and the remainder of the questions to the circle
week) a chosen leader of chairs. The leader
will ask the opening will ask the question
question, The seminar and the conversation
begins with the leader will begin. The outer
posing an opening group of students will
question that gives all bring clipboards and
participants an their reflection
opportunity to share questions and take
their thinking and notes.
ideas (Clayton,2013).
- On day three, the
This time, the groups will switch and
question will be at the end we will have
prepared in advance our group debrief.
like in Day 1: During the debrief,
students will share their
portion to express how for. Students will
the whole group understand the difference
discussion is similar to between sentence stems
the Socratic Seminar. that are used for problem
solving, stating different
viewpoints, summarizing,
asking questions, asking
for clarification, and
paraphrasing (see handout
below).
- On day three, teacher will
discuss the difference
between the students
participating in the Seminar
and those taking notes.
Teacher will explain that
the students taking notes
are the ones observing and
collecting data for their
discussion. The questions
that the students will be
displayed on the board and
students will get to read
through them. The
questions will be as
follows: What are the
participants doing while
other students are
speaking?. How many
times did each person
speak?, What were some
of the shared ideas?, Did
anyone change their
mind?, How did students
add on or respond to each
other?, How did they or
didnt they use the
sentence stems?
- On days four-five (and
How are all the reflection notes.
characters in the story
connected?
Students will engage
with the question.
These questions,
relevant to the text,
are prepared ahead of
time. They can best
be answered by
referring to the text,
and can be revisited
throughout the unit.
Not only does an
opening question rely
on the text, but it also
draws upon students
content knowledge
and prior
experiences.
(Clayton,2013).
-On the third day the
leader will again pose
an opening question to
the group. This time the
question will be
formulated a joint effort
amongst the leaders
and the teacher, gaining
insights from the whole
class.
-On the fourth day the
leader will pose the
opening question. This
time leaders will
throughout the rest of the
week), teacher will have
the students pull out their
sentence stems and use
them in conversation.
Teacher will also make
anchor charts to display
around the classroom on
day 2 of week 2.
formulate questions
completely
independently. Asking
teachers only clarifying
questions on about the
question formulating
process.
-On the fifth day leaders
will formulate and pose
the opening question.
This time leaders will
formulate questions
completely
independently. Asking
teachers only clarifying
questions on about the
question formulating
process.
Learning - Throughout the week
Together students will work in
(We do) partners to fill out answer an open ended
portions of their venn
diagram to identify key
components of whole
class discussions and
Socratic Seminars. They
will also identify what the
two conversations have
in common. This will be
the core of the
discussions being had
this week. Videos of
Socratic Seminars will be
watched to provide a
visual.
- At the end of the week
when all students are
finished, students will
share one element from
the whole group
discussion side or the
Socratic Seminar side of
their chart they found
most important. The
teacher will make the
whole group chart in
front of the classroom.
The entire class will list
elements they each have
in common. This chart
can be displayed while
engaging in a Socratic
Seminar.
- Students will practice
have a conversation to
question without raising
their hands (days 1-5).
- Students will write a quick
biography about
themselves and then
partner up. 1 person will
listen and practice taking
notes while the other
person reads their
biography outloud.
Students will switch roles
and then each students will
be given two minutes to
ask an open ended
questions. Teacher will call
on 3 volunteers to share
their answers with the class
(day 2).
-Students will engage N/A
in discussions that
will allow them to
critically analyze while
simultaneously
working towards the
Common Core
Standards. Students
will use graphic
organizers to
formulate questions
and write down
thoughts as they
engage with the text
each day.
-On Day 1 students
will explore the
beginning to middle of
text: Students will
think critically about
the characters, setting
and plot. After
identifying these
elements, the
students will think
about the implications
that the setting and
plot may have on the
characters. Students
will use think-sheets
and question sheets.

-Days 2-3 students will

explore the middle of
the text - Students will
identify the conflict(s)
in the text and start
formulating questions
that will help them
brainstorm possible
solutions. Students
will compare their
brainstormed
solutions against
solutions formulated
by the characters in
the text. Students will
use think-sheets.

-Days 4-5 Middle to

end of text- Students
will further explore the
conflicts in the text
and their implications
on the characters.
Students will also
develop and answer
questions that will
allow them to
examine the conflicts
in the story as they
 relate to real life
situations. Students
will use think-sheets.

Just For Me - Students will engage in Students will write a quick Students will write N/A
(You Do) a reflective writing in journal entry on which type personal reflections
their notebooks in which of sentence stem they about each days closing
they state their initial found themselves using the question and submit to
thoughts on engaging in most that day (days 3-5). the teacher through
a Socratic Seminar. They google classroom.
should reflect on their
thoughts, feelings,
questions, and any other
ideas they have
expressing their initial
reactions towards a
Socratic Seminar. This
prompt can be used
throughout the week to
track their initial
understandings of what
makes a Socratic
Seminar unique, the
value of engaging in one,
or their understandings
of the layout of the
Socratic Seminar.

Assessment/ Exit ticket questions: Exit ticket question: Exit Ticket/Closing N/A
Challenge Day 1: Why do we Day 1: An example of a Questions:
Question engage in whole group sentence stem for a
discussions? clarification question is Closing questions at
Day 2: What is one _______________. the end of the
element of a group Day 2: An example of a seminar help
discussion? sentence stem for an participants
Day 3: Draw a picture of adding on statement is summarize their new
Socratic Seminar ______________. learning and make
Day 4: What is one Day 3: An example of a important connections
element of a Socratic sentence stem for a to their lives
 Seminar? disagreeing statement is
Day 5: What is _______________.
something you could Day 4: An example of a
teach someone about a sentence stem for asking a
Socratic Seminar? question is
__________________.
Day 5: An example of a
problem solving sentence
stem is ______________.
Wrap-Up Day 1: Tell a partner Day 1: Turn and Talk to a
what you like or do not partner about what you
like about whole group think of our guidelines.
discussions. Day 2: Write down one
Day 2: Tell a partner a guideline you are excited
question we could ask in about and one you are
a whole group concerned or confused
discussion. about.
Day 3: In a small group, Day 3: Write in your journal
arrange yourself into about why you think the
what a Socratic Seminar role of the observer is
could look like. important.
Day 4: Write an adjective Day 4: In a small group,
to describe a Socratic practice having a
Seminar on the board conversation about your
(Clayton,2013).
Day 1-How are the
characters in the story
connected?
Day 2-What do you
predict will happen to
the characters next?
Day 3-Why do you think
the characters took the
actions they did?
Day 4-How has your
thinking changed from
when you started
reading the text to now?
Day 5- What connection
do you see between the
text and your own
personal experiences?
Day 1: Turn and talk Day 2: Have a group
about what we read reflection on what were
today, what further the strengths and what
questions can you ask? were the areas of
Day 2: Turn and Talk growth during the
about what we read Socratic Seminars.
today, listen to the Write down on a Sticky
questions asked in your note whether you
group and answer at would or wouldnt be
least one. excited to participate in
Day 3:Turn and Talk, one again and why.
what questions do you
have about the
characters actions?
Day 4:Turn and talk
 Day 5: Share with a day without interrupting about what we read
partner what book you anyone. today, write down in
would like to cover for Day 5: Write down which your journal 2 questions
our first Socratic type of questioning will help that your partner has.
Seminar. you learn the most. Day 5:Turn and talk
about what we read
today, which character
can you relate to the
most? Why? Write in
your journal about the
character your partner
chose.

Handouts

Handout: Participation Guidelines

Directions: Read the directions to learn more about how to participate in a Socratic seminar and for examples of sentence and question starters.

Participation Guidelines:

1. Take turns speaking.

2. Listen carefully to others by tracking the speaker.

3. Speak at least once.

4. Speak to each other, not to the teacher, by turning your eyes and bodies toward one another.

5. Ask questions.

Statements and Questions

I wonder why
What if we looked at this in a different way, such as
What in the text makes you say that?
How does that support our idea about
In my mind I see
 Based on , I infer that
Do you agree or disagree with
I am still confused by
Based on , I predict that

For Clarification or Paraphrasing

, could you please rephrase that?
Can you say more about that?
I have a question about
Could someone please paraphrase that?
In other words, are you saying ?

For Building Ideas

I agree with and Id like to add
I really like that idea because
That idea is important because
If we change that a little, we can see
Another example of is
This reminds me of
Now I am wondering
This relates back to our essential question because

For Different Viewpoint

Thats a great point, but I think
I agree with the part about , but I think
On the other hand, what about
The evidence seems to suggest something different, such as
I politely disagree with because

Partners
We decided that
During the turn and talk, pointed out to me that
After our think-pair-share, I believe I have a new idea
We concluded that

Problem Solving
I think the way to continue is
 We should identify
I think we should do this step by step, starting with
Another way to look at this is
I feel like we are missing something because
Maybe we can reframe this by
Which thinking map could we use to help us?

Summarizing
Id like to go back to what was saying and
So, the big idea is
So, what can we conclude from this?
After our analysis, it appears that
Several things contributed to this conclusion; the most important is

Handout: Ways to Participate in a Socratic Seminar

Directions: Strive to participate in many different ways. Read the following list to guide your participation in the seminar.

Take a risk
Ask a question
Ask a follow-up question
Practice active listening
Provide evidence
Smile and have fun
Stay focused
Cite text or help someone else cite text
Share an annotation
Give someone specific praise
 Make a relevant comment
Volunteer to read
Add an example
Ask for a turn and talk
Ask for a citation from the text
Ask for clarification
Weave together a few ideas
Summarize what has happened
Make a connection to personal life
Make a connection to another text
Support another persons idea
Encourage someone to speak
Appreciate another viewpoint
Help a peer stay focused
Keep the group on track
Point out that we are repeating
Lookup a word in a dictionary
Paraphrase or rephrase someone else
Offer to take notes for someone
Help deepen an idea
Help broaden an idea
References
Clayton, H. (2013). Socratic Seminars: Making Meaningful Dialogue. Retrieved from:http://www.justaskpublications.com/just-ask-resource-center/e-
newsletters/mccca/socratic-seminars-making-meaningful-dialogue/

KIPP. (n.d.). Module 1: Inspiring Creativity . Wheatley. Retrieved March 17, 2017.