The document provides guidance on establishing constructive conversations in the classroom. It outlines the problem that students may lack understanding of discussion purposes and rules or the skills needed to effectively converse. The solution presented is to consistently teach norms and vocabulary, model discussions, teach students to restate and reason, provide rubrics to assess discussions. Resources like discussion prompts, vocabulary visuals, transcripts and analysis tools can support building students' conversation abilities. The goal is to help students have meaningful academic discussions that further their understanding of content topics.

1. Constructive Conversations
in the Classroom, Based
on the CCS
Presentation by Veronica Noyce
ELD Resource Instructor
Based on Experiences, Assignments, and Material from
Online Course through Stanford University, Constructive
Classroom Conversations: Mastering Language for
College and Career Readiness (Elementary)
https://novoed.com/classroom-conversations-elementary-fall-2014

4. THE PROBLEM:
Students may not fully understand the purpose for discussion, or the rules for engagement.
They may also lack the background knowledge, experience, academic vocabulary, and in
some cases, the socialization required to do so. Cultural norms and proficiency with the
English language also play
a part in their ability to converse.
“Fostering students’ respect for one another and nurturing an open, trusting classroom community are also necessary to build a
classroom culture of conversation for learning…while respect tends to be near the top of most schools’ citizenship norms, it doesn’t

5. THE SOLUTION:
1.Consistently teach norms and vocabulary
2. Model discussions (using various tools)
3. Teach students to re-voice, re-state, and use reason
to create structured conversations
4. Provide rubrics for discussions and assess based on those rubrics
This video from the Teaching Channel is one of many great online resources to see discussion skills
building in action.

6. Discussion prompt cards can be used at any
level.

7. Frontload Discussion Vocabulary-Using
Visual Definitions!
This should include an explanation of the discussion skill, and its
relationship to the content being discussed.
See the examples below:
Think through
what you say or
do

8. Some tools for recording
academic discussions
Prepare students for accountability by showing them
that they may be recorded, let them listen and reflect.
As the teacher, make sure to get school, parent, and
student permission to use recording/video of their
engagement. Listen to recordings, and observe one
discussion at a time to fine tune future lessons.

9. The Four Constructive
Conversation Skills
This poster is a great resource to help the teacher and students prepare for
academic conversations that build on an idea, and provides vocabulary as well!

10. This is a poster with
associated discussion
cards and sentence
starters that can help
students move through
discussions based on
Bloom’s Taxonomy.
Also provides the
vocabulary needed to get
the conversations going
in an academic and
meaningful way.
NEW SCHOOL
CLASSROOM POSTER -
Questions for Building
Your Brainpower

11. Finally, apply the conversation skills (Speaking and Listening Standards) to the
content being taught. Provide a rubric for the students, and assess them for the
skill as well as the content.
Here is an example of a basic rubric. Student self-assessments can be used as
well. This can assist students with accountability and teachers with assessing
discussion skills.

12. Sample Transcript from Partner Conversation, 3rd Grade
Subject Area / Topic:
Reading Comprehension, Realistic Fiction/Clarify
Text Using Visuals and Vocabulary
Grade Level(s):
3rd Grade ELLs
Objective:
Listening/Speaking: The students will
demonstrate understanding of oral
communications by: summarizing main
ideas/concepts and supporting details from text
(fiction and nonfiction) in complete sentences.
Reading: The students will demonstrate
knowledge of reading comprehension by:
identifying and describing the plot (specific
events, problems and solutions) from a fictional
text (this supported by use of visual information
for clarification).
Prompt:
"In your discussions, use the text illustrations
and the sentence starters to clarify and talk
about the ideas from the selection, What’s Best
For Red?. What is the problem presented? How
do the characters solve it?"
In "What's Best for Red?" by
Casey Eggars, the premise is about a
class project in the works for a fictional
group of students, who must select a
plant, flower or vegetable, and grow it in
class garden for use. They must decide
what kind of plant to grow that bears a
red fruit or vegetable.

13. Participants:
Student A
Female; Grade 3; Language Proficiency: Beginner; Primary Language: Spanish
Student B
Female; Grade 3; Language Proficiency: Beginner; Primary Language: Tagalog
Discourse:
(1) Student A: I remember that the students in the other groups wanted flowers for
their project, but that the last group wanted a red plant.
(2) Student B: Yes...and, the boy was like "What is best for red?", so the students in
his group talked about different plants with red fruits or vegetables.
(3) Student A: What was the fruit or vegetable they said? (Looks at the book)
(4) Student B: It was a beet. Beets are not fruits, they are roots.
(5) Student A: The boy wanted to make pie or jam with beets (laughs), but the others
thought it was yucky!
(6) Student B: Here the boy thought cherries, but the teacher said it would take too
long to grow. Why did he say that?
(7) Student A: The picture shows the kids are old now, under the tree. They would be
too old!
(8) Student B: That's when they decided on berries that are red, like raspberries and
strawberries. They picked strawberries.
(9) Student A: Yes, because they are easy to grow, and make pies and jam. The
teacher says yes, and that is how they solved the problem.
(10) Student B: Then the students had new plants for the garden after they were
done
​(with the project).

14. Conversation Analysis Tool from Stanford Online
Course
If you had scored this transcript, what rationale would you
give for your score? Discuss.

15. Conversation Analysis Tool from Stanford Online
Course
If you had scored this transcript, what rationale would you
give for your score? Discuss.

16. Takeaways…
 A constructive classroom conversation is one in which two students, or a group, discuss
what they learned from content, based on a lesson-related prompt, and using a conversation
skill (such as clarification) to show understanding and build on learning.
 This conversation should meet the Common Core Standards for Career and College
Readiness, as articulated by grade-level, therefore must be developmentally appropriate.
 A constructive conversation looks like two or more students, at various proficiency levels,
discussing a topic in depth. They are using a conversation skill (such as negotiation for
meaning, clarification, fortify, or create), to elaborate and build on the conversation. Their
body language is receptive (looking at the speaker, nodding when appropriate, showing
interest), and they are displaying respectful behavior, following pre-determined norms for
academic discussion.
 Their interactions meet the objective(s) and build toward new learning--in other words, they
expand on an idea for the purpose of meaningful engagement and synthesis, to reach
greater understanding (thus mastery) of a topic.
 These interactions occur with little or no teacher input or intervention, and provide
authentic evidence of new learning.

17. Resources and Citation for This Presentation (In order
shown)
IMAGES/VIDEO:
• Teachers Pay Teachers Resource- https://www.pinterest.com/explore/listening-rules/
• Elementary Discussion Group- www.gettyimages.com
• Classroom Image- www.pval.org
• Talk Moves: Developing Communication Skills- (TSK Website)
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/developing-communication-skills
• Accountable Discussions- Discussion Cards (The Teacher Toolkit Website)
http://www.theteachertoolkit.com/index.php/tool/accountable-discussions
• Student Led Discussion Prompts- (Ms . KinBK Blog)
http://misskinbk.blogspot.com/2013/10/student-led-discussion-prompts-freebie.html
• Class Discussion Protocol and Rubrics on Pinterest-
http://www.pinterest.com/asiakinshasha/class-discussion-protocol/
• Technology Education on Pinterest-
http://www.pinterest.com/lisadgogo/technology-education/
• Constructive Skills Poster- http://aldnetwork.org/sites/default/files/pictures/1%204convo_skills_poster-
PDF.pdf
• QUESTIONS-Building the Foundation for Critical Thinking (via Pintarest)
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/278801033156048283/
ARTICLES and DOCUMENTS:
• Common Core Standards for Speaking and Listening: Common Core State Standards for ENGLISH LANGUAGE
ART S & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects, 2010. PDF, pp.23-24
• Cultivating Constructive Conversations in Every Lesson: Inquiries, Insights, & Ideas (Stanford
University)
PDF article by Jeff Zwiers, Sara Rutherford-Quach, Hsiaolin Hsieh, Diego Roman, & Kenji Hakuta, Understanding
Language Initiative/ OELA/NPD/December, 2013. Quote from pp. 2-3
https://stanford.app.box.com/s/tovx5uef4f9g1yxwcvl8
• Sheltered Instruction Strategies That Actually Work for All Students, by Suzanne Kaplan and Alisa
Leckie, 2009
Adobe Acrobat PDF document
• CAT Tool Example: Constructive Classroom Conversations MOOC, Stanford University, Hakuta, Zwiers, Rutherford-
Quach, 2013.