If You Led a 20-30 Minute Discussion of One Night's Reading
If you led a discussion of one night's reading, please reflect on the experience in the space below.
What went well? What did not go so well? What would you do differently next time? (200 words minimum)
I led a discussion on Monday about the ending of Catcher in the Rye. I spent the weekend finishing the reading and looking at Spark Notes, so I could fully understand the reading. I then created a list of questions and engaging topics to talk about.
What went well, with leading class– was having people contribute to the discussion. I thought that people would be more hesitant to speak, but everyone seemed to have something to say. That was also challenging, because we "digressed" from the topic I set forth. I created this outline of how the conversation would flow, and specific questions to ask everyone. The problem was people answered the questions I had not asked, and so I had to adapt to where the conversation was flowing. Which meant, I made up some questions on the spot. It was interesting though, because the new questions I made, were actually "better" than the questions I previously wrote out.
If I was to lead a class again, I would try to have different peers contribute to the talk. It felt like the same five people did all the talking, and I think it might have been hard for others to speak out. I would try to find a way to have everybody be a part of the discussion- and feel comfortable about talking.
Overall, it was pretty easy and really fun. I enjoyed leading the class and it was interesting to hear everyone's thoughts on the ending of Catcher in the Rye.
And I interrupted you too much, Izzy! Sorry about that. I just have a hard time keeping quiet about this book---there's so much there. Good work on leading the discussion.
I led a discussion on the first 17 pages of "Of Mice and Men".
I think it helped me think a lot deeper about the book. It was kind of a daunting task at first, to led a 30 minute discussion. But Mr. Deffner gave me some good ideas and with the help of some fellow student, I was able to make it last a while. I liked how people got into the conversation and kept it going. I hope I made some people think!
I lead the discussion on the second chapter of Mice and Men. Most people seemed to participate and I liked how we explored each topic almost too well. I learned a lot of things from other people that I had not considered about the chapter myself. I also liked leading the discussion because I was did not have to fight to have myself heard. I was able, as much as you can in front of the class, to relax, and listen to what people were thinking and talking about. What did not go well for me was that I had not prepared enough questions to keep the audience engaged for enough time. I thought I had enough, but some of my questions were answered more quickly that I had thought they would. If I were to do this again, I would definitely prepare more questions, and focus on reading the chapter in a lot more depth than usual. I feel that I did not explore as much as I could have. Also, I had to make up some questions on the spot, which I thought should have been avoided, thought I some of them were interesting and kept me thinking. Overall though, it was one of the easier honors assignments, and I enjoyed it.
I lead a discussion on pages 38-65 in Of Mice and Men. I really enjoyed this to be honest. I thought it was fun to be able to lead the class because I liked to be able to hear what everyone said about the questions I asked. I liked that I got to pick the questions too. Basically I liked being the teacher for a short while. One thing that I thought went well was how just about everyone in the class got involved with the questions I was asking and the discussion itself. However where I was weak was being shy. I felt like most people could see right through me that I was very nervous and anxious the whole time. However when we all got to talking I felt much more relaxed about the situation, I normally do feel more comfortable once I just get started. I feel like it went well. I hope everyone else in the class thought that as well. Basically I just hope everyone wasn’t bored out of their minds, because I really did try to keep everyone included. I think the whole experience was fun. I would definitely pick this option again if I had the choice.
I led a discussion on Monday about the ending of Catcher in the Rye. I spent the weekend finishing the reading and looking at Spark Notes, so I could fully understand the reading. I then created a list of questions and engaging topics to talk about.
ReplyDeleteWhat went well, with leading class– was having people contribute to the discussion. I thought that people would be more hesitant to speak, but everyone seemed to have something to say. That was also challenging, because we "digressed" from the topic I set forth. I created this outline of how the conversation would flow, and specific questions to ask everyone. The problem was people answered the questions I had not asked, and so I had to adapt to where the conversation was flowing. Which meant, I made up some questions on the spot. It was interesting though, because the new questions I made, were actually "better" than the questions I previously wrote out.
If I was to lead a class again, I would try to have different peers contribute to the talk. It felt like the same five people did all the talking, and I think it might have been hard for others to speak out. I would try to find a way to have everybody be a part of the discussion- and feel comfortable about talking.
Overall, it was pretty easy and really fun. I enjoyed leading the class and it was interesting to hear everyone's thoughts on the ending of Catcher in the Rye.
And I interrupted you too much, Izzy! Sorry about that. I just have a hard time keeping quiet about this book---there's so much there. Good work on leading the discussion.
DeleteThere was so much to talk about, at the end of the reading! I really enjoyed this book, but it was confusing at times. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI led a discussion on the first 17 pages of "Of Mice and Men".
ReplyDeleteI think it helped me think a lot deeper about the book. It was kind of a daunting task at first, to led a 30 minute discussion. But Mr. Deffner gave me some good ideas and with the help of some fellow student, I was able to make it last a while. I liked how people got into the conversation and kept it going. I hope I made some people think!
I lead the discussion on the second chapter of Mice and Men. Most people seemed to participate and I liked how we explored each topic almost too well. I learned a lot of things from other people that I had not considered about the chapter myself. I also liked leading the discussion because I was did not have to fight to have myself heard. I was able, as much as you can in front of the class, to relax, and listen to what people were thinking and talking about. What did not go well for me was that I had not prepared enough questions to keep the audience engaged for enough time. I thought I had enough, but some of my questions were answered more quickly that I had thought they would. If I were to do this again, I would definitely prepare more questions, and focus on reading the chapter in a lot more depth than usual. I feel that I did not explore as much as I could have. Also, I had to make up some questions on the spot, which I thought should have been avoided, thought I some of them were interesting and kept me thinking. Overall though, it was one of the easier honors assignments, and I enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteI lead a discussion on pages 38-65 in Of Mice and Men. I really enjoyed this to be honest. I thought it was fun to be able to lead the class because I liked to be able to hear what everyone said about the questions I asked. I liked that I got to pick the questions too. Basically I liked being the teacher for a short while. One thing that I thought went well was how just about everyone in the class got involved with the questions I was asking and the discussion itself. However where I was weak was being shy. I felt like most people could see right through me that I was very nervous and anxious the whole time. However when we all got to talking I felt much more relaxed about the situation, I normally do feel more comfortable once I just get started. I feel like it went well. I hope everyone else in the class thought that as well. Basically I just hope everyone wasn’t bored out of their minds, because I really did try to keep everyone included. I think the whole experience was fun. I would definitely pick this option again if I had the choice.
ReplyDelete