Questioning and Discussion Techniques For Your Classroom
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Questioning and discussion techniques are essential to classroom learning. Whether about a specific area of study or just for fun, questions are a terrific way to get kids thinking critically and creatively.
You probably already use questioning and discussion techniques as part of your teaching – the Socratic Method. You probably also use them to generate discussions and as journal prompts.
Here are a few other creative ways to use questioning and discussion techniques.
Questioning and Discussion Techniques at the Start of the Year
It can be very useful to have students fill out questions about how they feel about school, favorite subjects, areas of strength and weakness, etc., at the start of the year. Here are some suggestions to get started:
Self-Reflection Questions:
How do you feel about coming to school each day?
What are your favorite subjects and why?
Which subjects do you find challenging?
What are your strengths in school?
What areas do you feel you need to improve in?
Opinion Questions:
What is your favorite book and why?
Who is your favorite author?
What is your favorite school activity?
What type of learning activities do you enjoy the most?
What is your favorite way to spend free time at school?
Goal Setting Questions:
What are your academic goals for this year?
What personal goals do you have for this year?
How do you plan to achieve these goals?
What steps will you take if you face challenges in reaching your goals?
How can your teacher help you achieve your goals?
Another fun activity is to have students write the answers to some opinion questions—favorites, for example—at the start of the year and then have them do it again at the end of the year. Kids enjoy seeing where they have changed. Some examples include:
Favorite Questions:
What is your favorite subject at the start of the year?
What is your favorite subject at the end of the year?
Who is your favorite teacher or school staff member at the start of the year?
Who is your favorite teacher or school staff member at the end of the year?
What is your favorite school lunch at the start of the year?
What is your favorite school lunch at the end of the year?
Questioning and Discussion Technique #2: Class Poll
Use a Would You Rather Question (you can get 20 of them here for free) or any other question with two or five or so choices. Here are some suggestions for implementing class polls:
Voting Methods:
Body Voting: Have students move to a part of the room that represents their choice.
Hand Voting: Students raise their hands to indicate their choice.
Name Tags: Students move their name tags to a designated area representing their choice.
Discussion Techniques:
Group Discussion: Have students discuss their positions in small groups, explaining why they made their choice.
Whole Class Discussion: Facilitate a class-wide discussion where students share their reasons for their choices.
Debate: Organize a friendly debate where students defend their positions and try to persuade others to change their minds.
Data Analysis Activities:
Graph Creation: Students can create bar graphs or pie charts to represent the poll results.
Data Comparison: Compare the results of different polls to look for patterns or trends.
Questionnaire Analysis: Have students analyze the data to answer questions about the results, such as the most popular choice or any surprising outcomes.
Poll Question Ideas:
Would You Rather Questions: “Would you rather read a book or watch a movie?”
Opinion Questions: “Which season is your favorite: winter, spring, summer, or fall?”
Preference Questions: “Which of these subjects do you enjoy the most: math, science, language arts, or social studies?”
Hypothetical Questions: “If you could visit any country in the world, where would you go?”
Value Questions: “Which quality do you value the most in a friend: honesty, kindness, loyalty, or humor?”
From there, you can have students discuss their positions and see if anyone changes their mind. Or you can analyze the data to draw conclusions and learn more about the students’ preferences and opinions.
Individual Polls to Enhance Questioning and Discussion Techniques
A good poll question has 3-5 answers. You can make it relevant to a holiday (which of these five choices is your favorite Halloween treat?) or a topic of study (which of these four dinosaurs is your favorite?). Here are some suggestions for creating and using individual polls:
Poll Question Ideas:
Holiday Relevance: “Which of these five choices is your favorite Halloween treat?”
Topic of Study: “Which of these four dinosaurs is your favorite?”
Seasonal Themes: “What is your favorite winter activity: skiing, sledding, ice skating, or building a snowman?”
Cultural Interests: “Which of these countries would you like to visit the most: Japan, Brazil, Italy, or Egypt?”
Homework Assignment:
Data Collection: Have students collect data from 20 or more people over a few days or a week. Using categories with tally marks works well.
Sample Questions for Data Collection:
“What is your favorite color: red, blue, green, yellow, or purple?”
“Which type of pet do you prefer: dog, cat, bird, fish, or reptile?”
Data Analysis
Data Analysis Activities:
Chart Creation:
Graph Paper: Students can use graph paper to make a bar chart representing their data.
Excel Charts: Students can use Excel to create various types of charts (e.g., bar charts, pie charts, line graphs).
Question Answering: Students can answer questions about their charts, such as identifying the most popular and least popular choices.
Class Comparisons: Students can compare their individual charts with those of their classmates to identify similarities and differences.
Class Data Compilation:
Combined Data Chart: Combine all the data collected by students to make one large class chart.
Class Discussion: Facilitate a discussion about the combined data, highlighting any interesting trends or surprising results.
Reflection Questions: Have students reflect on what they learned from the polling activity and how it helped them understand the preferences and opinions of their peers.
These activities will provide students with valuable hands-on experience in data collection, analysis, and interpretation, enhancing their questioning and discussion techniques.
Generating Questions before a Unit as a Questioning Technique
Brainstorming a list of questions about an area of study before you begin the unit is a great way to get kids interested in the topic. It also tells you what they are wondering about. Here are some suggestions for using this technique effectively:
Before
Brainstorming Session:
Group Brainstorming: Have the entire class brainstorm questions together. Encourage every student to contribute at least one question.
Individual Brainstorming: Allow students to individually write down questions they have about the upcoming unit.
Small Group Brainstorming: Divide students into small groups to brainstorm questions and then share them with the class.
Question Prompts:
General Prompts: “What do you already know about this topic?” “What do you want to learn about this topic?”
Specific Prompts: “What are you curious about regarding [specific topic]?” “What challenges do you think we might encounter in this unit?”
Using the Questions:
Guiding the Unit: Use the list of questions to help guide the direction of the unit, ensuring that student interests and curiosities are addressed.
Quests for Answers: Assign individual students or small groups to find the answers to specific questions. This can involve research, experiments, or projects.
Ongoing Reference: Keep the list of questions visible in the classroom as a reference throughout the unit.
After
End-of-Unit Review:
Question Review: At the end of the unit, review the list of questions with the class.
Answer Identification: Identify which questions have been answered during the unit.
Unanswered Questions: Discuss any questions that remain unanswered and explore ways to find those answers.
Reflection Activities:
Self-Reflection: Have students reflect on what they have learned during the unit and how their understanding of the topic has changed.
Group Discussion: Facilitate a class discussion about the most interesting or surprising things they learned.
Future Learning: Encourage students to think about what else they would like to learn about the topic and how they can continue exploring it.
By integrating these suggestions, you can create a dynamic and engaging learning environment that leverages questioning and discussion techniques to deepen student understanding and interest in the subject matter.
Using Questioning and Discussion Techniques with Literature
Asking questions is a wonderful way to explore literature. Getting students to form their own questions not only reinforces comprehension but also gets them thinking more deeply about the characters, setting, plot, and theme, as well as the author’s intent and their own feelings about the book.
Prompts for Generating Questions
T-chart: Have students make a T-chart: Fact Questions on one side, Opinion Questions on the other. For each side, they must write a given number of questions.
Starting Words: Have students write a question starting with each of these words: Who, What, Where, When, How, and Why.
What if…: Have students write questions about the book starting with, “What if…”
Story Elements: Have students write questions focused on specific story elements: setting, character, plot, theme, etc.
Discussion Questions: Have students write questions that they know will be used in discussion.
True/False and Multiple Choice: Have students try writing true/false and multiple-choice questions.
Author Questions: Have students write questions they would like to ask the author.
You can get 64 reading response question cards that will really get your students thinking right here.
Role Playing as a Questioning and Discussion Technique
Having students pretend to be a character from a book they are reading, or a famous person, and then answering questions interview-style can be a great way for them to really think about that person or character’s feelings and opinions. Here are some suggestions to enhance this technique:
Preparation Activities:
Character Study: Have students study the character or famous person thoroughly before the role-playing activity. This can include reading biographies, analyzing texts, or watching documentaries.
Interview Question Creation: Students can create a list of interview questions they would like to ask the character or person they are portraying.
Role-Playing Scenarios:
Book Characters: Students can choose a character from a book they are reading and prepare to answer questions as that character.
Historical Figures: Students can select a famous person from history and research their life to answer questions in character.
Contemporary Figures: Students can portray current celebrities, political figures, or influential people.
Interview Techniques:
Peer Interviews: Pair students up and have them interview each other while in character.
Class Interviews: Conduct a class interview session where one student is interviewed by the entire class.
Panel Discussions: Organize a panel where multiple students, each portraying a different character or person, answer questions from the class.
Extensions
Discussion and Reflection:
Feelings and Opinions: Encourage students to explore and discuss the feelings and opinions of the character or person they are portraying.
Character Analysis: Have students analyze how the character’s experiences and background influence their responses.
Comparative Analysis: Compare and contrast the different characters or people portrayed in the interviews.
Extension Activities:
Writing Assignments: Have students write a diary entry or a letter from the perspective of the character or person they portrayed.
Creative Projects: Students can create a visual representation of their character’s life, such as a timeline, collage, or scrapbook.
Group Projects: Form groups to create a skit or play based on the interviews, showcasing the characters’ interactions and stories.
These role-playing activities provide students with an engaging way to deepen their understanding of characters and historical figures, fostering empathy and enhancing their questioning and discussion skills.
