Practices to Establish Meaningful Dialogue in the Classroom Accountable Talk Practices to Establish Meaningful Dialogue in the Classroom

What is Accountable Talk? Accountable Talk is a structure that engages students in dialogue with each other Uses a combination of verbal and non-verbal prompts to remind students of expectations Builds on itself over the course of the year (or acts as a menu) Replaces the tennis talk that often fills classrooms (teacher-student-teacher) Aligns with the curriculum, character and culture goals of the building by centering students and emphasizing critical thinking

Essential Teacher Actions Neutral face and tone for verbal prompt Neutral face and body language for nonverbal, unobtrusive to the speaker Be consistent and stubborn, but not negative Teachers stay neutral through discussion and do not show their opinion When verbal prompt is given, nonverbal should be given also

REMEMBER The entire premise of Accountable Talk is that students have inherent value and that what they say matters. Every prompt is meant to reinforce this idea- structure for the sake of empowering students, not structure for the sake of controlling them.

The Basics (Layer 1) Prompts Sit up- tap two V’s, then thumbs up Track the speaker- point to your eyes, then the speaker Hands down- both palms down College voice- tap palm then salute Complete sentence- purse fingers then stretch Speak to the class- scoop the class

Orient Students To Each Other(Layers 2-4) Prompts Thinking time- fist tight to the chest Ready to respond- thumb up, index when ready to explain Agreement- ‘Y’ sign linking speaker and student Encourage each other- spirit fingers Build on each other- fist over fist

Implementing Accountable Talk Introduce each prompt verbal cue explanation bullet on an anchor chart nonverbal cue* Practice one skill at a time, then incorporate fully Prompt students consistently without judgement without interrupting the speaker without backing down referring back to the purpose: what students have to say is important! Perfect time to implement or introduce sentence frames *Not all prompts have a gesture- refer students back to anchor chart

Building Computational Fluency and Mathematical Discourse Number Talks Building Computational Fluency and Mathematical Discourse

What is a Number Talk? Number Talks are fast, targeted whole-class exercises over a set of math problems 3-4 problems which build on each other around a concept or skill No more than 15 minutes daily, can be less frequent Can build on Accountable Talk practices Can be done independently or using the book Absolutely appropriate for all students

Today’s Talk Signs: Procedure: 10 + 10 + 10 16 + 14 13 + 17 + 5 thinking (fist) have an answer (thumb) strategy to explain (fingers) Procedure: silent think answer dump explain and scribe 10 + 10 + 10 16 + 14 13 + 17 + 5

The Basics Ahead of time, teacher selects problems around a specific skill or concept perfectly appropriate to begin with talks that are below grade level and not aligned with the rest of math block if you choose Write one problem at a time on the board silently present the problem or picture without explanation Students think silently- no writing or using manipulatives this is crucial because you want to understand their internal processes and their ability to articulate them Take ALL responses, scribe them be completely neutral throughout this step and simply collect ideas for students to defend and explain

The Basics (cont’d) Call on students to explain HOW they found their answer- focus on their process and their mental visualization ask probing questions but be comfortable with students’ being wrong- you are doing an error analysis Teacher scribes each response as students explain (even if incorrect) this illustrates math thinking and actions for other students, shows you where they’re coming from, and can uncover patterns, misconceptions, connections Students can redact possible answers or respond to each others’ thinking narrow down the responses and have students explain why they agree/disagree, “read each others’ minds”, etc. Complete each problem in succession and THEN point out or draw out strategy/concept if possible, keep up all of the work until all problems are complete and then connect them- possibly create an anchor chart around the concept or skill o connect it to math lesson

Why Number Talks? Students will verbalize and justify their thinking engage in meaningful dialogue with each other as well as with the teacher see math strategies in action as the teacher scribes build connections between concepts remediate previously missed concepts see numbers as flexible and malleable

Resources Number Talk Book and DVD http://www.mathperspectives.com/num_talks.html Dropbox materials for Accountable Talk