Helping Dominant or Shy Members

Quiet and Dominant Members Just because some people are quiet, that doesn’t mean their ideas are less valuable. Students who dominate a discussion need to learn how to hold back a bit, while those who are shy need to be recognized and encouraged.

On a sheet of paper, list all the members of your book club including yourself. Rank each member of the group in order by how much they talk in the discussions. Number one is the person who seems to talk the most and the last number will be the person who talks the least.

Form your literature circle groups You will be working to ensure more even participation and you will be practicing asking follow-up questions. Assign a member of the group to be the banker.

1.Each member will be given 5 chips. 2.During the discussion each member must turn in one chip each time they give an answer or an opinion. 3.Once a member has turned in all their chips, they are no longer permitted to give answers. 4.However, that member can still ask follow-up questions or bring up a new topic for discussion from their notes. 5.When the banker has collected all of the chips, they are redistributed to the members and a new round of discussion begins.

Yes or no answers should not be part of a discussion at this point in our literature circles, but if at a point a question like this arises, a chip is not taken for these responses. (don’t try to take the easy way out) Recognize your discussion patterns. If you hold back during discussion, realize it is easier to jump into the discussion earlier than waiting until everyone else’s chips are gone an you are the only one left to participate. All of the group’s attention will be on you. Likewise, if you lose all your chips early and have to ask a ton of follow-up questions, it is smart to hold back some of your answers and let other members give their response.

At the end of the activity, revisit your group list. Share with your group where you had them ranked. Discuss how the discussion changed when using the chips.