Preparing for a Socratic Seminar

Aim: How do we prepare for a Socratic Seminar?

Do Now: Complete your work from yesterday. Prepare to share out your answers to the last two questions.

The photo to the right is a sculpture of Socrates, the father of Greek philosophy. Socratic seminars are inspired by Socrates' belief in the power of questions to learn. In his view, questions are more important than facts and discussion is more productive than debate.

Step 1: Prepare for a Socratic Seminar based on this New York Times article about teenage decision-making.
Step 2: After you have read the article (and decoded some of the difficult vocabulary), write at least two open-ended questions for discussion. Remember: open-ended questions cannot be answered with one word. The best open-ended questions begin with "why" or "how." Why do you think this is so? ;-)

The guidelines for Socratic seminars are posted on this blog as a page.

Final Reflection: Post your open-ended questions for the Socratic seminar on your blog.

Standards
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and noting any discrepancies among the data.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.3 Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.6 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products in response to ongoing feedback, including new arguments or information.