Lesson 45: Ordinary Moments, Reflect and Respond Dialogue, Part 2

Circulate through the classroom as students talk. Listen for specific references to student narratives. As you observe, ensure that each student speaks in response to the prompt.

Turn and Talk

Say these Directions: You are going to Turn and Talk about one memorable moment from yesterday’s presentations. Use your homework responses to guide your discussion.

• Ask: What was a moment that stood out to you from yesterday’s presentations? What was one moment that helped you feel empathy for a character?

  • My classmate _______ read a section about _______. It was memorable for me because _______.

  • One moment that helped me feel empathy for a character was _______.

    • My classmate read a section about her mother’s illness. It was memorable because she used descriptive language to paint a picture of how it felt to watch her mom struggle.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Today, we will finish our first unit on empathy, community, and belonging. We will discuss how our presentations help us understand the value of telling our stories.

Reflect-and-Respond Dialogue

Say these Directions: Today, we will use the Reflect-and-Respond Dialogue routine to reflect on the Author’s Chair presentations. This community dialogue uses the Ask/Build/Challenge/Clarify routine. This means we will respond to one another’s stories using sentence frames that help us practice empathy and active listening. This speaking and listening work will strengthen your ability to share your own voice and honor others during your final presentation.

• Say: In the Reflect-and-Respond Dialogue, we can use sentence frames to track and articulate our ideas:

  • One memorable part of the presentations yesterday was when ________. It was memorable because ________.

  • Hearing other people share parts of their stories made me feel ________ because ________.

  • Sharing stories builds community/deepens empathy by ________.

  • One thing I learned about a classmate is ________.

  • One lesson I learned from this unit is ________.

• Say: You will work in different pairs, each time using the sentence frames to guide your conversations. Include the following in your second discussion and every discussion after that:

  • One idea from a previous conversation was ________. This made me think ________.

Model a round of partner dialogue. Display the model conversation as you review it.

• Say: Let’s practice a round of dialogue.

  • Partner A: One memorable part of yesterday's presentations was when someone shared that they were scared to ride the bus. It was memorable because I was scared the first time, too.

  • Partner B: That moment was memorable for me, too. I appreciated the strong, vivid description of the bus that helped me put myself in the narrator’s shoes. Hearing people share other parts of their stories made me feel connected because I understood their perspectives, even if I didn’t always share the same experiences.

  • Partner A: I heard you say you felt connected, even if you didn’t have the exact same experience. Sharing stories really helped me feel empathy for my classmates, because it helped me see the world through their eyes.

  • Partner B: Yeah! One thing I learned from this unit is that you never know what someone is going through until you hear it from them. We all have big moments.

  • Partner A: I agree. I learned about that when Josephine shared the story about her mom’s illness.

• Say: If this is a second or third round of dialogue, the conversation should also include a reference to the first round.

  • One idea from a previous conversation was that stories help people connect to shared experiences, like how so many of us can imagine being scared on the bus. This made me think of how all the vignettes in Look Both Ways reference a school bus falling from the sky. So many characters thought about this same image. It seemed silly at first, but it connected all of them in a memorable way. I wonder how many of my classmates think about the same things I think about!

Connection to Today’s Learning

Say: As we discuss, think about how telling our own stories connects us to others by helping us find common ground.

Community Dialogue Reflection (SL.6.1, SL6.1.a) (30 minutes)

Teach: Reflect-and-Respond Dialogue

Emphasize that this is a structured discussion where students are responsible for both speaking clearly and listening actively. Review the Performance Task handout, highlighting the rubric so students understand what success looks like. Clarify timing (about 4 minutes per round) and explain that students will rotate partners to practice multiple perspectives. Remind students that they may discuss a passage from Look Both Ways or from a personal narrative.

Lead students in a brief discussion about the rubric.

• Ask: Based on the performance task rubric, what do you need to do to score a 3 in this Reflect and Respond Dialogue?

  • I need to use the sentence frames well and respond directly to my classmates’ ideas. I need to listen actively and ask follow-up questions. I should stay on task and take the assignment seriously.

Say these Directions: Begin your conversations. Move to a new partner as indicated by your teacher