Lesson 23: “Jane Goodall taught us to see the natural world. Now it’s our turn to act,” Socratic Seminar

Turn and Talk

Say these Directions: Think about what Robin Wall Kimmerer and Jane Goodall both ask people to notice about the living world. Turn and talk with your partner about the following questions:

• How is their work similar?

• What do they both value about how humans relate to nature?

  • Kimmerer and Goodall both work with the natural, living world. They both focus on careful observation and respect for living entities. Goodall studies animals through close observation, and Kimmerer connects science and Indigenous worldviews to explain reciprocity. Both show that understanding the natural world can lead people to care and act responsibly

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Now that we’ve connected Goodall’s work to Kimmerer’s ideas about responsibility and care, we’re ready to evaluate how effectively Corwin argues that people should act on these ideas. Today, you will examine his claims, evidence, and reasoning and discuss whether his argument is strong and convincing.

Fluency Practice

Say these Directions: Take out your copy of “Jane Goodall taught us to see the natural world. Now it’s our turn to act.” Listen as I read the excerpt aloud, paying attention to pauses and emphasis.

Display and read aloud the excerpt from Corwin’s op-ed, in which he begins the paragraph, “She used patience, not force, to build trust with animals” and ending after the sentence, “Whether it was an auditorium packed with dignitaries or a remote village in Africa, she’d walk in, monkey stuffed animal in hand, and proceed to joyfully bellow out the ‘hello’ hoots of a chimpanzee greeting.”

• Ask: What is the gist of this excerpt?

  • It explains how Goodall built trust with animals through patience and connection and how her success with animals made her respected by many different people.

Say these Directions: Now we will read it again to build understanding. I will read one sentence, and you will repeat it with the same pacing and emphasis. As we echo-read, notice where the punctuation slows you down and how the contrasts highlight the author’s point.

Read one sentence, and then have the class repeat.

Say these Directions: Let’s read one more time to practice fluency. This time, read with your partner. Partner A reads first while Partner B listens for pacing, clear pauses, and emphasis on important words. Then switch roles.

Provide time for students to partner-read the text.

• Partner A reads. Partner B provides feedback.

• Partner B reads, Partner A provides feedback.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Today, we will use our fluency work to support our academic discussion by noticing how Corwin builds his ideas about Jane Goodall’s impact.

Part A: Discussion Prep—Evaluating Corwin’s Argument (RI.8.8, SL.8.1.a) (10 minutes)

• Say: When we evaluate an argument, we move beyond identifying its parts and start judging how well they work together. We ask questions like:

  • Are the claims clear?

  • Is the evidence relevant and sufficient?

  • Is the reasoning sound?

• That is what helps us explain why an argument is strong or weak. Strong discussion means going beyond “I agree” or “I disagree” and explaining your judgment with evidence.

Think-Pair-Share

Return students to the same small groups from Lesson 22. Have them use their Collective Idea Board from Lesson 22 as the main preparation tool for the seminar.

Say these Directions: You will prepare for the Socratic Seminar by evaluating Corwin’s argument. You will identify one strength, one weakness, and explain your thinking using evidence from the text.

Display and review the following directions:

• Step 1 (Setup, 1 min): In your journal, draw a simple chart with three boxes or columns: Strength of the Argument, Weakness of the Argument, Evidence/Reasoning from the Text. Leave one line at the bottom for: My overall judgment.

• Step 2 (Think, 1 min): Quietly write one strength, one weakness, and one piece of text evidence and reasoning to support your evaluation of Corwin’s argument.

• Step 3 (Pair, 4 min): Turn to a partner within your small group and compare your ideas. As you talk, use words like relevant, sufficient, sound, weak, or impactful to describe your evaluation of Corwin’s argument.

• Step 4 (Share, 3 min): Share one refined idea with your full group.

Provide student groups with the questions they will be asked during the Socratic Seminar.

Say these Directions: Read over the Socratic Seminar questions with your small group. Based on the questions, add ideas and text evidence from the op-ed into your three-column chart and/or your Collaborative Idea Board from Lesson 22 to use in the Socratic Seminar.

• How impactful is Corwin’s argument about Jane Goodall? What are his argument’s strengths? What are his argument’s weaknesses?

• Does he support his claims with relevant and sufficient evidence? Why or why not?

• Does he support his claims with sound and logical reasoning? Why or why not?

• Is any of his evidence less relevant or less effective? Explain.

Provide time for student groups to collaborate and add ideas and text evidence to their charts and/or their Collective Idea Boards.

Part B: Socratic Seminar—Is Corwin’s Argument Effective? (RI.8.8, SL.8.1.a-d) (20 minutes)

Socratic Seminar

• Say: Remember that in a Socratic Seminar, the goal is to build understanding together using the text. That means you need to make a clear claim, support it with evidence from the text, and listen and respond to others.

• Say: After I share an idea, I don’t stop. I listen and respond to others to move the discussion forward.

  • Building on that idea, I think the evidence is relevant but not fully sufficient because …

  • I see that differently because in the section where Corwin contrasts “distance and detachment” with “connection,” …

• These discussion moves help us build on ideas, respectfully challenge them, and stay grounded in the text.

Post the following discussion stems to support students during their discussion.

Discussion Stems

• According to the text, ___.

• Building on ___’s idea, I think ___.

• I see evidence for ___ in the section where ___.

• I see that differently because ___.

• What evidence makes you say that?

Arrange students in a circle (or inner–outer circle). Students should have the op-ed and their notes. Listen for text-based comments and use of discussion stems.

Say these Directions: As you speak during today’s academic discussion, refer to the text, use discussion stems, and build on or challenge ideas respectfully.

Facilitate the Socratic Seminar discussion by asking the following questions and allowing enough time for students to discuss their ideas.

• Ask: How impactful is Corwin’s argument? What are its strengths and weaknesses?

  • Corwin’s argument is impactful because it connects Goodall’s work and legacy to a clear call to action, “our turn to act.” A strength is that his message is emotionally powerful, but a weakness is that he does not fully explain what specific actions readers should take in “honor” of Goodall.

• Ask: Does he support his claims with relevant and sufficient evidence? Why or why not?

  • His evidence is mostly relevant because it stays focused on Goodall’s influence, such as the “light bulb moment” the author experienced personally. And he includes many of Goodall’s successes, including her ability to train a chimpanzee to use “a tool to gather termites.” However, the evidence is not always sufficient because some claims rely more on personal experience than on multiple concrete examples.

• Ask: Does he support his claims with sound and logical reasoning? Why or why not?

  • His reasoning is mostly sound because he shows that if Goodall changed how people think, then people should act differently. However, the shift to “our turn to act” happens quickly, so the reasoning is not as fully developed. If the author had included more specific details about Goodall’s work experience, it might have made the evidence and reasoning stronger.

• Ask: Is any of his evidence less relevant or less effective? Explain.

  • Most of his evidence is relevant, but some details about reputation or admirers are less important than the examples that show how Goodall changed science or inspired conservation. For example, he mentions all the people who loved Goodall, including “royalty and rock stars,” which is not relevant to his overall argument. Those details build admiration, but they do not logically support the main argument

Provide students with a confidence continuum (i.e., 1–5). As needed, model how to demonstrate a level of confidence using the continuum.

Quick Write

Instructs students to complete a brief reflection on their evaluation of Corwin’s argument from the discussion. Encourage students to think about the different ideas shared in the discussion to complete their Quick Write response.

Say these Directions: Respond in 1–2 sentences: How impactful is Corwin’s argument? Use one specific detail from today’s discussion to support your answer.

• Corwin’s argument is impactful because he connects Goodall’s work to a clear call to action, saying it is “our turn to act.” However, the argument is less convincing because he does not fully explain what that action should look like, which makes his reasoning less developed.

Instruct students to read their independent reading book for 20 minutes and complete a reading log entry.

Read your independent reading book for 20 minutes. In your reading log, record the date and pages you read, write 1–2 sentences about what happened or what you learned, and respond to this week’s prompt using evidence from the text.