Socratic Circles

The benefits and importance of Socratic seminars are widely recognized, but little has been written on how to make them happen successfully in the classroom. By offering real-world examples and straightforward answers to frequent questions, Matt Copeland has created a coaching guide for both the teacher new to Socratic seminars and the experienced teacher seeking to optimize the benefits of this powerful strategy. Socratic Circles also shows teachers who are familiar with literature circles the many ways in which these two practices complement and extend each other.

Effectively implemented, Socratic seminars enhance reading comprehension, listening and speaking skills, and build better classroom community and conflict resolution skills. By giving students ownership over the classroom discussion around texts, they become more independent and motivated learners. Ultimately, because there is a direct relationship between the level of participation and the richness of the experience, Socratic seminars teach students to take responsibility for the quality of their own learning.

Filled with examples to help readers visualize the application of these concepts in practice, Socratic Circles includes transcripts of student dialogue and work samples of preparation and follow-up activities. The helpful appendices offer ready-to-copy handouts and examples, and suggested selections of text that connect to major literary works.

As our classrooms and our schools grow increasingly focused on meeting high standards and differentiating instruction for a wide variety of student needs and learning styles, Socratic seminars offer an essential classroom tool for meeting these goals. Socratic Circles is a complete and practical guide to Socratic seminars for the busy classroom teacher.

Table of Contents

About the Author(s)

After nine years as a high school English teacher, Matt is now a writing consultant for the Kansas State Department of Education.
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Reviews

Education Review - August 2005
"We all know that there are many teachers out there pushing the envelope of learning, trying out new strategies, and helping students develop higher level cognitive, social and affective skills. We also know that there are teachers looking to be convinced that Socratic circles are doable. And there are teachers looking for a how-to book about Socratic seminars. To them, and to all other teachers and scholars, I say, 'Read the book!'"Education Review, August 2005

Teacher Leader Network - March 2005
"Socratic Circles: Fostering Critical and Creative Thinking in Middle and High School has changed my instructional practice. While I always understood the importance of powerful conversations in my classroom, I had never formalized this process. Socratic Circles introduced a structure for dialogue that I could understand and begin to use immediately. As a result, my students have had more opportunities to be challenged and to think creatively. With Copeland's help, my students are no longer simply passive recipients of information. They've become the creators of knowledge that I've always wanted them to be."Teacher Leader Network (www.teacherleaders.org), March 2005

Voice of Youth Advocates - August 2005
"Teachers looking for ways to increase the critical thinking of their students will find much to assist them in this book....Copeland's writing is totally accessible, making the text useful for novice and experienced teacher alike." VOYA, 2005