Introduction
In conversations, the ability to connect comments back and forth is essential for maintaining a smooth and enjoyable interaction. For middle school students, learning how to connect their comments to the topic at hand is an important social-emotional skill that helps them establish meaningful relationships and engage in effective communication. In this blog post, we will introduce a no-prep activity that educators can use to help students practice connecting comments in conversations, as well as discussion questions and related skills to further enhance their social-emotional learning.
No-Prep Activity: Topic Juggling
This activity, called “Topic Juggling,” helps students practice connecting their comments in conversations by encouraging them to stay on topic and respond to their peers’ statements in a relevant manner. Here’s how it works:
- Divide students into pairs or small groups.
- Assign a conversation starter to each pair or group. Some examples are: “What’s your favorite movie?”, “What did you do over the weekend?”, or “What’s your favorite subject in school?”
- Have students take turns making comments about the assigned topic. They should focus on connecting their comments to the previous statement, like fitting puzzle pieces together.
- If a student makes an unrelated comment, pause the conversation and ask the group to identify the disconnected comment. Then, encourage the student to try again with a comment that connects to the previous statement.
- Continue the activity for several rounds, allowing students to practice staying on topic and connecting their comments in a conversation.
Discussion Questions
After the activity, use these discussion questions to further explore the concept of connecting comments in conversations:
- Why is it important to connect our comments in a conversation?
- How does connecting comments help us build relationships and communicate effectively with others?
- What strategies can you use to ensure that your comments are connected to the topic of the conversation?
- How did you feel when someone in your group made a disconnected comment? How do you think others feel when this happens in real-life conversations?
- Can you think of a situation where connecting comments in a conversation was especially important or challenging? How did you handle it?
Related Skills
Connecting comments in conversations is just one aspect of effective communication and social-emotional learning. Other related skills that can be beneficial for middle school students include:
- Active listening: Paying close attention to what others are saying and showing that you’re engaged in the conversation.
- Empathy: Understanding and sharing the feelings of others, which can help create more meaningful connections in conversations.
- Nonverbal communication: Interpreting and using body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice to convey and understand messages in conversations.
- Conflict resolution: Navigating disagreements or misunderstandings in conversations in a respectful and productive manner.
Next Steps
Now that you have learned about the importance of connecting comments in conversations and have a no-prep activity to practice this skill with your middle school students, consider exploring additional resources and materials to support their social-emotional learning journey. Sign up for free samples of various skills and activities that can help your students develop strong communication and relationship-building abilities. By incorporating these principles into your teaching practice, you can empower your students to thrive in their social and emotional lives.
