Introduction

As educators, one of our primary goals is to help our students develop effective communication skills. A key aspect of communication is the ability to engage in meaningful conversations. For PreK students, learning to drive a conversation or keep it moving forward is an essential skill that can be nurtured through Social-Emotional Learning. In this blog post, we will explore an easy-to-implement activity, thought-provoking discussion questions, and related skills to help PreK students build their conversation abilities.

No-Prep Activity: Conversation Tennis

This simple, no-prep activity requires no additional materials and can be easily incorporated into your classroom routine. The goal of Conversation Tennis is to help students practice asking open-ended questions and making relevant comments to keep a conversation going.

1. Divide your students into pairs.
2. Explain that they will be playing a game of conversation tennis, where each student takes turns asking a question or making a comment to keep the conversation going.
3. Provide a conversation starter, such as “What is your favorite thing to do on the weekends?”
4. Encourage students to ask open-ended questions or make comments that drive the conversation forward, rather than asking questions they already know the answers to.
5. Give each pair a few minutes to engage in conversation, and then ask them to share their experience with the class.

This activity helps students become more aware of the impact their questions and comments have on the flow of a conversation, and encourages them to practice active listening and thoughtful responses.

Discussion Questions

After completing the Conversation Tennis activity, facilitate a class discussion using the following questions:

1. Why is it important to ask open-ended questions in a conversation?
2. How did it feel when your partner asked a question that showed they were actively listening to you?
3. What strategies can you use to think of questions or comments that will keep a conversation moving forward?
4. How can we practice active listening during conversations?
5. Why is it important to avoid asking questions we already know the answers to?

Related Skills

Beyond driving conversations forward, there are other related skills that can enhance PreK students’ communication abilities. These include:

• Active Listening: Encouraging students to focus on what their conversation partner is saying and respond appropriately.
• Nonverbal Communication: Teaching students to recognize and use body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice to convey meaning and emotions in a conversation.
• Empathy: Helping students develop the ability to understand and share the feelings of others, which can lead to more meaningful and supportive conversations.
• Respectful Disagreements: Guiding students on how to express differing opinions in a polite and respectful manner.

Next Steps

By nurturing the development of conversation skills in PreK students, we can set them up for success in their future social and academic interactions. To further support your students’ growth in this area, consider signing up for free sample materials from Everyday Speech. These resources provide additional activities and strategies to help young learners build their Social-Emotional Learning skills and become effective communicators.