As educators, we can help students develop the ability to engage in meaningful conversations by teaching them to focus on their friend’s interests. This blog post will discuss the importance of talking about things that other people like and how to identify these topics in a conversation. We will also provide a no-prep activity, discussion questions, and related skills to help elementary students improve their conversation skills.

Introduction

In conversations, it’s essential for students to learn how to talk about things that other people like. By doing so, they can create stronger connections with their peers and develop better social skills. One way to teach students to focus on their friend’s interests is by helping them identify clues from their friends, such as favorite TV show characters on their notebook or a t-shirt from a vacation destination. In the following sections, we will explore an activity that requires no preparation and discuss how to incorporate these principles into the classroom.

No-Prep Activity: The Interest Detective

This activity is designed to help students practice identifying their friend’s interests by observing clues and listening to their conversations. Here’s how it works:

1. Divide the students into pairs.
2. Ask each pair to spend a few minutes talking about their interests and hobbies.
3. After the conversation, have each student take a turn being the “Interest Detective.” The detective’s job is to observe their partner and identify clues about their interests.
4. Once the detectives have gathered their clues, the pairs should switch roles.
5. After both students have had a chance to be the detective, they should share their findings with each other and discuss whether the clues accurately reflect their interests.

This activity encourages students to pay attention to their friend’s interests and gives them practice in identifying conversation topics that will engage their peers.

Discussion Questions

1. Why is it important to talk about things that other people like in a conversation?
2. What are some ways we can identify our friend’s interests during a conversation?
3. How did the Interest Detective activity help you learn more about your friend’s interests?
4. How can focusing on your friend’s interests improve your conversation skills?
5. Can you think of a time when you had a conversation with someone who only talked about themselves? How did it make you feel?

Related Skills

Besides focusing on friend’s interests, there are other relevant skills that can help students improve their conversation abilities. These include:

• Active listening: Encouraging students to listen carefully to their friends and respond appropriately to what they say.
• Asking open-ended questions: Teaching students to ask questions that require more than a yes or no answer can help keep conversations engaging.
• Showing empathy: Helping students understand and share the feelings of their friends can create stronger connections and improve their social skills.

Next Steps

If you’re interested in implementing these strategies and activities in your classroom, we encourage you to sign up for free samples of our materials focused on these skills and more. Visit our sample materials page to access a variety of resources designed to help students develop their conversation skills and enhance their social-emotional learning.