The Chicken and the Egg: Inviting Response and Talk through Socratic Circles

This collaborative inquiry answers the following questions: 1) What is the nature of talk during Socratic Circles? 2) What is student response to talk? 3) How might knowing more about student response to talk and the nature of talk improve teaching during Socratic Circles? The article first describes the process of implementing Socratic Circles, followed by a discussion of thinking around the nature of talk and student response to talk. The article concludes with suggestions for teaching based on what we have learned, including: talk to students about talk; create spaces for unobserved talk; create a “choice” of response in talk; start with short, more accessible texts; provide students an opportunity to give honest feedback about talk; and create opportunities for students to learn from one another.