Think Like Socrates

Using Questions to Invite Wonder and Empathy Into the Classroom, Grades 4-12
Think Like Socrates
August 2018 | 304 pages | Corwin
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ISBN: 9781506391632
Available from January 0001
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ISBN: 9781506391649
Available from January 0001

Description

The key to creating wonder and empathy in class? Questions!

 Socrates believed in the power of questions rather than the efficiency of lecturing his students. And yet, if we revere Socrates as one of the greatest teachers in history, how did we get so far away from his method of inquiry? Shanna Peeples, 2015 National Teacher of the Year, is here to flip the script and show you how teachers can create a welcoming and engaging atmosphere that encourages student questions and honors their experiences. This resource provides

  • Practical strategies for creating a classroom that runs on dialogue, curiosity, inquiry, and respect
  • An enhancement to your existing curriculum, regardless of content area or grade level, with examples and advice from award-winning teachers
  • Questions of increasing depth paired with sample texts to increase student engagement with your content
  • Step-by-step lessons for generating and using students’ questions as a way of assessing their thinking, and helping them guide that thinking into new learning aligned to state standards
  • Lesson extensions for English language learners, special education students, and gifted and talented students
  • Writing suggestions, in-class debate questions, and scoring rubrics for each content area
  • Recommended multimedia texts grouped by big questions
  • Detailed protocols for using inquiry with adults as a base for Professional Learning Communities, for guiding staff meetings, and for creating inquiry groups around common areas of practice
 

Your students’ deepest wonderings can point toward learning experiences that allow them to practice the work of citizenship grounded in empathy. Let the questions begin!

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Introduction

Introduction

PART I. Building a Questioning Classroom Culture

  • 1. Kids These Days: Creating Deeper Learning Experiences Framed Around Student Questions
  • 2. Designing for Engagement: Strategies for Using Student Questions to Plan Academic Discussions
  • 3. Teaching Like Socrates: Composing a Classroom Climate to Encourage Inquiry
  • 4. Learning to Listen: Processes to Support Better Thinking Through Focused Attention
  • 5. Constructing Trust: Foundational Practices to Build Empathy, Belonging, and a Culture of Thinking

PART II. Curating Questions for Use in the Content Areas

  • 6. Using Questions in Multiple Disciplines and Grade Levels
  • 7. Science
  • 8. Math
  • 9. Social Studies, Government, and Humanities
  • 10. Fine Arts
  • 11. Career and Technical Education
  • 12. Special Populations

PART III. Applying Inquiry to Do Real Work in the Real World

  • 13. Using Student Questions for Project Ideas at All Levels

PART IV. Using Our Own Questions to Transform Our Practice

  • 14. Using Teacher Questions to Guide Staff Meetings and Plan Professional Development

APPENDIX: RESOURCES, RECOMMENDED TEXTS, AND RUBRICS

APPENDIX: RESOURCES, RECOMMENDED TEXTS, AND RUBRICS

REFERENCES

REFERENCES

INDEX

INDEX

Description

The key to creating wonder and empathy in class? Questions!

 Socrates believed in the power of questions rather than the efficiency of lecturing his students. And yet, if we revere Socrates as one of the greatest teachers in history, how did we get so far away from his method of inquiry? Shanna Peeples, 2015 National Teacher of the Year, is here to flip the script and show you how teachers can create a welcoming and engaging atmosphere that encourages student questions and honors their experiences. This resource provides

  • Practical strategies for creating a classroom that runs on dialogue, curiosity, inquiry, and respect
  • An enhancement to your existing curriculum, regardless of content area or grade level, with examples and advice from award-winning teachers
  • Questions of increasing depth paired with sample texts to increase student engagement with your content
  • Step-by-step lessons for generating and using students’ questions as a way of assessing their thinking, and helping them guide that thinking into new learning aligned to state standards
  • Lesson extensions for English language learners, special education students, and gifted and talented students
  • Writing suggestions, in-class debate questions, and scoring rubrics for each content area
  • Recommended multimedia texts grouped by big questions
  • Detailed protocols for using inquiry with adults as a base for Professional Learning Communities, for guiding staff meetings, and for creating inquiry groups around common areas of practice
 

Your students’ deepest wonderings can point toward learning experiences that allow them to practice the work of citizenship grounded in empathy. Let the questions begin!

Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Introduction

Introduction

PART I. Building a Questioning Classroom Culture

  • 1. Kids These Days: Creating Deeper Learning Experiences Framed Around Student Questions
  • 2. Designing for Engagement: Strategies for Using Student Questions to Plan Academic Discussions
  • 3. Teaching Like Socrates: Composing a Classroom Climate to Encourage Inquiry
  • 4. Learning to Listen: Processes to Support Better Thinking Through Focused Attention
  • 5. Constructing Trust: Foundational Practices to Build Empathy, Belonging, and a Culture of Thinking

PART II. Curating Questions for Use in the Content Areas

  • 6. Using Questions in Multiple Disciplines and Grade Levels
  • 7. Science
  • 8. Math
  • 9. Social Studies, Government, and Humanities
  • 10. Fine Arts
  • 11. Career and Technical Education
  • 12. Special Populations

PART III. Applying Inquiry to Do Real Work in the Real World

  • 13. Using Student Questions for Project Ideas at All Levels

PART IV. Using Our Own Questions to Transform Our Practice

  • 14. Using Teacher Questions to Guide Staff Meetings and Plan Professional Development

APPENDIX: RESOURCES, RECOMMENDED TEXTS, AND RUBRICS

APPENDIX: RESOURCES, RECOMMENDED TEXTS, AND RUBRICS

REFERENCES

REFERENCES

INDEX

INDEX

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Think Like Socrates

Using Questions to Invite Wonder and Empathy Into the Classroom, Grades 4-12


August 2018 | 304 pages | Corwin

Format Published Date ISBN Price
Paperback 01/01/2025 9781506391649 $40.95
Lifetime 01/01/2025 9781506391632 $37.00

The key to creating wonder and empathy in class? Questions!

 Socrates believed in the power of questions rather than the efficiency of lecturing his students. And yet, if we revere Socrates as one of the greatest teachers in history, how did we get so far away from his method of inquiry? Shanna Peeples, 2015 National Teacher of the Year, is here to flip the script and show you how teachers can create a welcoming and engaging atmosphere that encourages student questions and honors their experiences. This resource provides

  • Practical strategies for creating a classroom that runs on dialogue, curiosity, inquiry, and respect
  • An enhancement to your existing curriculum, regardless of content area or grade level, with examples and advice from award-winning teachers
  • Questions of increasing depth paired with sample texts to increase student engagement with your content
  • Step-by-step lessons for generating and using students’ questions as a way of assessing their thinking, and helping them guide that thinking into new learning aligned to state standards
  • Lesson extensions for English language learners, special education students, and gifted and talented students
  • Writing suggestions, in-class debate questions, and scoring rubrics for each content area
  • Recommended multimedia texts grouped by big questions
  • Detailed protocols for using inquiry with adults as a base for Professional Learning Communities, for guiding staff meetings, and for creating inquiry groups around common areas of practice
 

Your students’ deepest wonderings can point toward learning experiences that allow them to practice the work of citizenship grounded in empathy. Let the questions begin!


Table Of Contents:

  • ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  • Introduction
  • PART I. Building a Questioning Classroom Culture
  • 1. Kids These Days: Creating Deeper Learning Experiences Framed Around Student Questions
  • 2. Designing for Engagement: Strategies for Using Student Questions to Plan Academic Discussions
  • 3. Teaching Like Socrates: Composing a Classroom Climate to Encourage Inquiry
  • 4. Learning to Listen: Processes to Support Better Thinking Through Focused Attention
  • 5. Constructing Trust: Foundational Practices to Build Empathy, Belonging, and a Culture of Thinking
  • PART II. Curating Questions for Use in the Content Areas
  • 6. Using Questions in Multiple Disciplines and Grade Levels
  • 7. Science
  • 8. Math
  • 9. Social Studies, Government, and Humanities
  • 10. Fine Arts
  • 11. Career and Technical Education
  • 12. Special Populations
  • PART III. Applying Inquiry to Do Real Work in the Real World
  • 13. Using Student Questions for Project Ideas at All Levels
  • PART IV. Using Our Own Questions to Transform Our Practice
  • 14. Using Teacher Questions to Guide Staff Meetings and Plan Professional Development
  • APPENDIX: RESOURCES, RECOMMENDED TEXTS, AND RUBRICS
  • REFERENCES
  • INDEX

Recent Product Reviews:

"Excellent writing and a wealth of inspiring examples from distinguished educators make this possibly the strongest Corwin book I have read in the past 10 years."
Michelle Strom, Middle School Language Arts Teacher, Fort Riley Middle School
"Equal parts affirming and challenging, this book confirms why so much of what feels like good teaching is also messy, emotional, and personal. Peeples is a master teacher and a spectacular writer, and here we have a book that is evidence of both. This is a book that respects the intelligence of teachers. I plan on sharing this book with every teacher I work with."
Tom Rademacher, Language Arts Teacher, 8th Grade, St. Anthony Middle School
"Allowing students to pursue their own questions is upheld as a powerful and driving force in learning. Furthermore, the stories in this book are personal and powerful. They helped get my mind and heart involved and ready to read on. Teachers will be able to recognize their own students in these stories."
Jane Hunn, 6th Grade General Science Teacher, Tippecanoe Valley Middle School
"Peeples’s book is important and relevant. It covers topics that educators are grappling with and provides authentic examples that will connect with them. Both novice and master teachers will be able to put these protocols and lesson plans into practice immediately. This is a resource that both administrators and teachers will revisit over and over again."
LaQuita Outlaw, Principal – Grades 6-8, Bay Shore Middle School
"Great for staff development, new implementation of Socratic seminar, and enhancing the craft of inquiry. This is a must-have for AVID school sites in particular."
Valeria C. Ruff, AVID Coordinator and Elective Teacher, Druid Hills Academy

Recommendations