Language as Feedback

Before an activity, ask students to contribute to a conversation about group agreements to help meet the goals of the activity and the goals of the classroom. For example, “We are about to work in small groups. What do we need to think about so that everyone feels like they can contribute and that their voices are heard?” Chart the student ideas and post them on a wall as the group agreements for this activity. During the activity, look for teachable moments to give students private feedback. You might say, “I notice that you are leaning in and listening to your partner. I bet they appreciate that.” or you might say to a small group, “I notice that only a couple of students are doing a lot of the talking. How might you make sure that everyone is invited in?” After the activity, ask all the students to reflect on how they did with the group agreements. They might reflect individually or as a whole group. These kinds of conversations signal to students what is important for our classroom community. You can use this one-pager for the Envision, Coach, Reflect structure for feedback.

What kinds of group agreements did students come up with?

How well did they follow the group agreements?

How did they respond to the feedback you gave them during the teachable moments?

How does this kind of language support student autonomy? How does it support your classroom community?

Check out this article from Responsive Classroom on reinforcing, reminding, and redirecting language, and try it out. Check out this resource on Wise Feedback, which has a key component that conveys faith in students while giving kind, specific, and helpful feedback. This kind of feedback is best suited for early feedback on work that has opportunities for multiple drafts. It’s important to give students class time to read the feedback and make revisions to their work, when giving Wise Feedback.