Maybe I missed someone sharing information that would have helped me with some struggles (especially with my first period class) that I have encountered when trying to implement inquiry and essential/compelling questions within my classroom.  What are some things I can do to help move my classroom forward in an inquiry based format when most or all of my students at the time are not wanting to talk (for various reasons)?

Last year I committed to facilitating a community circle every day. We physically stand/sit in a circle so everyone can see each other. Everyone gets a chance to be heard. I pose questions that are silly, get-to-know-you, would you rather, as well as thought-provoking ones like Should parents have to have a license before they have a child?, linked to content or goal-setting. I have a menu of canned questions, but often they are responsive to what's going on at school, in our classroom, or in our world. I took this idea from the 80% proactive approach in Restorative Practices as I struggled to build community and get to know my students with large class sizes in my move from private international schools abroad to a large public school here in WA state. The commitment and the time spent every day paid off in big ways to get students comfortable with taking, but always keeping the power to pass (that in very few cases led to a private conversation with the reluctant sharer to consider why it's so difficult to share). www.centerforrestorativeprocess.com/.../teaching_restorative_practices_manual.pdf

To add on, Nisse Welchman when we do shares like this during advisory in middle school, I like to follow up with "Who remembers the person that said..." to emphasize the importance of active listening. It's wonderful to create a space where everyone had the opportunity to share, but I think it's even better when students realize that people are actually listening to them, not sitting passive and quiet.

 What an awesome, simple activity to add to a sharable time, Meaghan Mihalic  . It really emphasizes listening skills and also builds empathy and engagement.

If a dialogue or group discussion is underway, something that I do is to have each speaker paraphrase what was just said before they contribute their own voice. This allows for the first speaker to verify that the listener understood, or gives the speaker a chance to clarify for the listeners before the discussion moves on. Students might think it's a bit clunky at first, but they soon get used to it as an established protocol. 

Excellent! That's a great extension for academic conversations. "So what I think I heard was..." or "I think what I heard you say is...." or "before I add on, let me paraphrase what you jut said." Great idea, and I like that you make it an expected part of the routine Donnetta Elsasser !

Excellent! That's a great extension for academic conversations. "So what I think I heard was..." or "I think what I heard you say is...." or "before I add on, let me paraphrase what you jut said." Great idea, and I like that you make it an expected part of the routine Donnetta Elsasser !