Elementary (Grades 3-5)

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

CASEL Core Competencies

• Self-Awareness

• Self-Management

• Social Awareness

• Relationship Skills

Common Core ELA-Literacy Standards

• Listening and Speaking

• Writing 

NCSS Social Studies Themes

• Individual Development and Identity 

• Work together as a group to identify two additional questions everyone in the group will use to gain a deeper understanding of what matters to members of the group as individuals.

• Use the questions to interview another student and use the information to introduce the person to the rest of the group.

• Explain why it is important for individuals working together as a team to “really” know one another.

Tell the class that each small group has 10 minutes to decide among themselves which two questions they think the group as a whole should use to interview each other. At the end of eight minutes, let the class know they have two minutes left to decide. At the end of 10 minutes, ask each group to circle on one copy of the Possible Interview Questions handout the two questions the group picked. Ask the groups to quickly pick one person to speak for the group.

Ask a group to state the numbers of the two questions the group chose and, using a colored marker, put a check mark at the bottom of the chart paper on which the questions are written. Continue this process until each group has stated the two questions it chose and the check marks are at the bottom of the applicable questions posted at the front of the room.

Move any questions that have no check marks to a side wall. If there are questions that have only one check mark, point to the question and ask the group who selected the question if it wants to move its check mark to another question. If yes, put the check mark on the question selected using a different colored marker and move the originally selected question to a side wall.

Give small groups time to confer to decide where to move their check mark. Encourage students to explain why they chose a question and/or why they are deciding to move their checkmark to another question. Continue this process with questions that received two, checkmarks, three, and so on, until the group as a whole has agreed upon two questions.

Ask: What was the hardest part of making the decision?
Why?

Ask: What did you learn from this process of working together to
choose the two interview questions?

Note to teacher: At this point you can ask the students to add
the two questions they chose to their My Interview
With… forms, or you may add the questions before the
next lesson. Thank the students and tell them that they will be
conducting their interviews of one another tomorrow.

Day 2

Using a list of students in the class, divide the class in half and designate one half of the class who will be “Choosers” and the other half “Chosen.” Print the name of each “Chosen” student on an index card and have the cards in a bag or large envelope so that each “Chooser” will be able to pull a card from the bag/envelope without seeing the name of the Chosen on the card.

Call out the names of the Choosers and ask them to come to the front of the class. Explain that each of these students will pick a name out of the bag to find out who will be the person she or he will be teamed up with for the interviews. As each person chooses a card, have the student read the name on the card and take a seat next to the person whose name they read.

When all teams of two have been made, distribute the copies of the My Interview With… forms so that all students have a copy. Explain that students who chose the card will have 15 minutes to interview their partners. State that you will periodically tell the class how much time the interviewers have left. Tell the interviewers to take notes on the form as the person they are interviewing responds to the questions. At the end of 15 minutes, have the students reverse roles so that those who have been interviewed are now interviewing their teammates. Again, give periodic time notices so that the teams stay on track to complete the interview in the time allotted.

At the end of the time allotted, tell students to look over their interview forms and talk to each other to put down any additional notes they need.

Tell students they should review and rewrite their notes for homework and bring them to class the next day to use them to give a brief report to the class on the person they interviewed. Provide new copies of the My Interview With… form so students may make a neat copy to use for the next day and explain that the interviews will be posted in the classroom. Tell students to practice their oral report so that they can share their information in three to four minutes.

Day 3

State that each reporter should take about three to four minutes to report. Ask for a volunteer interviewer to stand in front of the class and use the interview form to say who they interviewed and share the information on the interview form with the class. When the student is finished, collect the form from the student and ask the person who they spoke about to stand and report on the interview they conducted. Do this until all dyads have shared their interviews and the teacher has collected all the interview forms.

As the students are making their oral reports, the teacher should take notes reflecting similarities among students such as they number of students having a birthday in the same month, or students liking the same color, or students selecting the same characteristics in a good teammate. When all reports are made, the teacher should use these notes to ask all students who share X to stand. Ask about a different similarity two or three times until most if not all students have stood at least once.