World Cafe

World Cafe Checklist

1. “STATION SET UP: Choose various areas to set up a “station” for each discussion question.  Arrange desks in small groups.  Each station should have chart paper/note catcher and markers.   

2. DISCUSSION TOPICS: Decide on the discussion topic, issue, problem.  One text can be used with different questions at each station or multiple texts can be used with each text being read and discussed at each station.  Questions or prompts should be attached at each station or displayed to the whole group.  

3. GROUP ASSIGNMENTS: Assign students to small groups of 3-5. 

4. COLLABORATE: One student volunteers to be the group leader for round 1. The group leader leads the group in discussing and responding to the questions for that station.  Responses are recorded on the chart paper.

5. GROUP ROTATION:  After a designated amount of time, most students from each group will move to the next group.  One student stays behind to summarize the work that the previous group completed.  This student becomes the new group leader and leads the new group in a discussion of the next question or prompt.  At the next rotation, a different student volunteers to stay behind and becomes the new group leader. This repeats until all students have rotated through each station or as many stations as time permits.

6. DEBRIEF:  Discuss new understandings discovered about content.  Also, debrief the strategy to determine what went well and what improvements need to be made. 

• Model the role of the group leader

• Model using discussion frames and provide them at each station.

• Provide a talking piece to each group to ensure equity of voice.

• Provide practice of rotation 

• Start with one text or problem

• Practice listening and summarizing in pairs using discussion frames

• Use complex or global issues that provide multiple viewpoints for discussion

• Use more than one text

• Include a Level 3 question at the end that each individual student answers