Each student will share one most significant idea from the reading. It is often helpful to have a back-up quote as well.
First student shares his/her idea or quote and explains why it resonated with him/her. (SPECIFY TIME: 2 min, 3 min, etc.)
Others in the group briefly respond to that quote and what the presenter said, in less than a minute.
The student who began has one minute to close discussion with a reflection.
Repeat for each person in the group.
Connect: How are the ideas and information CONNECTED to what you already know?
Extend: What new ideas did you see that EXTENDED or pushed your thinking in new directions?
Challenge: What is still CHALLENGING or confusing for you to get your mind around? What questions, wonderings, or puzzles do you now have?
E = Excited: What excites you about these ideas? What’s the upside?
W = Worrisome: What do you find worrisome about these ideas? What’s the downside?
N = What else do you need to know or find out about these ideas? What additional information would help you to evaluate things?
S = What is your current stance or opinion on these ideas? How might you move forward in your evaluation of these ideas?
What Assumptions does the author of the text hold?
What do you Agree with in the text?
What do you want to Argue with in the text?
What parts of the text do you want to Aspire to?
After reading about the topic, what are your...
T: Initial Thoughts
Q: Lingering Questions
E: Epiphanies you have had
Remind students of the topic you want them to consider. Have students write a response using each of the sentence stems:
I used to think...
Now, I think...
Explore the following resources to find out more about protocols:
Harvard's Project Zero Thinking Routines
National School Reform Faculty (NSRF)
Protocols for Professional Learning
Protocols in the Classroom: Tools to Help Students Read, Write, Think, & Collaborate
The Power of Protocols: An Educator's Guide to Better Practice
Going Online with Protocols: New Tools for Teaching & Learning