The students will put on a “talk show” for their classmates. This “talk show” will resemble a small group discussion in terms of format, and it will revolve around their civic action essays.

1. Organize the students into groups based on the topics they wrote about; students who wrote about the same topic should be in the same group.

2. During their “talk show” segment, each group will discuss the following questions, as if they were experts on the subject: 

• Briefly summarize your topic for the audience. 

• Which level of government (if any) do you think is most responsible for causing this problem?

• Which level of government (if any) do you think is most responsible for solving this problem? 

• How do you think the average citizen should participate in the governmental solution to this problem? In other words, what civic action do you think would best address this problem? 

3. At some point during each group’s segment, the “host” (you, the teacher) will call on a student or two from a different group to act as “special guests” and participate in the conversation.

4. Inform the students that when they are not participating in the “talk show,” they should be taking notes on it. 

Consider giving the students a few minutes to silently review the discussion questions before you begin. 

Conduct the “talk show.”

Give each group a few minutes to discuss each prompt, and add “special guests” from other groups when you feel it will benefit the conversation most.

You should take on the role of “host.” How much you participate in each group’s conversation is up to you; it may even vary between groups. Some groups, for example, may need help knowing when it’s time to move onto the next prompt. Some may need help reigniting the conversation when it falls into a lull or repetitive loop. If you see an opportunity to further the students’ learning by briefly interjecting, don’t be afraid to do so; just make sure that the students are responding to each other, and not just to you. Also, keep an eye on the rest of the class to make sure they are listening and taking notes. 

After the “talk show,” have the students use their notes to help them respond to the prompts on this handout.

The prompts are as follows:

• Write about your top 2 biggest takeaways from the “talk show.” What did you learn about government-related civic action (or civic action in general) that you did not know before?
• Describe two opposing arguments that were made at some point during the “talk show” (e.g. “The best way to solve playground littering is writing a letter to the city mayor” vs “The best way to solve playground littering is testifying at a committee hearing in support of more stringent penalties for littering.”) Be sure to include the names of the students who were involved in the discussion, as well as any conclusions that were reached (if any). Finally, explain which side of the argument you are on, and why.
• Which “segment” was your favorite, and why?
• What questions do you still have about civic action?