Card

Four Corners

This strategy groups students by their level of agreement with a prompt so they can discuss their views with people of like mind before debating them with groups that hold different views.

Four Corners

Summary

Students determine their level of agreement with a provided statement, debate with their classmates, then determine strong justifications for their arguments together.

Procedure

Place signs around the room titled Agree, Disagree, Strongly Agree, and Strongly Disagree.
Present students with a powerful statement.
Have students determine their level of agreement with the statement and voice that by standing near the sign that best represents their opinion.
Everyone standing next to the same sign is considered to be part of the same "agreement group." Once students have gathered around the sign that best represents their opinion, have them discuss the reasons for their choice with classmates in their agreement group. Together, agreement groups formulate justifications for their beliefs.
Have agreement groups share their justifications with the rest of the class, and the class discuss their reasoning.
See a demonstration video at https://www.youtube.com/embed/P5Q4fPEgLGo?list=PL-aUhEQeaZXLVveDVElc43reMba44uVJx

Keeley, P. (2008). Science formative assessment: 75 practical strategies for linking assessment, instruction, and learning. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, SAGE.