How (and Why) to Get Students Talking: 78 Ready-to-Use Group Discussions About Anxiety, Self-Esteem, Relationships, and More (Grades 6-12)
About this ebook
In our digital era, young people need a safe, supportive place to connect and “just talk” with caring peers and an attentive adult. With more inclusive language, new discussion topics about social media, and a revised introduction, this updated edition of How (and Why) to Get Students Talking addresses the unique issues faced by today’s middle and high school students. Through guided group discussions, young people gain self-awareness, build important verbal communication skills, cope with difficult emotions, practice problem-solving, and more.
The book’s guided conversations are proven ways to reach out to young people and address their social-emotional development, and the discussions can be easily adapted and customized. Introductory and background materials prepare group leaders of all experience levels to feel confident as discussion facilitators. Includes digital content with reproducible handouts from the book.
About the author
Jean Sunde Peterson, Ph.D., is professor emerita and former director of school counselor preparation at Purdue University. She conducts workshops on academic underachievement, prevention- and development-oriented small-group work with children and adolescents, bullying, and more.
Dr. Peterson has authored more than 130 books (including Get Gifted Students Talking, How (and Why) to Get Students Talking, and Bright, Complex Kids), journal articles, and invited chapters, and her articles have appeared in all major gifted-education journals as well as the Journal of Counseling & Development, Professional School Counseling, and International Journal of Educational Reform. She has received ten national awards for scholarship, as well as numerous awards at Purdue for teaching, research, or service, and was a state teacher of the year in her first career as a classroom teacher.
She lives in Indiana.
