As the facilitator, you: 

• Set the tone for your group  
• Help the group stay on topic and within the time frame 
• Give everyone an opportunity to contribute if they want to  
• Redirect when someone monopolizes or goes off topic 

 Tips for facilitating discussion groups: 

• Be prepared 
  • Read through the questions in advance, to help guide discussion and gauge time 

• Lead
  • Give everyone a few quiet minutes to read through the questions and gather thoughts  
  • Read the first question aloud and invite discussion 
  • Keep the group on track 
    • “We should probably move on to the next question” 
    • “Does anyone else have anything to add? I want to make sure everyone has a chance to speak” 
    • “I think we’re getting off topic. I think the important thing is…” 

• Respond 
  • After people share or make a point, respond to them in a positive manner. Don’t leave them hanging! 
    • “That’s a good point”  
    • “I see what you mean” 
    • “What does everyone else think?”   
    • “Thanks for sharing that” 

• Be attentive
  • Is anyone tuning out, getting emotional, being inconsiderate of others, or feeling hurt by someone else’s comment? 
  • If so, here are some things to try: 
    • Disengaged:  
      • Try asking them a question by name (“Bob, what do you think?”) or have them get into pairs to discuss one of the questions (its hard to disengage in pairs) and then call on that person to share back with the group 
    • Inconsiderate:  
      • Try to highlight the other person’s point of view (“I hear you saying this, but it seems like maybe Bob has had a different experience) 
      • If someone is being offensive, remind them of the ground rules and speak to them (or a trusted adult) about it afterwards 
    • Emotional:  
      • Validation (within the group if appropriate, or individually) is always a good way to go (“That sounds really hard” or “I can tell this is a struggle for you”) 
    • Hurt or offended: This one will depend upon the situation, so trust your instincts and speak to a trusted adult for guidance, as needed. Please let a committee member know what happened 

• Be kind, gentle, and thoughtful with your words 
  • You set the tone and are an example to your group 

Pro tip: 

• Give your quieter folks time to gather their thoughts or else your talkers will overpower them 
• Give everyone a minute to think before the talkers start talking! 

Tips for facilitating a Think/Pair/Share  

A Think/Pair/Share is a handy tool to use in discussion groups because people tend to engage better in pairs. It also allows people to formulate their own ideas first, before being influenced by what other people say.  

I have indicated the questions that I think would be good for a Think/Pair/Share in bold. Some sets of discussion questions have more than one set of questions in bold. Use your judgment as to whether you want (or have time) to do more than one Think/Pair/Share. 

It’s really very simple. Here’s what you do: 

• Tell your group to take a minute (or two) to think about the questions in bold.  
• At the end of the minute (or two), ask them to turn to their neighbor and discuss their thoughts on those questions. Make sure they each get a chance to talk. (If you do more than one Think/Pair/Share, have them turn to a different neighbor the second time.) 
• Give them a few minutes to discuss in their pairs. The amount of time needed will depend on how in-depth the questions are. 
• When you feel they have had enough time to discuss, get their attention and indicate that you are returning to a full group discussion. 
• Ask for a few volunteers to share with the whole group what they discussed in their pair. Not everyone needs to contribute because that could take a long time. Use your judgment on this too. 
• Move on to the next (non-bolded) question and discuss as a group.