Fishbowl Discussion — How To

How our class discussions work, what your job is, and how you're graded.

The big idea

We work through big questions in a "fishbowl": a small circle of chairs in the middle for the people talking, and everyone else around the outside, listening and getting ready to jump in. You will play both roles over time. The goal is simple — everyone contributes, and everyone leaves having actually thought.

Your role for the day

Each fishbowl, you'll be handed one of two roles, at random. Over two fishbowls you'll do both: if you're an Opener the first time, you'll be an Entry the next.

Opener — you start inside the circle. Your job is to get the conversation going from an assigned position — a side you're asked to argue. It does not have to be what you personally believe; you're defending the position. Fill out the front of your sheet ahead of time: your position, your one-sentence claim, your two strongest pieces of evidence, and the pushback you expect (and your answer to it).

Entry — you start outside the circle, listening. Your job is to break in when you're ready. Fill out the back of your sheet as you listen: the strongest thing you've heard, where it's weak or missing something, and — most important — the one sentence you'll say when you tap in.

How a fishbowl moves

  1. Think. A few minutes to prep your position and your evidence.
  2. Pair. Say your idea out loud to a partner first, and let them hit you with the other side. Now you're warmed up.
  3. The circle. Openers start it off from their positions. Then Entry students tap in — walk up, tap someone in a chair, take their seat, and make your point.
  4. Drop the role. Near the end, stop arguing your assigned side. Say what you actually think now, and what changed your mind.

The tap rule

To speak, you have to be in a chair — so you tap someone out, or take an open seat. Once you've made your point, expect to be tapped out yourself. That's not personal; it's how everyone gets airtime.

How you're graded — the baseline

This is the floor everyone can reach:

  • Tap in and contribute → 100.
  • Stay out, listen well, and turn in a completed sheet → 85.
  • Blank sheet or checked out → below 85.

This 100/85 is only the baseline. Your teacher is also grading, separately during class, the quality of your ideas, your use of evidence, your respect and listening, and whether you follow the procedures. Talking earns the floor. Thinking well, listening well, and using real evidence are what earn the rest.