As a pre-discussion strategy, students have read the text on their own with the expectation that they would then discuss it with their groups. They have brought questions of what they did not understand or that they’d like their peers opinion on. Student discussion is aided by the layout of the table groups where they can easily look at their peers, there is also enough space between them and the other group so that they are not distracted by other conversations. 

The first group tries to understand the context of the time Emmett Till lived and what life for a Black teenager might have been like at the time. They reference the text to understand how the Black Monday book or Brown vs Board of Education ruling shaped life at the time. Both student groups also try to understand the personal decisions that led Emmett to go to Mississippi and what his personality was like. Students are comfortable bringing their questions to their peers and explaining what their takeaway from the text is. 

Throughout the discussion, students work together without teacher interference. Students are interested in the topic, hold each other to expectations that statements need to be confirmed by what’s in the text. A culture has been created in this class that allows students to comfortably interact with each other and they clearly listen to each other. That everyone speaks at some point indicates that there are norms in place that all are expected to participate.