Delving into learning talk!

One of the focus that was identified earlier in Inquiry this year is that most of my students are will to share their ideas, however the talking is often not focus learning talk.
So I asked myself...How do I create an environment where my students feel safe and confident enough to share their ideas?
This reminded me or the blog post that posted back at the end of November 2016 on 'Talking matters'
Which motivated me to look into classroom talk...
In discussion with my other colleagues, we further identified that critical thinking and making connections was an area that would encourage students to develop their understanding and knowledge of content.
So... the question then became...what strategies and approaches do I use in my classroom to help my students to develop their critical thinking skills??
This term, I decided to trial using De Bono's thinking hats as a follow up activity as part of my reading rotation.
This was difficult for some students, especially among the boys they needed a lot more scaffolding, discussion, processing time before they felt comfortable enough to share (even within a small group setting)
Reflection:

• More scaffolding, discussion needed to encourage reluctant talkers.
• Use the 'right' questioning techniques to develop student agency and independence.