Playing a role on top of trying to learn new material can seem difficult at first. With a little practice it gets easier. Here are a few things you could say when you perform each role so that the group runs as smoothly and effectively as possible. The intention of the roles is that they make the experience of learning efficient, effective, and fun.
Manager
“Let’s get started.”
“_(Name)_, what do you think?”
“We’ve gotten off track. What was the last question we answered? Let’s start from there.”
“I think we’re stuck. I’m going to ask the teacher a question.”
Quality Control
“So far we’re all working together really well. Let’s keep it up.”
“I think this conversation is getting us off track. Let’s focus a little better.”
“The fact that we’ve stopped working on the questions must mean we don’t know how to go on from here. Can we try a different approach?”
“I have noticed that you haven’t been sharing your ideas to help solve the problems. What do you think? We all need to participate to make this work.”
Recorder/Spokesperson
“The teacher is going to be looking at my paper. Let me make sure I’ve got this written clearly.”
“Here’s how I think I could answer this question in class discussion. What do you think?”
“We wrote an answer down but I don’t understand it. If I have to talk about this in front of the class I want to know what I’m talking about. Can you help me?”
Reader
“Is everybody ready? Let me get started reading.”
“I just read it but it didn’t make sense. Can someone explain this part to me?”