Purpose: 

A Fishbowl discussion is a strategy for facilitating large group discussions about complex topics.

In a Fishbowl, students inside the fishbowl discuss a deliberation topic, while the students outside the fishbowl listen carefully.

The two groups take turns in these roles to practice being both contributors and listeners in a group discussion.

Directions (adapted from Facing History & Ourselves):

1. As necessary, reframe the deliberation question to have as many potential answers or interpretations as possible. Each of our Classroom Deliberation prompts is so suited, but many can also be revised to allow for the inclusion of a third, fourth, etc. viewpoint.
   
2. Set up your classroom’s fishbowl with a circle of chairs facing inward (this number should ideally fall between 6 and 12, but could be as large as half of your class). Ensure that there is enough room around the outside of the circle for the rest of your students to stand/sit and hear the conversation that will occur inside the fishbowl.
   
3. Have your students prepare for the discussion (this can be accomplished by following one of our Classroom Deliberation lesson plans to introduce and explore a topic).
   
4. Craft and share rules for how the Fishbowl should operate. Options include, but are not limited to:
   1. Students sit inside the fishbowl for 10-15 minutes before switching.
   2. Students can employ a “tap” system where a student on the outside of the fishbowl can tap someone on the inside when they want to switch roles.
      
5. Craft and share norms for what students should be doing during the Fishbowl. Considerations include, but are not limited to:
   
   1. Inside the fishbowl:
      1. How should arguments inside the fishbowl be structured?
      2. What kind of language is appropriate/inappropriate?
      3. How many times can a student interrupt someone else?
      4. How do we engage in respectful conversations?
      5. In what manner should students support their arguments?
      6. How often/how much should each student speak?
         
   2. Outside the fishbowl:
      1. What should those on the outside of the fishbowl be listening for? 
      2. Should those on the outside of the fishbowl be taking notes?
         
6. After conducting multiple rounds of the fishbowl exercise and ensuring each student (or as many students as possible) spoke, debrief the experience. Students can reflect on what they learned, assess their own and the class’ performance as both speakers and listeners, and offer recommendations to improve the Fishbowl activity for next time. These reflections can be offered out loud, on an exit slip, in a small group, as a whole class, or by any other means.