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Structures for listening skills

Listening becomes active only when something depends on it: you'll have to retell what your partner said, probe an answer, or give feedback on what you heard. In these structures listening is a task with a role — not a by-product of someone else's speaking time.

20 structures in this theme

Stand Up & Sit Down
Participants respond to statements by standing (agree) or staying seated (disagree).
Everyone joins in
2–4 min5.04.8
Taking Turns
Work in pairs or small groups. Take turns giving one answer to the question.
Materials in the basic kitEveryone joins inCooperative learning
2–4 · 3–5 min
On time
Everyone gets a timed turn to speak about a topic — choose the group size and grouping while playing.
Materials in the basic kitEveryone joins in
2–4 · 3–5 min
Full steps after registration
Interview in Three Rounds
Interview each other in groups of 4: A↔B and C↔D simultaneously. Then switch and share with the class.
Materials in the basic kitEveryone joins inCooperative learning
7 min
Full steps after registration
Movement Quiz
Walk around the classroom, find a partner, ask your question and give feedback. Then change partners!
Own materials neededEveryone joins in
10–15 min
Copy Me
A makes something and says step by step what A is doing; B sits turned away and copies from the words alone. Then side by side: which instruction was right, which too vague? Next round the roles swap.
Own materials neededEveryone joins inTPR
2–3 min4.0
Full steps after registration
Pair Coach
A solves exercises and thinks aloud. B watches and coaches. Then switch roles!
Everyone joins inHigher-orderCooperative learning
10–20 min5.0
Inner & Outer Circle
Two circles facing each other. Short conversation with your partner — then the outer circle rotates to a new partner.
Everyone joins inChanging groupsCooperative learning
10–15 min5.0
Incident Method
An 8-step intervision technique where one participant brings a work situation and the group searches for insights together.
Higher-order
40–50 min
Full steps after registration
Gossip Method
A 5-step intervision technique where the group openly discusses the case presenter while they listen.
Higher-order
35–45 min5.05.0
Full steps after registration
Socratic conversation
A 7-step intervision technique based on cardinal virtues: the presenter describes a situation up to the hot point, and the group explores the essence together.
Everyone joins inHigher-order
30–90 min
Full steps after registration
Shuffle & Pick
Groups of 4 with a card deck: A holds the cards in a fan, B draws one and reads the question out loud, C answers, D checks and coaches. After every rotation the roles move along.
Own materials neededMaterials in the basic kitEveryone joins in
3 min
Full steps after registration
Flashcards
Participants create question cards and practise in pairs by asking and answering each other's questions.
Own materials neededMaterials in the basic kitEveryone joins in
7–10 min
Full steps after registration
Read and Ask
In pairs: A reads a passage aloud, B listens without reading along. Then A asks one question about the text; B answers and A checks in the text — right: a compliment, wrong: A points to the place. The next passage is read by B.
Own materials neededEveryone joins in
2 min5.0
Full steps after registration
1 goes, 3 stay
Teams of four work out the same assignment. Then each round one member visits another team while the three who stay host their visitor. Back home, it all comes together.
Materials in the basic kitChanging groups
10–20 min
Full steps after registration
Nine Whys: shared purpose
In pairs, discover the deeper shared purpose behind your collective effort. A Liberating Structure.
Everyone joins inLiberating Structures
10–20 min
Full steps after registration
Conversation Café
A calm, reflective conversation in a small fixed group (4–8) with a talking stone — for a complex or sensitive topic. A Liberating Structure.
Everyone joins inLiberating Structures
30–45 min
Full steps after registration
Daily Scrum
The project team stands in a circle and, in turn, everyone gets one minute for three questions: what have I done, what am I going to do now, where am I stuck? From Scrum.
Everyone joins inAgile / Scrum
5–15 min
Full steps after registration
Trio advice
Peer advice in groups of 3–5: one brings a real situation, the others think out loud as consultants. A Liberating Structure (Troika Consulting).
Everyone joins inHigher-orderLiberating Structures
15–20 min
Full steps after registration
Case clinic
A 7-step peer consultation method without a single piece of advice: the group says not what it thinks of the case, but what the presenter's story stirs in them — an image, a feeling, a gesture.
Everyone joins inHigher-order
45–55 min
Full steps after registration

More collections

All structures →Five-minute structures Short structures (up to 10 minutes)Structures for speaking skills Structures for reading skills Structures with writing Learning in motion: structures with movement Retrieval practice structures Ice-breakers for class and team Energisers for class and team