Sixth Graders Read, Reflect and Exchange Ideas Through Harkness Discussions

10/14/2026

Pull up a chair, be ready to listen and share your voice.

View a Photo Gallery of the Sixth Grade Harkness Discussion

This is what sixth graders are practicing in Jennifer Rathkopf’s English class as they begin Harkness conversations on the short story anthology “Flying Lessons & Other Stories.”

“Right now, our focus is on how authors use conflict to drive growth,” Rathkopf said. “As students read, they practice annotating and leaving a visible trail of their thinking, which serves as a foundation for deeper literary analysis. In our last Harkness discussion, students debated which conflict caused the most significant transformation in the main character, backing up their ideas with specific character traits and evidence from the text.”

Meera Padmanabhan is enjoying the study of short stories: “I like learning about all these different lessons and different characters' perspectives and how their everyday lives affect how they feel.”

For classmate Charlotte Magid, diving into Harkness has shown her different perspectives. “I think the discussions are a great way for everybody to share their ideas,” she said. “I’ll come into Harkness and not know or realize something and then coming out, I’ll have a whole different idea about the story.”

Rathkopf says students are excited for Harkness discussion days. “Our returning students have been excellent role models, actively making room for all voices and intentionally inviting more reserved peers into the conversation. Across the board, students are doing a solid job using text evidence to support their initial claims, listening to understand rather than just respond, and disagreeing with one another respectfully.”

“What I like about Harkness is that everybody is heard,” Padmanabhan said. “Nobody feels left out, and it's making sure that everybody feels welcome and can share what they think.”