Writing this having completed my first session. It was great! My group got along as if they had known one another for ages. The conversation flowed naturally, and it seemed as if everyone left with a strong sense of excitement for the upcoming semester.
This experience is a great segue to the blog prompt for this week - what makes a "genuine" conversation? To me a genuine conversation is one that flows naturally. This type of conversation is often very candid. You say whatever comes to mind without your responses needing to be preconceived. I think that the most genuine conversations are those that arise from honesty, mutual interests, or feelings. In an effort to spark genuine conversation within my own group (this was a secret goal of mine for the term), I had them start with an activity. I gave them each a sheet of paper and had them list 3 things: something that makes them happy, what they find fun, and a long-term goal of theirs. Almost everyone shared an interest or fear (in terms of reaching goals) with someone else. Because of the mutuality, conversation was sparked immediately and did not require my facilitation at all. It was amazing to see everyone connect on such a level so early on in the term.
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