Tricks of the Trade: A Practical Classroom Discussion Guide

Quick answer

Use the Tricks of the Trade card game as the centerpiece of a structured discussion: set a clear question, let students play a round, then debrief with prompts that ask them to defend a tough choice. The game gives every student a concrete stake in the fur trade, so the conversation moves from opinion to evidence.

Steps for running the discussion

1. 1. Set one focused discussion question: Write a single question on the board before students touch the cards, such as: What makes a trade fair when both sides have different needs? Keep it visible for the whole lesson. Common mistake: asking three or four questions at once, which scatters the debate and lets students answer the easiest one. Check that the question can be answered with evidence from the game, not just opinion.
2. 2. Play a short round with a clear purpose: Explain that students should pay attention to the choices they make and what those choices cost them. Let them play, but stop briefly at one decision point to ask pairs to name the trade-off they are facing. Common mistake: treating the game as a reward and skipping the pause, which leaves you with no shared material for the debate. After the pause, ask two pairs to share their trade-off in one sentence each.
3. 3. Run a structured debate with assigned roles: Divide the class into small groups and give each group a position to defend, even if it is not the one they chose in the game. Use student debate prompts such as: Which choice protected your group best, and which choice would you defend to someone who disagreed? Give groups two minutes to prepare one claim and one piece of evidence from the round. Common mistake: letting the loudest student speak for the group; assign a different reporter each round. Require every claim to include one specific detail from the game.
4. 4. Facilitate with questions, not answers: During the debate, use discussion facilitation tips that keep ownership with students: ask 'What would change your mind?' or 'Who benefited most from that choice?' Redirect rather than correct. Common mistake: stepping in to resolve the disagreement yourself, which ends the thinking. If a factual error comes up, note it and return to it after the debate. Track how many times you speak; aim for fewer than the students.
5. 5. Debrief with a written exit ticket: Close with a two-minute written response: Name one choice you would make differently and why. Collect the tickets to see which students are still reasoning from opinion rather than evidence. Common mistake: ending on a whole-class vote, which produces a winner but no visible reasoning. Sort the exit tickets into 'uses evidence' and 'states opinion' before the next lesson.

Product facts

• Tricks of the Trade: A card game that encourages oral communication and social interaction and promotes learning about the fur trade. The game itself generates the talk, so your discussion can build directly on what students said and did during play.