PERSON PLACE THING

New York Council for the Humanities

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT FOR YOUNG ADULTS

Dan Savage

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Table of Contents
Welcome Tips for Hosting & Facilitating PPT Conversations Dan Savage Bio, Conversation Questions, and Additional Resources Sample Lesson Plan and Standards Sample Participant Evaluation Keep the Conversation Going: Other Grant and Program Opportunities from the New York Council for the Humanities P2 P3

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P7 P8

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PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Welcome
Person Place Thing (PPT) Conversation Toolkits like this one provide all the resources necessary to host the type of engaged, in-depth, and surprising conversations that are the hallmark of the PPT radio program.
Each toolkit focuses on a particular PPT episode and includes questions for at least one of the episodes three audio segments (Person, Place, and Thing), as well as tips for creating engaging conversation, and resources for further reflection. While you might use this toolkit to spark informal discussion around your kitchen table, if you plan to host a more structured conversation at, say, a local community center, we suggest allowing at least an hour of conversation per PPT audio segment. Finally, in addition to the segment-specific questions weve included a few general questions to encourage participants to reflect on their own person, place, and thing.

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Tips for Hosting & Facilitating PPT Conversations

Person Place Thing Conversation Toolkits encourage thoughtful, engaged dialogue using a short radio segment of a PPT interview to foster discussion. The goal is a convivial, respectful, curious, and reflective conversation free of bias and judgment. We hope the following suggestions will help you create an inviting environment for you and your community.
Goal 1: Use the radio segment as a basis for a discussion Always start the conversation by listening to the audio segment together at least once. The interview should be the starting point for discussion and a place to return if the group gets too far off topic. The interview can be a neutral place to return if the conversation gets too uncomfortable or difficult. Goal 2: Let the group do the talking Your job is to encourage the participants to discuss the topic and the interviewnot to lecture. Interject historical or other contextual information only when required to clarify or correct. Aim to talk only about 15% of the time. Participants should think and respond conversationally, rather than participate in Q&A dialogue.

Goal 3: Guide the conversation by asking good questions Good questions Are open-ended and dont have a right or wrong answer. Avoid focusing on basic comprehension or facts. Invite personal response and text-toworld connections. Encourage the group to build meaning together. Continue the conversation by referencing comments and responses. Are genuinely curious and invite multiple perspectives. Give participants the tools to continue the conversation in other settings. Good follow-up questions Ask for clarification or other opinions. Link comments and opinions. Introduce new perspectives or play devils advocate. Goal 4: Create a safe space for conversation If possible, seat participants in a circle or semi-circle so everyone can make eyecontact with each other. Test audio equipment ahead of time to make sure the volume is loud enough for everyone to hear (don't play off of regular

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

computer speakers). If using a transcript, make enough copies so that everyone has a copy. Give everyone a nametag if people dont already know each other. Provide snacks if possible. Use first names. Value all opinions, but guide the conversation away from prejudice and stereotyping. Set up guidelines for the conversation, such as: Listen to each other. Respect other opinions and ideas. Share your ideas with the whole group, not only your neighbor. Make sure everyone gets a chance to speak. Be aware how much youre talking. Decide ahead of time if participants need to raise their hands to speak. Decide whether you will queue comments or not. Let the group know your process. Be comfortable with silence: its often a sign that participants are thinking before they respond. Silence does not mean that the conversation has stalled and no one has anything to say.

Thank you for hosting a PPT Conversation!

Tax-exempt organizations and schools in New York State are eligible to receive a $25 Amazon gift card for hosting a PPT Discussion using this toolkit. To receive your gift card, please complete this short online survey from the New York Council for the Humanities: https://nych.wufoo.com /forms/s7x0k7/ Feel free to use the participant survey on page 7 to see what your audience thought about the discussion. You are encouraged but not required to share participant feedback with the Council.

Goal 5: Wrap up the discussion but keep the conversation going At the end of the discussion, summarize key ideas, note changes in perspectives, and point to concerns not yet adequately expressed to leave room for further exploration. Its okay to end the discussion by having raised more questions than you answered. A sign of a good conversation is that participants want to keep talking with their friends and family after they leave the room. End with one or more of the general Person Place Thing questions.

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Dan Savage
Episode #6

Conversation Questions Person: Caroline Matilda Do you agree with Dan Savage that Caroline Matilda was sort of a revolutionary figure? Why or why not? Savage and Cohen discuss the sexual through-line of Carolines rule: her position came from her husband and her reforms were made in partnership with her lover. Do you think this conflicts with Savages view of her as in control and not a pawn? Do you agree with Savages assertion that people often read back feminist intent when it isnt there? Are there other contemporary views you think people read back? Do you think its important to know about the personal life of influential figures? Are there cases when a public figures personal life is irrelevant? Place: Front Porch in Champaign-Urbana Implicit in Savages discussion of the porch is the connection between a place (the porch) and a person (Tommy). Do you believe place can carry memory of people in this way? Randy Cohen observes that the porch was the place that set Dan Savages life on a certain path. Do you have a place like that in your life, and if so, where is it? What path did it set you on? Would you want to mark that place with a plaque? Savage and Cohen spend a lot of time discussing what role college is supposed to play in our lives.

Dan Savage (born 1964) is an author, activist, editor, and journalist who is best known for his syndicated sex and relationship advice column and podcast Savage Love and as the co-founder of the It Gets Better project with his husband Terry Miller. In writing and as a television pundit, Savage has been a prominent advocate of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights. Savage lives in Seattle with Terry and their son D.J.

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

What role do you think college should play in young peoples lives?

What kinds of questions do you ask to find out more about someone whom you know slightly? Know well? What is your person, place, and thing?

GLBTQ groups, such as Gay-Straight Alliances, campus support groups, or community centers, may also want to use these discussion questions: Why do you think that the porch was defining to Savages identity as a gay man? After all, he was already out.

Additional Resources Savage Love column: http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Savage Love?oid=11412386 It Gets Better Project: http://www.itgetsbetter.org/ Stella Tillyard, A Royal Affair: George III and His Scandalous Siblings (New York: Random House, 2006). Gay-Straight Alliance Network: http://gsanetwork.org/

Dan Savage observes that for many gay people of his generation, college was where they came out. Is that still true for youth today? What about for people who dont go to college? Where did you come out? Was (is) college a time of affirming your identity?

Thing: Savages Dining Room Table Is there a difference in your mind between an heirloom and what Savage calls immigrant furniture? Whats your immigrant furniture? Have you ever rescued something that others didnt think was valuable or special? Why? Most people cherish items passed down from their families, but Savage sees their dark side. Why is this? Why do you think Savage does not seem particularly troubled that his son most likely wont want to keep the table?

General Person, Place, Thing Questions What does knowing someones person, place, and thing tell you about them?

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Sample Lesson Plan for Person Place Thing: Dan Savage

15 minutes Get students thinking about the topic. (Activate prior knowledge.) What do you know about [TOPIC]? 10 minutes Listen to the radio segment that you will be discussing. If time, listen to the segment twice. Ask students to write down one or two surprising facts or quotes from the segment as they listen. If a transcript is available, give a copy to everyone allow students to read along with the interview. 5 minutes Check comprehension. Did everyone understand the vocabulary? Are there any phrases that need further clarification? 45 minutes Discuss! Focus on interpretive and evaluative questions. Interpretive: What does Dan Savage mean when he says [quote]? Evaluative: What do you think about what hes saying? Do you think what he says is true? 10 minutes Why Person Place Thing? Close the conversation by thinking about how we get to know someone new and what we learn when we ask about someones person, place, thing. What does knowing someones person, place, and thing tell you about them? What kinds of questions do you ask to find out more about someone whom you know slightly? Know well? What is your person, place, and thing? New York State Standards for Grades 6-12 Common Core English Language Arts: Comprehension and Collaboration and Conventions of Standard English

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Conversation Participant Evaluation

Strongly Disagree The facilitator made it easy for me to share my ideas about the radio segment. The facilitator made sure everyones voices were heard. The facilitator asked questions about the radio segments that were relevant and interesting to me. The discussion made me feel more comfortable talking about complex ideas with other members of my community. This discussion deepened my understanding of the topic we discussed. Disagree Possibly Agree Strongly Agree

What advice, if any, would you give to future facilitators of this program?

Are there issues in your community that might best be explored through a discussion like this one? If so, please share.

Conversation Participant Evaluation

Strongly Disagree The facilitator made it easy for me to share my ideas about the radio segment. The facilitator made sure everyones voices were heard. The facilitator asked questions about the radio segment that were relevant and interesting to me. The discussion made me feel more comfortable talking about complex ideas with other members of my community. This discussion deepened my understanding of the topic we discussed. Disagree Possibly Agree Strongly Agree

What advice, if any, would you give to future facilitators of this program?

Are there issues in your community that might best be explored through a discussion like this one? If so, please share.

PERSON PLACE THING

CONVERSATION TOOLKIT

New York Council for the Humanities

Keep the Conversation Going with Support from the New York Council for the Humanities
The New York Council for the Humanities helps all New Yorkers become thoughtful participants in our communities by promoting critical inquiry, cultural understanding, and civic engagement. The Council offers these grants and programs to support conversation-based programming:
Community Conversations Community Conversations promotes thoughtful, engaged community dialogue using a short text and a facilitator from the local community. The Councils free toolkits contain everything you need to host a do-it-yourself conversation, including texts, discussion questions, and tips for hosting and facilitating a conversation. The Council offers toolkits

for three distinct audiences: kids, young adults, and general adult audiences. Taxexempt organizations and schools in New York State are eligible to receive stipends of $250 for hosting Community Conversations. http://www.nyhumanities.org/discussion_g roups/community_conversations/index.pp Conversations Bureau Our Conversations Bureau facilitators come to your community to host a 90minute discussion centered on a short text. The Council covers the cost of the facilitators honorarium and travel costs. The Conversations Bureau is open to any New York State tax-exempt organization or high school. Browse our list of topics and facilitators on the Councils website. http://www.nyhumanities.org/programs/cb /index.php Program Grants The Council invites your organization to design your own series of conversationbased programming about important humanities ideas or texts. Any tax-exempt organization in New York State can apply to the Council for grants of $300-$3000. Grants must be submitted to the Council at least three months prior to the start of the series. Full guidelines and the application form can be found on the Councils website. http://www.nyhumanities.org/grants/intro. php