In tutoring small Study Circles with few participants, occasionally the end-of-section discussion may not be as complete as desired. Key discussion points may be left out because perhaps the group is "shy" or so small that it's difficult to facilitate the discussion long enough to "advance their understanding" of the topic. This may occur more often in Book 1 Study Circles since the participants are new to the process.

As a first step to encouraging more participation, you might consider taking a look at the guidance in Book 7, Unit 2, Section 5 on fostering and assessing understanding. If you feel confident that you are able to foster and assess understanding well, but still feel the group is not reaching the next level of understanding during the end-of-section discussions, try incorporating the arts.  

The arts are a wonderful way to stimulate discussion. Most participants are comfortable discussing an arts activity they've participated in, even if they can't always find the words to express their thoughts in other discussion settings.   If you select activities that relate directly to the quotations or topic being studied, the activities themselves readily generate discussion and give you a second opportunity to cover missed points and further enhance understanding. 

Here's how:

1. Prior to the Study Circle, read each section you are going to cover and identify key points you feel the end-of-section discussion(s) should include. Prepare your open-ended questions on these key points to stimulate discussion. Your goal, of course, is to develop the end-of-section discussion to the point where the group reaches the next level of understanding. Until the discussion matures to this point, however, use the arts as a strategy to reach the same end result.

2. Select an appropriate activity related to the quotations/topic being studied. This can be any type of activity -- an art project, a game, a demonstration of a spiritual principal (examples later).

3. During the actual end-of-section discussion, make mental notes of which points were not adequately covered or any important areas where the group may not have reached the next level of understanding.

4. After the end-of-section discussion, begin the activity. When completed, initiate a discussion on the activity (which is really a continuation of the end-of-section discussion), making sure you include the points not covered previously. Your goal is to help the group reach a deeper level of understanding of the topic, and the arts will assist you by increasing the comfort level of the group, giving them more time to consider the topic as they work on the activity, and providing a new focus for discussion.

Below is an example of using the arts to facilitate discussion in Book 1:

There are three people in the Book 1 Study Circle John tutors.   Two of the individuals are very shy, and the discussion after each section is noticeably short and the group doesn't always seem to reach the next level of understanding.  John has determined that he is adequately prepared for the discussions and he feels that his facilitation style, while not perfect, is not the primary reason for the short discussions.

John decides to incorporate the arts into the Book 1 Study Circle for the added benefit of stimulating discussion.  In Unit 2 on Prayer, Section 6, after working on memorizing the quotations from the Long Obligatory Prayer and discussing the quotations, he asks each person to create a picture or collage based on the imagery in one of the three quotations.  When the participants complete the activity, John initiates a discussion where each person shares about their picture/collage.  John is able to incorporate open-ended questions into the discussion on topics he feels were not adequately covered in the initial section discussion, thereby assisting the group to reach the next level of understanding. 

John is happy with the results of his experiment, and the next week decides to try a different type of activity to stimulate discussion.  After completing and discussing Unit 2, Section 9, which is last section of Unit 2 and which contains no quotations, the Study Circle makes a Prayer Tree (see the Prayer Tree activity under Book 1 Activities).  Each leaf in the tree is a prayer request, and the group can post their "tree" at future Study Circles when devotions are offered to visually remind them of their prayers for others.  In discussing the Prayer Tree after it is completed, John is able to work in a number of questions that highlight points missed in the earlier end-of-section discussion, thereby helping all the participants better focus and more deeply understand the section.

Other activities John considers for future Study Circles to enhance the discussions include a game like "Ruhi Rummy", or a demonstration of a spiritual principle, like teaching each other quotes using brief dramatic enactments/representations. There are many possibilities, and as long as John links them to the topic being discussed, the activities will help stimulate discussion.