Although I believe they were originally designed to help English Language Learners increase their participation, the simplicity of each slide in The Speaking Goal Cards from @TanELLClassroom would be a great way to begin any class period or discussion in which you want to encourage participation. They can prompt students to focus on certain speaking skills, or even help reluctant speakers to create a scaffolded action plan for a semester. Thanks to @TanELL for sharing this on Twitter!
