WEEKS 1–4 · The Forge

WEEKS

Tab 04 / 11 · Facilitation Notes

WEEKS

1–4

Trial Forge through Unit 1 Tavern: minute-by-minute facilitation for your first month.

11 Tabs

START WHY MENTORS WEEKS CYCLE UNITS WORKSHOPS FINALE PROTOCOLS FADE DICT

WEEKS 1–4 · opener

Weeks 1–4

WEEK 1 · TRIAL FORGE

Week 1: Trial Forge

SESSION TYPE: TRIAL FORGE  ·  NORMAL ROOM: 2 MENTORS ACTIVE, FULL DEMONSTRATION

What it is: Students watch mentors debate each other, then are thrown into a mock debate with roles assigned on the spot. The goal is not mastery. It is orientation: they see what the room feels like when it is alive.

Pre-class setup → Appendix A · Trial Forge Mock Topic

Print 8 Role Cards + 8 Scholar Agreements (signature pages) → Student Handbook §3 Role Playbooks (cards) + §1 The Promise (Scholar Agreement)

Print 8 Evidence Map templates (Jury use) → Student Binder §9 · Jury Worksheet

Prepare a 600-word mock topic students already know (e.g. “Should high school start later?”)

Bring a timer. Test it. Bring a backup timer.

Arrange chairs in two semicircles facing each other

Prepare 8 blank ballots (scrap paper is fine)

Hand out on arrival

1Role Card (assigned at door, do not let them choose)

2Scholar Agreement (read today; take home for signatures; collect Week 2)

3Evidence Map (jurors only; debaters/researchers get blank paper)

Minute by minute2 MENTORS? A = FORGE COACH + WEAVER · B = TEXT COACH

Time	What happens	Your job
0:00–0:05	Introduction: “You are not here to learn about debate. You are here to debate.” Set the single rule.	Weaver speaks. Forge Coach sets energy.
0:05–0:20	Two-adult demonstration — literal 7-minute script: Students are the jury. Mentor A says, “Pre-vote,” and collects hands; then gives the Position A opening (0:00–0:45). Mentor B gives Position B opening (0:45–1:30). A rebuts (1:30–2:15); B rebuts (2:15–3:00). A says, “Jury questions,” and calls two students (3:00–4:30). A closes (4:30–5:15); B closes (5:15–6:00). Mentor A says, “Post-vote,” students vote, and Mentor B narrates the sequence and names the shift (6:00–7:00).	Mentor A = Position A + moderator. Mentor B = Position B + narrator. Student jury asks questions and votes. No third adult or overlapping role is required.
0:20–0:25	Debrief: “What did you notice?” Call on 3 students. Do not explain. Just listen.	Weaver asks. Text Coach notes noticed vs. missed.
0:25–0:30	Role assignment: Hand out Role Cards randomly. 3 minutes to study. Spot-check: “Moderator, what is your first job?”	Forge Coach assigns. Text Coach circulates.
0:30–0:35	Mock debate: Students run the same topic. 5 min, abbreviated. Chaotic is fine.	Forge Coach beside moderator w/ whisper-card. Text Coach beside researcher. Weaver watches.
0:35–0:50	Debrief: “What was harder than it looked?” Call on the student who said the least.	Weaver facilitates. Forge Coach notes confusion. Text Coach notes evidence mistakes.
0:50–0:55	Scholar Agreement: Read aloud. Students take it home for student and parent/guardian signatures; it is collected at the start of Week 2.	Weaver reads. Forge Coach does not collect today.
0:55–1:05	Next-week preview: “Complete all five Project Hail Mary reading blocks before the Arms Room on Sept 22.” Check that everyone has the guide and teacher-arranged access.	Text Coach hands out guide. See the Required Readings and Acquisition Record for teacher acquisition; privately arrange student access.
1:05–1:35	Supported reading / access clinic: Begin or catch up on the next reading block; privately solve missing-book, format, or schedule barriers.	Text Coach supports reading. Forge Coach checks access one student at a time.
1:35–1:50	Role-card filing and catch-up: Students annotate the debate sequence and file today’s work.	Mentors resolve procedural questions and note absences.
1:50–2:00	Closure: Every student names the next reading action privately on an exit slip.	Collect slips; follow up privately.

WEEKS 1–4 · 10

WEEK 1 · TRIAL FORGE

Weeks 1–4

What to listen for

1Did the moderator call votes without prompting?

2Did jurors ask questions or just sit?

3Did debaters open with claims or with stories?

4Did researchers have anything to pass?

Equivalent participation is guaranteedOffer every student a private choice before roles: live speech, a mentor-read written contribution, recorded contribution, or timed written jury analysis. Each route must produce the same claim, evidence, counter, and response; no diagnosis or reason is disclosed. Bench is a prepared evidence role, never a punishment. If a student declines one route, quietly offer another and preserve belonging.

Homework to check

Complete all five Project Hail Mary reading blocks before the Arms Room on Sept 22.

Scholar Agreement signed by parent and returned before Week 2.

WEEKS 1–4 · 11

Weeks 1–4

WEEK 2 · ARMS ROOM

Week 2: Unit 1 — Arms Room

SESSION TYPE: ARMS ROOM (INVESTIGATE)  ·  MENTOR VISIBILITY: ALL 3 ACTIVE

Pre-class setup → Appendix A · Mission Briefing + Volunteer Form

Print the U1 debate questions: Q1 “The Final Choice” is the formal debate; Q3 “No One Is Watching” is the warm-up → Contents “UNITS” row · U1 Project Hail Mary sheet

Print 8 Evidence Map templates → Student Binder §9 · Jury Worksheet

Have spare reading guides on hand

Prepare the optional mission-design anchor: “Mission Briefing” (1-page declassified brief)

Prepare the optional consent counterfactual: “Volunteer Form” (1-page agreement)

Prepare private readiness slips: all five reading blocks complete? document study complete? access/catch-up support requested?

After Block 5 closes Sunday Sept 20 and before the Sept 22 Arms Room, send or display the exact formal Q1 through the declared course channel or paper handoff.

Minute by minute2 MENTORS? A = FORGE COACH + WEAVER · B = TEXT COACH

Time	What happens	Your job
0:00–0:05	Private readiness check: Every student hands the Text Coach a folded slip confirming all five reading blocks and the document study, or requesting catch-up/access help. Readiness never determines or publicly signals a role.	Text Coach reviews slips privately. Forge Coach collects signed Scholar Agreements. Arrange catch-up without disclosure.
0:05–0:25	Document Study discussion: Mentor leads the U1 close-read questions. Students arrive having pre-read from the Document Study Reader.	Weaver facilitates; Forge Coach times. Keep it inside 20 minutes.
0:25–0:35	Warm-up: Run Q3 “No One Is Watching” (Contents “UNITS” · U1). Students write one sentence. Collect. Read 3 aloud. Then name Q1 “The Final Choice” as the formal debate.	Weaver runs Q3. Forge Coach reads Q1 exactly and times.
0:35–0:55	Independent claim → Evidence Forge: First, 5 protected minutes: each student writes one Q1 quote → claim → impact → strongest-counter response alone and initials it. Only then pair for quote mining and argument construction.	Text Coach initials every independent claim before collaboration, then circulates. Forge Coach manages energy.
0:55–1:00	Break
1:00–1:10	Argument Sharpen: Pair check. “Does your impact follow from your evidence, or are you just restating your claim?”	Text Coach spot-checks. Weaver listens for quality.
1:10–1:20	Role assignment for the Forge. Moderator tests timer.	Forge Coach assigns. No reference to prior history. Fresh start.
1:20–1:25	Role preview: What does this role require? Announce upcoming debate roles.	Forge Coach narrates. Students ask procedural questions.
1:25–1:30	Exact U1 prep deadline: Sunday, Sept 27, 10:00 AM, by the locally declared course channel or paper handoff.	Point to the locally declared channel; do not invent a platform. Confirm each student’s route privately.
1:30–1:45	Catch-up / access clinic: Students missing reading or materials receive protected catch-up and a private completion plan; roles remain independent.	Use teacher-arranged copies and the Required Readings and Acquisition Record, never a private vault path.
1:45–1:55	File and verify: Independent claim, role sheet, and deadline route filed.	Mentors verify all eight folders.
1:55–2:00	Closure: One written next action.	Collect exit slips.

WEEKS 1–4 · 12

WEEK 2 · ARMS ROOM

Weeks 1–4

What to listen for

1Are students mining quotes from the text, or making them up?

2Are they identifying counterarguments, or just restating their own claim louder?

3Is anyone pairing with the same person every time? (Mix them next unit.)

Common failure — the evidence forge is quiet, students are stuckText Coach intervenes with one pair: “Show me the strongest quote you found. Now show me why the other side would disagree.” Do this once, out loud, for the room to overhear. Then circulate. Do not intervene with every pair.

Homework to check

All five Project Hail Mary blocks were completed before today’s Arms Room; use the private plan if catch-up remains.

All U1 role prep is due Sunday, Sept 27, 10:00 AM, by the locally declared course channel or paper handoff.

WEEKS 1–4 · 13

Weeks 1–4

WEEK 3 · THE FORGE

Week 3: Unit 1 — The Forge

SESSION TYPE: FORGE (DEBATE)  ·  FORGE COACH MODERATES AND NARRATES EVERY MOVE

Pre-class setup

Confirm prep deadline was met. Forge Coach checks packets.

Moderator has timer. Test it.

Jurors have ballots.

Weaver has logbook for the Forge Record.

Print extra Evidence Maps for absent jurors. → Student Binder §9 · Jury Worksheet

Minute by minute2 MENTORS? A = FORGE COACH + WEAVER · B = TEXT COACH

Time	What happens	Your job
0:00–0:05	Arrival. U1 packets due Sunday, Sept 27, 10:00 AM are checked privately.	If prep was missed: keep the assigned role private and intact. Provide the blank scaffold and lawful source access—never a completed packet—and use 0:05–0:25 for protected catch-up. Before contributing, the student independently creates one quote → claim → impact → strongest-counter response; the mentor initials it. During the formal debate, use an equivalent written, recorded, or mentor-read contribution for that same role. Never assign Bench.
0:05–0:15	Q3 “No One Is Watching” warm-up (Contents “UNITS” · U1): Students write, then rehearse one claim. Re-read Q1 “The Final Choice” as today’s formal question.	Weaver runs Q3. Forge Coach names Q1 exactly.
0:15–0:25	Pre-debate. Moderator checks timer, reads stakes.	Forge Coach beside moderator. Whisper-card ready. Narrates aloud for the room.
0:25–0:30	Break
0:30–1:05	Oxford Debate: Pre-vote → Openings → Rebuttals → Closings → Jury questions → Post-vote. 35 minutes, each debater speaks twice. This is the canonical Role-Cards flow, run it exactly. Ballots pass to the moderator at post-vote.	Forge Coach monitors clock, not content. Text Coach fact-checks only if a source is clearly fabricated. Weaver watches room dynamics.
1:05–1:20	Forge Reflection + custody: Every student writes an attributable reflection. Criterion: identify one claim, cite the evidence that changed or failed to change its force, and name the strongest counter. Student keeps the original in the Forge Journal. Mentor initials a duplicate or completes the named custody checklist before the original leaves the table.	Text Coach marks one criterion on each reflection. Weaver files the duplicate/checklist by student name; never take the only student copy.
1:20–1:30	The Reveal: Weaver reads one anonymized line from the written reflections aloud. “Someone changed their mind. That is the point.”	Weaver reads. No commentary. Let the room sit with it.
1:30–1:40	“Hold the Tension”: “What did the winning side leave out?”	Students note one omission; no scoring.
1:40–1:50	Catch-up / equivalent evidence: Finish missing role evidence or mentor-read/written contribution.	Protect equivalent participation without public explanation.
1:50–1:55	File: Originals return to students; mentor duplicates/checklists enter the Forge Record.	Count eight attributable records.
1:55–2:00	Closure + U2 launch: Preview the Tavern correction, distribute the dated Little Women guide, and assign Block 1.	Name the marked criterion, not a grade; confirm every student leaves with the U2 guide.

WEEKS 1–4 · 14

WEEK 3 · THE FORGE

Weeks 1–4

What to listen for

1Did the moderator manage time, or lose control?

2Did debaters address the strongest counterargument first?

3Did jurors ask text-based questions, or emotional ones?

4Did the room shift? If not, why not?

Common failure — the debate dies at minute 12Check in this order: timer (does the moderator know where they are?), stakes (did the hook make the question feel real?), moderator confidence (calling jurors by name?), debater prep (do they have text evidence?). Fix the nearest problem. If all four are fine, let the room die for 30 seconds. Silence is teaching.

Common failure — the room gets personal or angryForge Coach pauses, re-reads the exact question aloud. Precision cools emotion. If it continues, call a 2-minute break. Do not mediate the argument, the format mediates it.

Homework to check

Forge Reflection kept in the Forge Journal (analytical, about the argument).

No new Project Hail Mary reading: all five blocks were complete before the Arms Room.

WEEKS 1–4 · 15

Weeks 1–4

WEEK 4 · THE TAVERN

Week 4: Unit 1 — The Tavern

SESSION TYPE: TAVERN (BRIDGE)  ·  WEAVER RUNS · FORGE COACH OBSERVES · TEXT COACH TEACHES SKILL

Pre-class setup

Forge Record updated with U1 roles, votes, shifts

Skill Layer prepared: one explicit skill to teach

U1 Story Layer prompt ready (Weaver's prompt)

Celebration prepared: which name, which reason

Confirm every student received the U2 reading guide at the Week 3 Forge

Minute by minute2 MENTORS? A = FORGE COACH + WEAVER · B = TEXT COACH

Time	What happens	Your job
0:00–0:10	Arrival & Retro: “What worked? What faltered?” Call on the student who spoke least during the Forge.	Weaver facilitates. Forge Coach notes wins/failures. Text Coach notes evidence mistakes.
0:10–0:30	Criterion-linked correction: Return each student’s mentor mark. Student copies the original sentence, revises it to meet the U1 criterion (claim + cited evidence + strongest counter), and labels BEFORE / AFTER.	Text Coach verifies one correction per student. Student keeps original and correction; Weaver files the duplicate/checklist.
0:30–0:35	Break
0:35–1:00	Story Forge — privacy choice: Students choose private first-person, third-person/case-based, or non-personal trait analysis. Assess trait reasoning, choice, consequence, and cost—not autobiographical disclosure. Sharing is opt-in and requires consent.	Weaver presents all three routes neutrally. Never ask why a student chose a route.
1:00–1:15	Reading Pipeline: Continue Little Women Blocks 1–2 using the guide distributed at the Forge; privately verify access.	Use the Required Readings and Acquisition Record for teacher acquisition.
1:15–1:25	Private completion / catch-up: Finish correction or Story Layer evidence.	Protect quiet and equivalent routes.
1:25–1:40	U2 launch and access clinic: File U1, mark the next reading blocks, solve missing-material needs privately.	Text Coach checks access; Weaver audits U1 custody.
1:40–1:50	Filing audit: Eight independent claims, eight mentor marks/corrections, eight reflection custody records, eight Story Layer artifacts.	Repair missing evidence now; attendance alone does not count.
1:50–1:55	Celebration: One specific recognition, never for disclosure.	Recognize craft or reasoning.
1:55–2:00	Closure: Students leave with U1 originals and the next dated action.	Mentors retain duplicates/checklists only.

Watch for

· Does the chosen mode make a defensible trait claim through a specific choice?

· Are consequence and cost visible without requiring personal disclosure?

Homework to check

Continue Little Women Blocks 1–2 using the guide distributed at the Forge

Story Layer artifact submitted in the student’s chosen mode

Common failure — the Story Layer is genericAsk: “What specific choice makes this trait visible? What followed? What did it cost?” Keep the student in the chosen first-person, third-person, or non-personal mode. Do not route the work back through the debate question.

WEEKS 1–4 · 16

CYCLE

Tab 05 / 11 · Unit Cycle Template

CYCLE

The repeating three-week shape. What never changes, what changes by unit, and the fade map.

11 Tabs

START WHY MENTORS WEEKS CYCLE UNITS WORKSHOPS FINALE PROTOCOLS FADE DICT

CYCLE · opener

Unit Cycle

THE FORGE · MENTOR GUIDE

Weeks 1–4 are the fully-worked Unit 1 example, with mentors at full demonstration. Units 2–8 run the same three-week rhythm: Arms Room → Forge → Tavern. Do not re-learn the room each unit. Run this template, then layer in the unit-specific content from the Per-Unit Card that follows.

What never changes

01The single rule: every student has a job, every unit. No passengers.

02The 35-minute, speak-twice Forge (the Role Cards one-pager is canonical).

03A Forge Reflection after every debate (analytical; kept in the Forge Journal).

04A Story Layer at every Tavern (identity, 5 years out; never the debate question).

05A reading check at the top of every Arms Room.

06A document-study discussion at the Arms Room, every unit, built on a pre-read done at home from the Document Study Reader.

07The Reveal after every Forge: one anonymized reflection line, read aloud, no commentary.

What changes by unit — the fade map

The book, the trait and its lens, the priority questions, the signature failure, and how much the mentors do, because the fade advances. Use this to know how present to be:

Unit	Fade phase	Forge Coach	Text Coach	Weaver
U2	Handoff	Beside moderator, whisper-card	Juries + spot-checks	Runs Bridge
U3–U4	Warm Fade	Outside circle, crisis only	Juries; steps in if researcher absent	Visible in Bridge only
U5–U6	Independent	Outside circle, emergency only	Juries like a student	1:1 conferences in Bridge
U7–U8	Emergency Only	In corner or absent	Fact-checks only if a source is fabricated	Workshop + conferences only

NoteFade is responsive, not automatic, and the phase above is the calendar default, not the gate. The real gate is rotation completion: do not fade a role until every student has played it once (see FADE · 35 for the per-role rotation map). If a room wobbles, step back in for that role only (Section 3). Document-study discussion follows the same fade: mentor-led through U4, student-led from U5 onward. A room that is ready earlier may hand the discussion to a student moderator earlier; a room that wobbles keeps the mentor in the circle.

CYCLE · 37

THE FORGE · MENTOR GUIDE

Unit Cycle

The three-week shape (generic)

Arms Room → Forge → Tavern

WEEK A — ARMS ROOM (Investigate)

Reading check → Document Study discussion (15–20 min; students arrive having pre-read from the Document Study Reader) → Hook (one debate question's opener) → Evidence Forge (quote-mining; blade / shield / range) → Argument Sharpen (pair check) → Role assignment → Prep deadline stated. Mentor job scales down per the fade map.

WEEK B — THE FORGE (Debate)

Arrival + deadline confirmed → Hook (the other priority question) → Pre-debate → Break → 35-min Oxford debate, speak-twice, ballots to moderator at post-vote → Forge Reflection (15 min: moderator tallies + announces once, roles write reflections, kept) → the Reveal (Weaver reads a reflection line) → the “Hold the Tension” minute.

WEEK C — THE TAVERN (Bridge)

Arrival + Retro → Skill Layer (one skill, taught from what actually happened) → Break → Story Forge (the Story Layer prompt, 5 years out) → Reading Pipeline (next book) → Celebration. On workshop weeks, the Story Forge block is replaced: see The Forge Workshops.

CYCLE · 38