Four Corners

Label the four corners of the room Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree. Read a statement. Students walk to the corner that matches their opinion, discuss with others who chose the same corner, then cross the room to defend it. The physical movement forces commitment; the corner-mates give instant support.

Procedure

1. Post the four labels in the four corners of the room.
2. Display a debatable statement: Social media does more harm than good. / Homework should be banned at primary school. / It's fine to lie to protect a friend.
3. Give 60 seconds of silent think time for learners to form a position.
4. Students walk to the corner that matches their opinion.
5. In each corner, groups spend 3 minutes preparing two reasons for their position, drawing on the opinion gap structure — multiple valid views, each requiring justification.
6. One representative from each corner presents the group's argument. Other corners listen, take notes.
7. After all four have spoken, learners may physically switch corners if they have been persuaded. Each switcher explains what changed their mind.
8. Debrief. Log useful language for expressing and changing opinion.

Why it works

Physical commitment is underrated in an opinion task. Seated, a learner hedges and defers. Standing in the "Strongly Disagree" corner, they have publicly declared a position and now must defend it. The permission to switch corners at the end legitimises persuasion as the goal, rather than winning — which is what separates Four Corners from an adversarial debate. Pair this with Structured Academic Controversy for a sequence that trusts the opinion-gap principle across a whole lesson.

Variations

• Continuum: Learners stand anywhere along a line, not just at the corners. Good for gradient opinions.
• Secret corners: Teacher names corners by colour; learners reveal the opinion after they have moved, preventing conformity to the popular group.
• Rotating topics: Three statements in sequence; learners re-position each time.

Tips

• Statements must allow genuine disagreement. Factual statements ("Paris is the capital of France") ruin it.
• Some learners pick a corner to stand with friends. Brief them: the instruction is to stand where you honestly disagree or agree.
• Keep "Strongly" and "Mild" corners genuinely distinct. "Somewhat agree" is a meaningful position worth defending.