Guidelines for inquiry groups

We agree to visit our river, invoking its living presence and attending for response for an extended period at least once a week.

We will create an account of our experience in a form of our choosing (prose/poetry/drawing/
photos/video) and share these in our Google Drive folder in time for others to attend to them.

We take time to read/watch and reflect on the contributions of other group members prior to each meeting.

We will meet on Zoom once a week to reflect on previous week’s encounter and to agree how we might proceed in the following week.

You may wish to take turns to pay particular attention to one other person’s account (see format below). That person might then introduce the other’s account, highlighting points of particular interest as a way of opening the discussion.

As the inquiry cycles progress, group members may choose all to engage in the same manner (e.g. all visit the river at the same time or engage in the same ceremony); or pursue our own idiosyncratic paths.

The quality of our work together depends on everyone contributing; please arrive on time and engage fully in the group conversation.

Respectful listening to the range of contributions is essential. Challenge can also be helpful to draw out different perspectives, so long as it is based in loving care.

Please respect the confidentiality of other participants; explore together what can be shared more widely and what is private.

Give everyone in the group equal time to explore their experiences. It is a good idea to take turns as timekeepers.

You are invited to use the discussion threads in Classroom between meetings both within your group and to reach out to people in other inquiry groups. We can set up additional threads to focus on particular issues if requested.