I know you have heard of wait time. You know, the 2-3 seconds you wait after asking a question before you actually have a student answer. Wait time works miracles in getting student engagement up and providing more thoughtful contributions to classroom discussions.
BUT have you heard of wait time two? I am going to be honest, I hadn't. I have been using wait time one, the traditional wait time, all my life. Even as a teenage babysitter I used it. It just seems so natural, and once you start using it, you love it.
A few weeks ago I was talking to some teacher friends, and they were discussing wait time two. I knew what wait time was, but was confused by the two that they were adding. Could I be missing something important? I had to ask.
My friend was SO excited to share with me that wait time two is the time you wait, the same approximate 2-3 seconds, after a student answers before you speak again. Immediately my brain started swimming through the application of this. I mean, we always want our students to elaborate on their answers, and what a great way to tell them that we are expecting more without saying, "Tell me more," until we are blue in the face. I had to try it out, and right away. I didn't have any students readily available, so I went with another friend. I asked her a basic question, "How was your day?" She answered with the basic, "You know, busy," I continued to wait rather than offering feedback, and sure enough she elaborated on her day by telling me all about what was going on in her life.
AMAZING. I mean life changing amazing.
So, my challenge to you is to try it out. Give it a try with your students, a friend, your significant other, and then let me know how it goes in the comments, because I think this is going to be a game changer!
Want More Quick Teaching Tips
Subscribe to get our latest blog posts by email.
No comments:
Post a Comment