My first year teaching I remember being evaluated on whether I “provided adequate wait time to all students.” During observations, I would ask a question and then literally count in my head or even put up a visual timer for students. This waiting period was to allow students to think of an answer themselves without pressure. If students needed help after this wait time period, then the teacher would provide guidance. For me, it was often in the form of modeling or saying phrases like “…8 x 6 is…four…ty…ei…” very slowly until the kid said 48 and I was satisfied they knew what they were doing.
Now take what you learned about wait time and throw it out the window. For some students, wait time can be ten seconds, but for others it can be minutes, hours, or even days. As teachers we need to structure our wait time according to student needs. It’s a special art to know when to jump in and when to hang back and it takes time to get comfortable with this.
So you’ve provided the wait time, however long it may be, now what? Here is a list of what you might say after giving students time to process and think.
- What have you already done?
- What do you notice and wonder about this task?
- Does this remind you of any other problems you’ve done previously?
- What are your options for moving forward in solving?
- Can you make sense of anyone else’s thinking?
What did you notice about my list? Our job as teachers is to facilitate the conversations and guide students to mathematical knowledge, not shove information into their heads. Now, here’s the important part. After you’ve had a discussion with students using your guiding questions, go ahead and give more wait time. And this time, give students physical space to think. I often will give students a few minutes to process and collaborate as I walk over to my desk or setup the next part of the lesson. Students may feel more comfortable to try out a strategy when nobody is watching. I try to secretly listen to their conversations without directly observing to give me an idea of where they’re at with their understanding.
If your students are used to wait time being a period where they can hide and then wait for you to give them next steps, this may be a shift for you and them. Students may even become frustrated or mad and feel you’re not helping them. Continue to ask questions about their thinking and help them to see connections. When they’ve learned a new strategy or solved a problem, they will feel they solved it, rather than you. So, what do you think of wait time? Tell me in the comments…I’ll be waiting.
