How can I get everyone to join in? Part 2

I wrote last September about the critical importance of a supportive classroom culture if you want every pupil to participate in classroom talk.

Within that culture, here are my top three strategies to make sure everyone speaks:

1. Thinking time. The exact amount will vary (depending on things like age, question type, prior learning and your reason for asking the question) but in general give at least three seconds.

2. Alternatives to hands up – try speaker chooses, random selection, cold-calling and rounds.

3. Questions with many possible answers. Open questions take away the fear of being wrong. The important thing is pupils’ thinking, so make sure you always ask them to explain the reasoning behind their response.

Here’s to hearing every voice!