The Art of Questioning

The art of questioning is an area I am continuing working on to  improve in my professional journey.  How do I ask open-ended questions which requires all students to think and to improve their understanding of the mathematics?  This skill set was never taught to me during my four years of college. Below is My Top Ten List of things I have learned along this quest to ask deeper questions and to also provide a safe climate where learning and thinking are a part of my math classroom.

My Top Ten List

#1 Vary my wait-time, before and after lessons.

#2 Use open-ended questions (see attached).

#3 Not commenting on answers, but asking for more.

#4 Answering a question with another question.

#5 Remaining silent until something else is said.

#6 Collecting a range of responses on the board.

#7 Seeking agreement or disagreement from the students.

#8  Ask Three Before Me Strategy.

#9  Using response cards (Pinch Cards, True/False Cards, Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down) so all students are required to respond.

#10 Practice, Practice, Practice all of the above.

We have to maintain a balance between saying too much, and saying too little. WOW!