Thinking faces

Two boys with hands on chins, thinking

Four-year-olds thinking

We all know that thinking time is important. When working with young children, one way of familiarising them with the idea of thinking time is to draw attention to it for a few seconds. I like to say Show me your thinking faces.

By doing this frequently, even our very youngest students start to realise that having time to think is an essential part of learning; that it’s good to really think about a question before we start talking about the answer.

 
More on thinking time
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How long should thinking time be?

Improve the quality of spoken responses

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Thinking faces

Let’s think before we talk

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What makes a good talk partner?

Why not ask?

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Why not jot?

How making notes positively impacts on thinking, talking and writing

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Tips to make Zoom sessions interactive (Part 3)

More ideas to encourage participation

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Do you repeat pupil responses? Why?

Teachers’ reasons, and why it might be better not to

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What about the quiet children?

Three simple ways to increase participation

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Sorry, Mum!

Reflecting on how our talk can sometimes interrupt learners' thinking

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Try using structured talk to start your Zoom sessions

Invest time in connection before content.

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How is the quality of talk in your online meetings?

Creating the conditions for productive dialogue online, just as we would in the classroom.

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Video: High Quality Talk in Nursery

Simple-yet-effective techniques to get three year olds talking and keep them focused.

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‘Time to Think’ by Nancy Kline

A book which will deepen your understanding of the power of listening.

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P4C Ten Steps planning grid
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I will... the impact of pupil voice

Examples of what staff decided to do differently, after reading pupil voice about talk in their classrooms.

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Talk prompts which enable children to express they're stuck

I’ve noticed it’s useful to provide Pupil Talk Prompts that enable them to ask for thinking time or help.

Lolly sticks
Tips for using lolly sticks

Lolly sticks are a really simple way to randomly select children, but like anything they need to be used properly.

P4C makes teachers better teachers!

Over the past few months I’ve been asking teachers whether they think P4C has changed them.

What do children think of Hands Up?

Pupil Voice is an important part of my Talk Audits; here are some recent responses when I asked Key Stage 2 children their opinions about Hands Up…

Talk Audits

Introducing my Talk Audits.

Curiosity

My provocation at Challenge Partners Conference, Blackpool, October 2016: What is more important: developing curiosity or measurable academic progress?