An Encore for the Question Slip: A Mighty Tool To Teach Teamwork & Self-Reliance

We first introduced the Question Slip way back in 2011. friEdTechnology Team Member Jessica Powell reminded us of it's power when she recently recalled using it for the first time with students and how it changed her style of teaching. When Amy Mayer, founder of friEdTechnology, first learned about the technique from a Canadian conference presenter (if anyone knows who, please let us know! She can't recall), she quickly found that more than any other simple technique it transformed her students into self-motivated learners.

One idea to make sure Question Slips become effective in your classroom is to have "free question time" each day with your students. If you are using a project based approach, you may begin class with directions & clarifications based on the day before, immediately followed by the free question period. Questions will almost always peter out after a few minutes. You may quickly find what Amy did, that class was silent, students were hanging on her every word and taking notes instead of just waiting a few minutes to have all the directions repeated over and over again to them individually. What a change!

Another piece of advice, stick to it STRICTLY when you are using Question Slips. Do not answer ANY questions, no matter how tempted you may be, after free question time is over. Give each team several Question Slips, after all, it's NOT that you don't want students asking questions, it's that you want them asking THOUGHTFUL & MEANINGFUL questions, not "Can I go to the bathroom?" If you strictly adhere to the Question Slip policy, you will be free to wander the room, observe team discussions, reteach and clarify as YOU choose. You will find that students are having great realizations that you never anticipated because you are not constantly intervening and directing. This role will help you transform into what we call a Learning Guide. Remember that old saying, "be the guide on the side not the sage on the stage"? This simple technique may help you transform into the Guide on the Side you have wanted to be.

Get the Updated Question Slip Template Here, FREE (Log into your Google account before clicking the link for best results, if you don't, the link may not work for you.)

If your school does not have G Suite for Education, you may download a PDF version of the template here, and then right after that, let us help you get G Suite (it's AMAZING)!

Like this idea? We have THOUSANDS more like it! Please consider joining us for one of our Online Courses, or contacting us to book professional development in your school.

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Fried Questions: The Question Slip

Part of transitioning to being the "guide on the side" is helping students become more reliant on each other and themselves than on you (the teacher). The Question Slip is a great option to wean students off your nurturing care and help them become more self and team reliant. Here's how it works, after ALLLL the directions are given, and you have asked many times if there are any more questions, and every hand has gone down, you hand out THE QUESTION SLIP, perhaps two per team. When I first tried this technique, I made a ton of copies and meticulously cut them all apart expecting to use many pages of slips per day. I handed them out, with a bit of trepidation but a lot of hope. Throughout the day, I waited to receive a returned question slip . . . but it almost never happened. In fact, I don't think I ever made another set of copies in my teaching career. However, I heard lots of great conversations, like this one (fictionalized with truthiness):

Albert: "Hey, I need you guys to sign this. I've got to as Mrs. Mayer a question!"
Marie: "Seriously? WHAT do you need to ask?"
Albert: "I need to know how long this needs to be. I mean like do we have to do three pages for four or ten or, like, what?"
Marie: "Dude! She told us that like FOUR times! It's as long as we need it to be! The grade comes from the rubric, not from how long it is! SIT DOWN. We ain't signing that slip!"

Of course Marie says these things with all the love and care of a classmate, but the best part of it is that Marie says it and not Mrs. Mayer. The only potential downside to Question Slips is the possible perception on the part of parents that you do not want to help their students. Reassure them that this is NOT the case. Students have time EACH DAY in whole group to ask any questions about ANY thing; however, question slips do help students become more self-reliant and are part of learning to work independently.

Please, even if you don't think this will work, trust me and give it a try. It changed my life as a teacher and after a time or two, I didn't need the slips because kids got it. Thinking for themselves was ok---even desirable, and this little slip of paper was all they needed to help them realize that they had what they needed ALL the time.

© Amy Mayer, @friEdTechnology, The Original WOW! Academy www.friEdTechnology.com Please copy and use freely!

Get the Question Slip file in Google Doc form here.

Interested in attending The ORIGINAL WOW! Academy and becoming a WOW! Master Teacher? Email me and let me know using the contact form in the top right and I'll put you on my mailing list.

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