Why it works
Questioning and active participation sit at the center of the process-product research and Rosenshine's principles. A wait time of a few seconds measurably increases the length and quality of student responses, and calling on everyone, done warmly, raises the baseline of who is thinking.
The research: Rowe on wait time; Rosenshine on questioning.
The run-of-show
Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.
The core activity: plan your questions and your cold calls
Teachers leave with the key questions for one lesson and a warm, safe plan for calling on everyone.
- Pick a lesson and write three or four key questions that target the hard ideas.
- Plan where you will cold call, and how you will keep it safe.
- Build in wait time of three to five seconds before anyone answers.
- Decide your follow-up moves: probe for reasoning, bounce to another student, and a no-opt-out way back in.
Cold call is warm, not a gotchaDone well, cold call says: I expect you can, and I will come to you. Pair it with wait time and a way back in so no one is left stranded.
Facilitator notes
- Model a cold call on the staff so they feel the difference from hands-up.
- The quality is in the question, not just the calling. Spend time on question design.
- Teach wait time out loud: three to five seconds feels long and works.
Protect think timeThe instinct is to fill the silence. Name wait time so teachers practice holding it.
Adapt it
- <b>Elementary:</b> choral response and a partner talk before you cold call.
- <b>Secondary:</b> bounce answers student to student and probe for reasoning.
- <b>Students who need support:</b> a quiet heads-up or a sentence starter so cold call builds confidence.
Participant handout
One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.
K12 Academics · Professional Learning
Cold Call & Questioning: plan it, call it, follow it up
<b>Techniques that get everyone thinking:</b> cold call, wait time, no opt out, probing, bouncing.
- My lesson:
- My three key questions:
- Where I will cold call:
- My wait-time cue:
- My no-opt-out return:
Make it stick
Make questioning deliberate, not improvised:
- Write the key questions into the lesson plan, not on the fly.
- Keep a few go-to follow-up moves posted by your desk.
- Bring a question that landed well to the next PLC.
Common questions
Isn't cold call stressful for students?
Done warmly and predictably, with wait time and a way back in, it builds confidence rather than anxiety.
What if a student has no answer?
Use no opt out: let them hear a correct answer, then return to them so they can say it themselves.
How long should wait time be?
Three to five seconds. It feels long and reliably improves the quality of responses.
Go deeper
- Teach Like a Champion, Doug Lemov