“Waiting” is a powerful tool and there is nothing passive or unproductive about it.
By allowing space for quiet times, we send a different message—one of patience, respect, and encouragement.
“Wait. Wait Some More. Then Respond”. I have this posted in my binder at work. It was originally set as a reminder to myself to hold off from responding to emails, requests or similar opportunities so immediately.
My knee-jerk response is to fill the need or "do the thing". It’s the worker-bee in me but there have been so many occasions I wish I had given myself more time to consider the information or request to formulate a more cohesive response or plan of action.
I find this “just wait” reminder holds true within my therapy sessions as well. I don’t know if it’s our fast-paced world or flashbacks to graduate school recalling the elusive camera recording our every word, and our supervisor on the other end taking copious notes on our clinical performance, but it is so easy to view silence as unproductive or anxiety-inducing.
However, within a speech therapy session, these moments of quiet are invaluable because the silence provides an opportunity for something spectacular to arise.
Allowing for Wait Time is Much Like Using White Space in Advertising
Just as in advertising, where white space allows the viewer to focus on the essential message, moments of silence in therapy allow children the time and space they need to take in their surroundings, process the verbal stimuli and potentially formulate their response to the stimuli.
More often than not, too much auditory input can end up just being noise. When we rush to fill every moment with speech or instruction, we rob children of the chance to engage in active listening and reflection.
We may inadvertently promote prompt dependence and/or convey the message that their thoughts and words are not valued and that there is no space for their contributions.
By allowing space for quiet times, we send a different message—one of patience, respect, and encouragement.
How to Use Wait Time in Speech Therapy
Here are a few ideas to use wait time within a speech therapy session or even when engaged in play:
1. Set the tone - Even though your lesson plan may be filled with "all the things" to accomplish, let the child know that it's okay to take their time and that there's no rush to respond.
2. Encourage active listening by giving them your full attention, using non-verbal cues to support your intent such as facing your body toward the child, maintaining a relaxed position, using affirming facial expressions, and removing anything that might distract your attention away from the child (e.g., cell phone, tablet, clipboard).
3. Follow a child’s lead in THEIR play. Embrace parallel or associative play and observe the nuances of the child's engagement. Quiet observations provide huge opportunities for insight which can drive the direction you take within the therapy session.
4. Picture books – instead of asking questions about what is on a page, try responding to something you see happening on the page by pointing to it and looking at the child expectantly (or inquisitively or with surprise).
5. When modeling language, give them time. Let them know it's their turn to communicate and allow them an opportunity to do so. If it looks like they want you to do something (e.g., open up a container), simply model “help” or “open” and then wait (looking at them expectantly). Wait. Then wait some more. Then try again.
6. Include simple activities of turn-taking (e.g., tossing a ball back and forth) to promote engagement and opportunities to model “go”, “me”, “mine”, “up”, or “more”. Pause the play mid-way (i.e., just before tossing the ball) and wait expectantly to see if the child responds.
7. Include activities that have an obvious “start” or that offer multiple opportunities for communication initiations such as “go”, “open”, “again” or “more” (e.g., swinging, marble tower, car ramps, spinning ring toy).
How Long Should I Wait?
There is no magical number but 5 seconds is a good starting point. You know every child is different so play around with it to see what works best for each of them.
Remember, silence is not a sign of inactivity; it's a sign of processing, understanding, and growth. So, the next time you find yourself in a moment of quiet during a therapy session, embrace it. Give children the gift of space and time, and see what happens. Use your observational data to inform your future lesson plans and therapy sessions.
Additionally, the next time you find yourself in a position where you might feel an internal struggle of "needing" to say or respond to something outside of a therapy session, try to remind yourself it's okay to "Wait. Wait Some More. Then Respond".
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