Common Prompts

Ask

• a direct question: "What is a light year?"
• a fill-in question: "A light year is....?"

Command

• "Tell me what a light year is."

Challenge

• with problems: "A star is 1000 light years from earth. How far away in miles is it?"
• be a devil's advocate: "I don't believe in black holes. How do you know they actually exist?"
• seek alternatives: "I've heard it said the other way, how do you know this is right?"

Add

• missing piece: "Light travels at 186,000 miles per second. Now, can you calculate a light year?"
• brainstorm: "What else can we think of to explain that?"

Listen

• wait for the student to respond to a prompt.
• be silent while waiting for a student's prompt or response.
• signal attentiveness
  • nod
  • say "uh-huh," "go on," "yes," "I see"

Common Responses

Reply

• answer a question: "A light year is the distance traveled by light in a year."

Explain

• an answer.
• how an answer was arrived at.
• the thought processes underlying a process or a concept.

Summarize

• progress so far.
• the steps at arriving at an answer or concept.
• the relationship of one concept to another.

Evaluate

• how the student is progressing.
• how tutoring is progressing.
• how tutoring is structured.