One of the most important ways that we find out more about the world is by asking questions. We ask questions of people when we are trying to understand what they are saying or when we think they have something to teach us. We ask questions of books and answer them through careful reading. Scientists ask questions of the world and answer them through controlled experiments. We ask questions of ourselves when we are trying to understand ourselves. Teach your children the value of asking questions and you will teach them a most important learning and growth tool. Create an atmosphere in the home where all questions are allowed. Compliment the question when appropriate and thank your child for asking it, as it helps you know what to teach him.

Texts: The first two texts are found in the perasha and are used in the Passover Haggadah. The third is used in the Passover Haggadah as well.

Why is it good to ask questions? (Asking questions is the way to learn) When should you ask questions? (Whenever you have one, without interrupting, of course.)

Did you ask a question to your teacher today, or this week? Is it easy to ask questions to your teachers? What can you do when your teacher says: "no questions now?" (Write them down to ask later?)

Can you ask a book a question? (Yes. A Simple example is asking a phone book for a number. Asking a cookbook how much flour to put in a recipe.) What questions do you have and which books could you turn to for the answers?

If you could ask God three questions what would they be? How can you ask them of God? (prayer, learning Torah). What books could you turn to for the answers? Which people can you ask? (Parent, Teacher, Rabbi, friend, all of them.)

Why do you think our Rabbis told us that the bashful person does not learn? Do you ever feel embarrassed to ask questions? Why?

Why do you think our Rabbis taught us that the impatient person should not teach?

Are there any questions that you should not ask? (Prying personal questions.)

Are there any questions you would like to ask me?

The types of questions that our children are exposed to in school are very often of the short, one-right-answer type. These questions are usually testing the recall of information. We should get our children used to thinking about questions where there is not one right answer, but many possible answers. The questions in these talks are meant to be open ended, with many possible answers. The idea is to spur on discussion, and not to spew out information.

Whether in the classroom or at home we want to get our children to think and to articulate their thinking. We must deepen our children’s thinking by giving them time to think. I know this sounds simple but it takes some getting used to. Educators use a concept called "wait time." There is "wait time 1," and "wait time 2."

"Wait time 1" is the time that the student is given after the question is asked before he is expected to answer. Some teachers have the practice of not accepting any answers for at least one or two minutes after a question is asked (especially if it is an open-ended question with many possible answers). This allows more students to think of answers that are more thoughtful. It also breaks the game show kind of competition that can sometimes prevail in the classroom or at home. What does this mean practically? Inform your children that you will ask a question that has many correct answers and that you want them to think about the answer. You will give them as much time as they want, and will not accept any answers for the first three minutes. Then make sure to give them the time to think through the answers.

"Wait time 2" is the time between the child’s answer and the teacher’s (or parent’s) reaction. Give the child time to complete the answer without any reaction. He will go on and on defending his answer or bringing examples or in many ways elaborating his answer. All that deepens the child’s thinking. How can we put this into practice? When the child answers, do not interrupt him. When he stops, do not say anything for at least five seconds (it is a long time for silence, count it out!). More often than not, the child will continue talking, elaborating his answer - that is deepening his thinking.

Use these concepts at home when you are discussing the Perasha or having any discussion. You will see how it can really enhance your children’s (and your own) thinking abilities.