A Favorite Teaching Tool - The Timer

Yes I love our timer, let me tell you why.

♥ Motivation -   Get it done.

♥ Deadline - Get it done in a timely manner.

♥ Fun - Race against the clock.

♥ Focus - Got to get it done right, concentrate.

photo by numb3r via Flickr

This is how I use the timer.  It is a tool available to Zippy all the time, but I pull it out on those occasions when she seems especially distracted.

1. Get out the timer.
2. Ask how much she wants to do: a problem, a sentence, a section etc. 
3. Ask how much time does she think it will take to the amount of work she has stipulated.
4. I set the timer and say "ready, set, go"  
5. If she finishes before the timer I always tell her how much time she has left.
6. If the timer beeps before she finishes, I ask her why it did, and if she needs more time.  Usually it is something like this division problem is harder than I thought and I need 2 more minutes to finish.