Today is an organized day of silence to raise awareness about bullying and harassment of LGBTQ students and other people. The event seems to be organized for students to participate, but I taught my full 3 lessons without speaking a word.

Students were supportive and seemed to enjoy it. One student quipped that they learned more this way because they had to ask the questions and give the answers. I was able to answer yes/no questions, and I could write other things on the board, but students did step up (figuratively) to give longer explanations.

It was a little difficult to communicate. Even questions like, “Do you understand?” and “Any questions?” weren’t easy, but they followed me well enough.

As a teacher, I think this was a fun way to show my support for LGBTQ rights. They knew what it was about (I wrote it on the board for those who didn’t know beforehand), and next class I might have a discussion about it.

This might be a privilege for math teachers (having the lesson being very writing-intensive) but I would encourage others to try it if possible!

Link: http://www.dayofsilence.org/