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  • March Monthly Message
    • St. Patrick's Day
    • Fairness
  • March Weekly Activities
  • What is Bullying?
    • Ontario Ministry of Education
    • Signs of Bullying >
      • Victims, You Matter!
    • Make it a way not just a day >
      • Good Minds Stand Up >
        • Hiawatha and the Peacemaker
      • Pink Shirt Day
    • Take A Pledge
    • Bullying - Music and Media Literacy
  • Character Building
    • Kindness
    • Respect
    • Goal Setting
    • Compassion
    • Perserverance >
      • Perseverance Assembly
    • Fairness
    • Sportsmanship
    • Self Worth
    • Trustworthiness
  • Health and Well-being
    • Mental Health >
      • Mental health challenge >
        • self care wheel
      • Self Esteem >
        • power of Self Talk
      • Positive Mental Attitude
      • Mental Health Supports >
        • Kids Help Phone
        • Youth Mental Health
        • CMHO
    • Well-being >
      • Growth Mindset >
        • Mindfulness and Mindful Moments
      • Mindfulness >
        • Master of Mindfulness
        • Mindset of a Master - YODA
      • Stream of Consciousness/Morning Pages
      • Self Regulation >
        • Choice or Reality Therapy
        • Incredible 5 Point Scale
        • Junior Kelso
        • Five Chairs Five Choices
        • Leaky Brakes Toolbox
        • Mind Up >
          • Mind Up Music in the Morning
          • The Brain
        • Self Control
        • Zones of Regulation
      • Random Acts of Kindness
      • Wabi Sabi >
        • Mark Reibstein
      • Positive People to Learn From >
        • Terry Fox
        • Reggie Bibbs
        • Lizzie Valesquez
        • Nick Vujicic
    • Healthy Living >
      • The Importance of Breathing
      • Contact Comfort
      • Nutrition >
        • Healthy Eating Canada's Food Guide
        • Body Image
      • Relaxation >
        • Yoga
      • Daily Physical Activity (DPA)
      • Dental Care and Oral Hygiene
      • Head Lice
  • Social Studies
    • Human Rights >
      • All About Human Rights
      • Human Rights for Indigenous People
      • Human Rights Activists
      • Inspirational People >
        • Famous Faces
        • Greta Thunberg
        • Malala Yousafzai
    • Social Change >
      • Social Change in Canada
      • Canadian Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms
    • Canada >
      • Oh Canada
      • Symbols of Canada
      • Government of Canada >
        • Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
        • Governor General
        • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau >
          • Prime Ministers of Canada
        • Provincial Government
        • Municipal
      • Citizenship >
        • Immigration
        • Refugees
    • Indigenous Studies >
      • Thanksgiving Address
      • Treaties
      • Iroquois Confederacy >
        • Haudenosaunee >
          • Clan System
          • Tree of Peace
          • Six Nations Reserve >
            • Two Row Times
      • Ojibwe
      • Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation
      • Metis
    • Canada's Role in WW I and WWII >
      • Animals in War >
        • Winnie
      • First Nations in the Wars >
        • Navajo Code Talkers
  • Contact Us
Let There Be Awkward Silence
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                                                                                What is Awkward Silence?

An awkward silence is an uncomfortable pause in a conversation or presentation. The unpleasant nature of such silences is associated with feelings of anxiety as the participants feel pressure to speak but are unsure of what to say next. In conversation, average pause length varies by language, culture and context.

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                                                     The Value and Importance of Awkward Silence

Awkward Silence does not have to been so awkward... it has value and serves an important role in our lives and in the classroom.

We live in a world that demands instant gratification. We want things done immediately.  But there's a major problem with all of this instantaneous communication:  It doesn't leave time to think. That's right--think. As in, think critically. 

Critical thinking calls for deep and careful consideration of a subject. It requires introspection and retrospection. It involves weighing and analyzing facts, and careful reasoning. And it results in making insightful connections. None of this is possible without time. And time has become the biggest luxury on the planet. But when you embrace the rule of awkward silence, you steal back time. Time that used to be wasted on nonsense answers. Time that used to be wasted on telling another person what you think they want to hear, as opposed to what you truly believe.

Once you practice it enough, you will no longer find the rule of awkward silence, well, awkward. Because while taking an extended pause to think things through may seem strange at first, you'll begin to realize many of the advantages it provides.

For example, the rule of awkward silence allows you to:
  • Put the outside world on mute
  • Exercise your thinking faculties
  • Get to root problems more effectively
  • Give deeper, more thoughtful answers
  • Bring your emotions into balance
  • Remain in harmony with your values and principles
  • Say what you mean, and mean what you say
  • Increase your confidence
That may sound like a lot for 10 to 20 seconds, but you'll be surprised what your brain can accomplish once it's given a little more time to do what it was designed to do: think things through.
So, the next time someone asks you a challenging question, or even what seems on the surface to be a simple one, resist the temptation to respond with the first thing that comes to mind.
Instead, embrace the rule of awkward silence, and think before you speak.

Inc.
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After having read all about Awkward Silence, explain the meaning that is being conveyed in this poster.
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