The Silent Way is an approach to teaching, not a method, that focuses on subordinating teaching to learning by making the learner's needs central. Teachers use minimal speech and tools like rods and charts to guide student experimentation with the language. The goal is for students to use their "self" - their creative energy - to encounter new concepts independently, through a process of trials, feedback, and developing awareness. Key aspects of the approach include encouraging various attributes of the self, a four-stage model of learning, and the teacher provoking multiple "awarenesses" through strategic use of questions and silence.