THE SILENT WAY 默示教學法(SW)SW是由Caleb Gattegno在觀察一位歐洲學者進行數學教學後研發出來的教學法。
它最主要的學習理論包括了：（1）學習者若能自己去察覺(discover)、發現、及創造(create) ，將遠比覆誦(repeat)、熟背(remember)來的好--- 普通的教學通常可分為講述模式（expository mode）和假設模式（hypothetical mode）。
講述模式中所有的教學內容、型態、進度全權由教師來掌控，假設模式的教學則讓學生在實驗、摸索、嘗試中參與學習，加強了學習將度，增進內在的自信與成就感。
Gattegno認為SW可以讓學習者獲得假設模式的上課效果；（2）SW所使用的教具，如依顏色來分類的彩色木條(colored cuisenaire rods)和發音卡(Fidel pronunciation charts)，是心理學中所說可以幫助學生學習和記憶的輔助媒介(associate mediator)；（3）SW採用實驗心理學中〝解決問題〞（problem-solving）的方法來進行語言教學，也就是教師不再多遍地重述教學內容，而要求學生專心主動地去觀察、摸索出L2的各層風貌。
Gattegno認為，語言為一結構性的組合體，所以教學上可以將發音、文法等元素加以抽離於社會情境下來介紹。
這也就是為何他會採用彩色笨子等教具來進行教學的原因。
此外，Gattegno也非常強調學習者要學好L2的兩大特質：（1）沈默（silence）---沈默使學生能專注於所學的標的物上，進而產生組織、統合的能力。
學習中常見的覆誦（repetition）反而會攪擾心思運作的狀態；（2）意識狀態（awareness）---Gattegno非常重視心理學中〝如何學好學習〞（learning to learn）這門學問。
他認為，意識狀態的發展要由注意力開始，然後才透過實驗、自我修正來達到融匯吸收的境界。
這點也是SW有別於其他教學理論的最大特色。
一、教學目標SW旨在培養學生初級的聽力和口語能力，加強發音、語調的正確性，並使學生學得實用的文法觀念以及L2正確的學習方法。
二、課程安排SW依照文法難易度以及教學上視覺呈現的效果來安排課程。
所以，祈使句型、名詞複數型、數目字、介係詞代名詞、比較級、數量詞、時間性量詞等非常容易用教具和教室場景來介紹的內容都會出現在初級的教材中。
以下就簡單舉例SW的課程編排情況(Joel Wiskin, personal munication)：Lesson Vocabulary1. Wood color red wood, red, green, yellow, brown,pink, white, orange, black, color2. Using the number 1-10 one, two, three…..ten3. Wood color red two pieces.4. Take (pick up ) wood color red two pieces. Take (pick up)5. Take wood color red two pieces give, object pronouns give him6. Wood red where? Where, on, under, near, far over, Wood red on table. Next to, here, there7. Wood color red on table, is it? Question-forming rules.Yes, on. Yes. NO.Not on.8. Wood color red long. Adjectives on parison.Wood color green longer.Wood color orange longest9. Wood color green taller.Wood color red is it?10. Review. Students use structures taught in new situation, such as paring the heights of students in the class.下面示範如何用SW教泰國話的教案(Joel Wiskin, personal munication)：1. Teacher empties rods onto table.2. Teacher picks up two or three rods of different colors, and after each rod is picked up says: [mai:].3. Teacher holds up one rod of any color and indicates to a student that a response is required. Students say: [mai:]. If response is incorrect, teacherelicits response from another student, who then models for the first student.4. Teacher next picks up a red rod and says: [mai sii daeng].5. Teacher picks up a green rod sand says: [mai sii khiaw].6. Teacher picks up either a red or green rod and elicits response from student. If response is incorrect, procedure in step 3 is followed (student modeling).7. Teacher introduces two or three other colors in the same manner.8. Teacher shows any of the rods whose forms were taught previously and elicits student response. Correction technique is through student modeling, or the teacher may help student isolate error and self-correct.9. When mastery is achieved, teacher puts one red rod in plain view and says: [mai sii daeng nung an].三、Teacher then puts two red rods in plain view and says: [mai sii daeng song an].11. Teacher places two green rods in view and says: [mai sii khiaw song an].12. Teacher holds up two rods of a different color and elicits student response.13. Teacher introduces additional numbers, based on what the class can fortably retain. Other colors might also be introduced.14. Rods are put in a pile. Teacher indicates, through his or her own actions, that rods should be picked up, and the correct utterance made. All the students in the group pick up rods and make utterances. Peer-group correction is encouraged.15. Teacher then says: [kep mai sii daeng songan].16. Teacher indicates that a student should give the teacher the rods called for. Teacher ask other students in the class to give him or her the rods that he or she asks for. This is all done in the target language through unambiguous actions on the part of the teacher.17. Teacher now indicates that the students should give each other mandsregarding the calling of rods. Rods are put at the disposal of the class.18. Experimentation is encouraged. Teacher speaks only to correct an incorrect utterance, if no peer group correction is forth ing.英語教學方面實例如下（國小英語師資訓練手冊，p. 23-24，師德）：步驟一牆上掛著音色對應圖表、拼字發音對應表及字彙表。
步驟二教師嘴行作發[ u]音，但不出聲。
學生猜音，直到有人猜對[u]，老師點頭，且指音色對應圖表上的綠色[u]符號。
步驟三教師雙唇做發[b]音口型，但不出聲。
學生猜音「媽」，「怕」等，直到有人猜「爸」，老師點頭，伸出兩指頭嘴型並作[ㄅ][ㄚ]，學生說[ㄅ][ㄚ]，老師指第一個指頭，學生說[ㄅ]（[b]）；老師點頭，對音色對應圖表上的深綠色[b]符號。
步驟四教師指著鹿的圖片，學生說「動物」老師搖頭；學生說「梅花鹿」，老師點頭，伸出三指頭，嘴型作「梅花鹿」，再指第三個指頭，學生說「鹿」，老師點頭。
重複步驟3讓學生發（[ㄌ][l]），老師指音色對應圖表上的藍色[l]。