Loading ...Comedian, motivational speaker and magician Brad Montgomery has three children, ages 4, 7 and 8. My own kids are 6 and twins aged 3. All we have to do is tell each other what the kids did and we have plenty to laugh about.
The same thing happens with teachers. Just write down the funny things that happen throughout the year.
You can always tell the sign of a healthy school if you go into a teachers’ lounge at lunchtime and the teachers are laughing.
When people say: “Brad, we need our school to be more fun”, the first step is to decide that it’s OK for that to happen. I have seen people who are the most dour, sour, uptight people in the world and you can tell they are not funny. In fact, they are the opposite of funny. Funny is not allowed. Some teachers are like that.
Everything will follow if you not only allow yourself to be funny, but you allow others to be funny. How do you do it? Just laugh yourself. The next time something crazy happens in your classroom - laugh. Everyone else will see that, and they will realise you have and cherish a sense of humor. With your laugh, you are giving permission to share humor and have fun in the classroom.
How can kids be learning in the classroom if you are playing around? In the hands of a master teacher, laughter and humor can create unforgettable experiences. I think to be an amazing teacher you have to use humor. When a kid comes back 2-3 years later and he or she says: “You know, you really were teaching us” — wow! What a thrill! They actually get it.
Idea!
Wouldn’t it be cool to set up a notebook in the teachers’ lounge and the job for every teacher is to collect the funniest things that happen during the day.
Listen to my podcast on permission to laugh
(File size is 2.1 MB) (Show length 9 minutes)
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January 13th, 2006 at 12:24 pm
I am a former teacher who cathartically wrote an autobiographical comedy movie script about my experiences with teaching and testing. Since I have not been able to sell it as a screenplay, I now offer it for free to any bedraggled teacher who needs both (a) a laugh, and (b) to realize that he/she is not alone. Read the entire script at:
http://www.testingthescript.com
October 4th, 2007 at 9:14 am
I am a Preschool teacher and saw Steve at a Conference in Indianapolis a few years ago where he was the key note speaker. We have not stopped laughing, and Science is becomiing more and more a mainstay in our Preschool lessons. The kids are becoming hooked even at 4&5 yrs. of age. Thanks!
ps. Send the Valium lick soon.