My team of 1st grade colleagues is really a fun group. We have developed a wonderful working relationship. We all have very busy a life with husbands, children, and one member of our team has become a grandmother in last few years. We are friends. We do not necessarily spend a lot of time outside of school together. One aspect of our relationships is we laugh a lot together. We share stories about our children, grandchildren, and enjoy each other’s company. In A Whole New Mind, Pink (2005) interviewed Dr. Kataria about the importance of laughter. Dr. Kataria said, “Laughter can play a major role in reducing stress in the workplace” (p.204). Of course, that makes sense to me and is not necessarily earth shattering information. However, if you have ever worked somewhere, or had a job that was No Fun and there was no laughter you can understand the importance of Dr. Kataria’s statement.
So with that being said I want tell you something that happened this week with one of my little first graders that my Laughter Club thought was funny. This school year I have a very young group. I have four children reading, seventeen in different stages of readinessJ! I have been really working on their listening comprehension; I read a factual story without pictures about trains. The story was about all different types of trains but mostly described subways and streetcar trains. The story was very informative. At the conclusion, I asked several questions to the class. I asked one of my little boys, “Why do big cities build subways?” His response was… “Because they really like sandwiches”.
That is funny stuff. It is true, at least on my campus, that the teams that laugh a lot together and have fun are absolutely the most effective. They have the best collaboration, best relationships with their students and are getting the best results in regard to student achievement. I have an entire grade level that is struggling together and they aren't laughing too much!! It is great that you all have that type of relationship and thank God for 1st grade rationale!!
ReplyDeleteI have had a lot of joy in my teaching experiences, but for sheer happiness I remember my years as a first grade teacher. I, too, had a congenial cohort, and we laughed and shared a lot together. Wonderful memories.
ReplyDeleteJared would be so proud! ROFL!
ReplyDelete