Issue 18: Humor in the Classroom
Did you know?
Research shows humor can be used effectively as a strategy to increase student involvement and attention, as well as to painlessly disengage students from potentially confrontational situations.* The use of humor, particularly with male students, appears to have a positive effect upon learning gains.**
A teacher's sense of humor can contribute to positively managing a classroom by promoting relaxation and creating a comfortable social environment. Teacher humor has also been shown to reduce tension and produce positive physiological benefits.***
"A smile is the shortest distance between two people." –Victor Borge
Performance Learning PLUS is a monthly e-newsletter by Performance Learning Systems (PLS), a comprehensive educational services company that has provided a full spectrum of programs, products, and consulting services for educators and business professionals since 1971.
This issue focuses on HUMOR IN THE CLASSROOM.
Tips: Ways to Create Humor in the Classroom
Effective teachers use humor in the classroom to motivate students to learn, enhance group cohesion, and defuse tense situations. Here are a few ways you can bring humor into your classroom:
FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE.
Adopting a light, playful mind set helps establish a warm, safe learning environment.
PRACTICE VERBAL AND NONVERBAL PLAYFULNESS.
Use facial animation: smile, make lively expressions, and let your eyes sparkle. Use comfortable body language and a relaxed voice. Make sure your nonverbal messages match your verbal messages. (For example, if you say something intended as humor, but your body language is serious, your students could perceive sarcasm.)
USE HUMOR IN A STYLE THAT IS COMFORTABLE FOR YOU.
There are many ways to be humorous, and some styles may suit you more than others. Choose a style that feels natural to you.
KEEP A "HUMOR" JOURNAL.
Write down instances of when you used humor that worked well. Reflect on what happened and why your humor was well-received. Consider how you might employ that same type of humor in the future.
TARGET YOURSELF, NOT STUDENTS.
To avoid a sense of threat, the safest target for humor is yourself, not your students.
USE HUMOR TO DEFUSE TENSION.
Develop your ability to read your students' tension levels. When you sense tension, try to defuse it by making a humorous remark or telling a funny story. (Note: This approach is most successful when a tense situation begins; once the tension has had time to grow, humor may not be an effective technique.)
TIE YOUR HUMOR TO THE CONTENT.
Humor does not have to be a diversion or digression from curriculum. Whenever possible, weave humor into what your students are already learning. (See examples below.)
CLASSROOM EXAMPLES
Here are some ways to tie humor to content:
- Rewrite a familiar song to incorporate facts your students are learning. (For example, rewrite "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," replacing the simple lyrics with more difficult synonyms from your students' vocabulary list.)
- Have your students demonstrate understanding of a book, play, or textbook chapter they've read by writing a humorous, modernized version. (For example, students could write a summary of "Hamlet" and perform it as a rap for the class.)
- Put up a bulletin board and invite students to bring in humorous portrayals of a subject they're studying. (For example, jokes, cartoons, limericks, and so on.)
- Create puns and mix metaphors when discussing a subject of study, and have your students create their own. This exercises their creativity as well as checking for comprehension. In the words of humor educator Joel Goodman, "Humor and creativity are intimately related -- there is a connection between HAHA and AHA."
Give the gift of humor to your students in one of the above ways, or tap into your own imagination for innovative ways to bring the many benefits of humor to your students' learning experiences.
Source: The above concepts are based on the PLS graduate course, Project TEACH: Teacher Effectiveness and Classroom Handling. For more information, see "Helpful Resources" below.
Project TEACH: Teacher Effectiveness and Classroom Handling is a registered trademark of Performance Learning Systems, Inc.
References:
*LeMieux, A.C. (2000). Only Connect. ALAN Review, 27, 2 , 11-16.
**Gorham, J., & Christophel, D.M. (1990). The relationship of teachers' use of humor in the classroom to immediacy and student learning. Communication Education, 3, , 46-61.
***Rainsberger, C.D. (1994). Reducing stress and tension in the classroom through the use of humor: Unpublished document. : ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 374 101.
The High Fives of Humor
Fun Classroom Ideas
Cartoons About Education
Cartoons about teachers and education are available at the following sites:
Education Cartoons
Education "lite"
School Cartoons
Related Graduate Course
Building Communication and Teamwork in the Classroom®
Reach a new level of positive communication through an emotionally engaging classroom where students are connected to school, to learning, and to improved relationships with their teachers and peers. Make a difference in students’ lives when each school day is impacted by the effective teacher-leadership strategies you will learn in this course.
Building Communication and Teamwork in the Classroom®
