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| My Happiness Coach |
I told them how Shawn Achor, the psychologist presenting the talk, explained that when someone is experiencing happiness, all of their learning centers essentially open wide for business. I said, "This made me wonder if the most important teaching I can do is make sure I show you the ways to be happiest, for life and for your learning. This quote is our first lesson. People with many interests are happier than people with few to none. So, let's write about what interests us." I modeled my own first and then let them go.
I found
we needed to discuss the difference between an "interest" and a
"preference." (tacos=preference;
cooking, Mexican cuisine, nutrition, history of the taco=interest) I
teach social studies to four groups of students throughout the day and did this
exercise with all of them. Many are
not aware of their own interests, to the point they don't really know what an interest is. Eye-opening. Not surprisingly, the students who had no trouble identifying their many and varied interests are some of my best students and among the happiest kids I know. They also mostly have home lives that allow for them to have interests beyond survival.
A new curriculum is born: Happiness 101. That day I realized lessons in joy must continue, and maybe the most essential question of all is, "How can we be happy right now in this learning?" Happiness is hard won, in sixth grade and everywhere. In a time where negativity travels faster than you can say TTYL, it seems only natural that my first job is to connect kids back into contentment somehow. Here's to plugging
into things that matter.
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Thanks for sharing this work you did in your class. What a great quote. I can't wait to see what my 5th graders think and say. My favorite line is "They also mostly have home lives that allow for them to have interests beyond survival." It makes me wonder if my students consider their classroom as a place beyond survival...
ReplyDeleteI really hope my classroom is a place beyond survival, but it is challenging when some kids have such unhappy home lives. The role of happiness becomes a really important consideration in those cases, I think. Thanks for reading!
DeleteOhhh! Juicy topic. Well written & strong.
ReplyDeleteI would read a book filled with various lessons to teach in the class on Happiness 101, especially with your writing style. I agree with Sally, up above, that line is very thought provoking, especially as it ties into not knowing or having the privilege to explore interesting.
Thanks for a good think! Really would like the book!
I might have a pamphlet's worth at the moment. Still feeling my way with this happiness thing. There's so much research on happiness lately, I do feel it is inevitable that it will find it's way into the classroom. Thanks for your interest in this!
DeleteI'd like to make an appointment with your happiness coach, please.
ReplyDeleteI wrote a similar blog today about learning to just live happy. My 3 year old is an expert in living happy.
Important thoughts! Maybe Happiness should be part of every curriculum. I applaud you for challenging your students to think deeply about life and what matters.
ReplyDeleteYour coach is a gem! What a great quote and question to pose to your students. I can see how it would be very eye opening. Isn't it fascinating what we learn when we ask real questions?
ReplyDelete