The Joy of Education

Since we are in the winter months here in South Carolina, I wanted to remind teachers to remember to bring joy into the classroom. I know there are times that we have to teach things that aren’t fun but we still can do the little things to bring joy in the classroom. When I was in St. Maarten at the end of November, there was a parade through town celebrating the anniversary of their elementary school. I looked at the adults’ faces along the sidewalks and I could see pride in their faces. As I looked in the faces of the children, I saw absolute joy. Some of the Caribbean islands that we visited seemed to be very poor compared to the standard of living that I am used to and I saw many men along the sidewalk who were already drunk early in the morning. So, to see the value that the community places on education really brought joy into my own heart. If you look at the little girl’s face in my picture, you can see how happy she is to be there. Do you think our students feel that way? Later when I talked to some of the children, they talked about how much they love school and their teachers. When I talked to some of the teachers, they felt that education is the only thing that will help their students become successful in life. It was important to the teachers that the children understand how important education is but also to understand the joy that education can bring into their lives.

This made me have some hopes about the future and the impact I can make.

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  I hope as I teach, that I do not become jaded and take education for granted. By showing how important I think education is, the students will follow my lead.
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  I hope I can look for the good things in everyone each day. Looking for the good things may push away some of the negative things that shouldn’t be the focus.
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  I hope that I can help my students find the joy of education. Sharing the joy will help spread it.
  I hope I can bring some joy into my classroom every day. Bringing it into the classroom will set a good example for others.
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  I hope I can do the little things that matter for a student. It is these little things they will remember. Maybe someone needs some nurturing instead of scolding. Maybe someone needs to talk about their weekend instead of just listening to a lecture.

How do you bring joy into your classroom?

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