I've Got the Joy Joy Joy Joy, Down in my Class! Where?! O_o

I will be the first to admit that Joy Factor didn't become a factor in my classroom until after I blew the dust off my Teach Like a Champion book! [It's a great read if you're an educator.] Nowadays, with Common Core standards being implemented in classroom instruction, it's extremely important that we infuse JOY on a daily basis. The rigor calls for higher level thinking and writing and our students deserve brain breaks in order to keep the positive and productive learning environment! Joy Factor "... is a key driver not just of a happy classroom, but of a high achieving classroom." Post up the day's agenda in your classroom with a sneak peek of when the JOY will take place in your lesson to build anticipation amongst students.  Incorporate the J-Factor into your lesson plans as you plan head. There are a variety of categories to get the JOY going: Fun and Games, Us [teachers] (and them), Drama, song & dance, Humor and Suspense and Surprise (thanks to Teach Like a Champion for the categories)!

I'll give you a few examples so you have some ideas to work with:

1. Fun & Games: "Wax museum", "Simon Says" (class wide games)
2. Us (and Them): Appropriate inside jokes, use of appropriate nicknames for students, talk time (about a favorite show, sports team, etc)
3. Drama, song & dance: pick a student to be the class DJ and have a mini dance party! Learn how to do the NaeNae (That's how I learned!)
4. Humor: Can be done throughout the lesson and not just at a particular/planned time
5. Surprise your students to popsicles, a nice walk outdoors, etc. If you play the guitar, pull it out and have a sing-a-long!

You might be thinking, "That's great but I don't have much class time." That's just fine! These activities don't have to be more than 5 minutes long. Imagine how much time you'd save redirecting students if they had something exciting to look forward to doing. Use that saved time and stop with the excuses!!! This tool will help you in classroom management as well as creating a warm community in the classroom and let's not forget productivity! Just be sure to get back to work at the appropriate time. Have fun but know when to reel students back in.

Well that's all for today's post! Let me know how Joy Factor works out in your classroom by emailing comments and videos to readrulereign@gmail.com.

Ciao,

Karen