Remember the day when...

Remember the day when Mrs. Pearse couldn’t stop laughing at herself because when she was reading to us she said “fart” instead of “fort?”

Okay, so I hate to admit it, but that was last semester in my college assessment course. And I literally couldn’t pull myself together to finish the reading. Do you know what happened at that moment? We became a family!

It is important for teachers to create a welcoming environment. When children feel comfortable, safe, and accepted, they are more willing to take academic and social risks. We develop a sense of community when its members share common experiences. There are endless ways to do this. Of course, I may not recommend saying “fart” in your class. J

Here are just a few we either used or observed being used in other classrooms.

1.     Pull a prank on the class – There are so many ways you can prank your class. See the hilarious video of teachers dancing behind students! Even just watching it together builds common memories.

2.      Create a famous quote book of your favorite student quotes for the year. Revisit it at different times and giggle about them and how they were used and how no one would understand the book but this class.

3.      Have a class mantra. Make it different every year. Last semester it was “Make it work” by Tim Gunn.

4.      Share in “secret class jokes” together. One day one of my students was presenting on the solar system and in all seriousness he shared a very important fact – “Uranus is filled with gas.” Well I broke out in laughter, because really – that’s funny. Another time, one of my students asked me how he should estimate. I suggested, “Rough.” He asked, “How rough?” I said, “Rough, rough.” It was at that moment that I realized I was barking like a dog. Of course, a student from that class reminded me of this several years later, and she was hysterical remembering the moment!

5.      Have a class song – recently it was Salena Gomez’s “Who says…” Have you listened to it? It has a wonderful message for children.

We'd love to hear your favorite "Remember the day when..." memories.