Joy and Engagement
Nurturing teacher joy within the classroom space through teacher reflection and collegial sharing.
By Definition…
Joy moments are “occurrences that honor students’ identities and/or lived experiences as they interact with their peers, the content, the teacher, or another adult member of the school community.” 1
Engagement happens when students “are actively participating in their learning and feel the desire to persevere no matter what the challenge is before them.” 2
To support personal teacher reflection regarding joy and engagement in the classroom, ask these questions:
What was a joyful classroom moment that I experienced as a student? How are moments like this being intentionally recreated in my classroom today?
How do I learn more about the students I serve? How does my instruction allow for time to “lean into the students’ lives” by learning about their experiences and understanding their complex identities?
Do I feel confident in integrating student voice into instruction? (When we intentionally honor our students’ lived experiences within instruction, we are signaling to them that they belong.)
How am I calling attention to these moments of joy and engagement within my classroom? How might raising awareness around these moments contribute to students’ growth or level of optimism with my course?
To support collegial sharing in a workshop experience, ask these questions:
How do we infuse joy into our classrooms through the relationships we build and environments we create?
How do we infuse opportunities for joy within our learning experiences?
How we demonstrate and spark our own personal joy when planning lessons for the classroom?
Through these 3 simple questions, teachers can offer independent examples, give voice to their professional teaching experiences, and learn from their fellow colleagues. The result can be an “in-house” professional development experience that sets the stage for teacher goal setting at any time of year.
Sources:
1-”Intentionally Creating Joy Moments in Classrooms that Center Humanity” by Kendra V. Johnson
2-The Educator’s Atlas by Weston Kieschnick