We all love to laugh, right?
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/6/3/13633866/1364811.jpg?171)
Laughter is NOT a Laughing Matter-
But in the past, the general trend of the workplace has been that laughter and humor are a “distraction” from real work. Recently, however, companies have begun to see the benefits of play in the workplace. Play has actually been proven to increase attitudes, motivation, creativity, cooperation—all necessary Conceptual Age skills.
But in the past, the general trend of the workplace has been that laughter and humor are a “distraction” from real work. Recently, however, companies have begun to see the benefits of play in the workplace. Play has actually been proven to increase attitudes, motivation, creativity, cooperation—all necessary Conceptual Age skills.
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JoyfulnessEvidence of the Health Benefits of Laughter
- “Studies by Dr. Lee Berk of the Center for Neuroimmunology at the Loma Linda School of Medicine show that laughter can decrease stress hormones and boost the immune system.” (203) - “Laughter has aerobic benefits. It activates the cardiovascular system, increases the heart rate, and pumps more blood to internal organs.” (203) |
Kataria’s Laughter Clubs
"If you are laughing, you cannot think. That is the objective we achieve in meditation." - Kataria
Laughter yoga (Hasyayoga) - a practice that involves prolonged voluntary group laughter. Based on the belief that forced laughter will soon turn into real and contagious laughter. Resulting in the same same physiological and psychological benefits as spontaneous laughter. |
How to Incorporate Play into the Classroom
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/6/3/13633866/9971626.jpg?240)
In this time of standardized test pressure it is easy to take all the fun out of learning- even in an elementary school classroom. Children come to school with an innate curiosity and tendency towards play. Unfortunately, the traditional model of education tends to suck all of the “fun” out of learning. In order to appropriately prepare students to be successful in the Conceptual Age, we may need to redesign some of the traditional models of the classroom. Here are some ideas:
1. Foster play time as an important part of the day.
Students, especially young children, have the natural tendency to play and laugh. In
a traditional model of education, play is seen as a “break” from work. However, as
educators we must foster this intrinsic desire for play, laughter, and joyfulness in
order to appropriately foster many of the necessary skills of the Conceptual Age.
2. Engage students in play activities.
Design video games and other play activities that incorporate important academic
content and skills. In this way students will have the opportunity to learn and
practice necessary concepts in a fun and engaging way! Technology is a great way to
do this!
Feeling like you don’t have enough play time in your life? Here are some ideas!
1. Find a few friends and play the Cartoon Captions Game (can even be done through
email) - Find 5 or 6 cartoons and cover up or blank out the captions. Show/email
them to some friends and challenge them to come up with their own captions. Get
those creative and funny juices flowing! (it’s definitely more difficult than you think)
2. Find your nearest playground and PLAY! Swing on the swing set, race from one
end to the other, glide across the monkey bars, and slide down the twisty slide!
Notice your feelings before, during, and after the experience- you might you’re
yourself feeling lighter and the experience is almost guaranteed to make you laugh!
(Warning: Make sure it’s not during school hours- school’s tend to frown upon
unknown strangers on their campuses during the school day…)
3. Find a laughter club by clicking, "Below", below :)
1. Foster play time as an important part of the day.
Students, especially young children, have the natural tendency to play and laugh. In
a traditional model of education, play is seen as a “break” from work. However, as
educators we must foster this intrinsic desire for play, laughter, and joyfulness in
order to appropriately foster many of the necessary skills of the Conceptual Age.
2. Engage students in play activities.
Design video games and other play activities that incorporate important academic
content and skills. In this way students will have the opportunity to learn and
practice necessary concepts in a fun and engaging way! Technology is a great way to
do this!
Feeling like you don’t have enough play time in your life? Here are some ideas!
1. Find a few friends and play the Cartoon Captions Game (can even be done through
email) - Find 5 or 6 cartoons and cover up or blank out the captions. Show/email
them to some friends and challenge them to come up with their own captions. Get
those creative and funny juices flowing! (it’s definitely more difficult than you think)
2. Find your nearest playground and PLAY! Swing on the swing set, race from one
end to the other, glide across the monkey bars, and slide down the twisty slide!
Notice your feelings before, during, and after the experience- you might you’re
yourself feeling lighter and the experience is almost guaranteed to make you laugh!
(Warning: Make sure it’s not during school hours- school’s tend to frown upon
unknown strangers on their campuses during the school day…)
3. Find a laughter club by clicking, "Below", below :)