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| Humour used in Classroom management |


1. A student comes back after a long time at the bathroom.

- Thank goodness you've returned. I was afraid that you'd left for the day.
- Thank goodness you're safe. I was afraid that you'd flushed yourself down the toilet.
- That pass is just to move around the building. You weren't supposed to go home to your bathroom.

2. Students are talking at beginning of class when bell signals time to listen.

- Wow! We finally have proof of space aliens. They've taken over the bodies and minds of my well behaved students!

3. A student curses at someone.

- Is that the same mouth you use to kiss your mom?
- Do you eat with that mouth?

4. A student is taking too long at a drinking fountain

- If you drink any more, you'll float down the hallway

5. Two students are still talking

- Did you two eat parrot for lunch? Let's close those beaks.

6. Unlike others in the class, Sammy has ignored the teacher's direction to turn his already open book to page 32. The teacher walks over to his desk and starts pulling at the page of the book, pretending that it is stuck. Finally the teacher, using both arms, pulls it up and over with a tremendous struggle and says "Whew. I think that the pages should turn easily from now on. I'm sure that you won't be needing my assistance again."

7. Student doesn't raise his hand to speak

- You must be called upon to give an answer. Now you don't have to raise your hand, but you must raise your elbow.

| How to gradually become more comfortable using humour |

Source: "Ten specific techniques for developing humour in the classroom"

1. Smile / Be lighthearted
2. Be spontaneous/Natural
- Relax control a little / breka the routine occassionally
- Be willing to laugh at yourself
3. Foster an informal climate
4. Begin class with a though of the day, a poem, a short anecdote or a humourous example
5. Use stories and experiences that emerge from the subject matter.
6. Relate things to the everyday life of students. Read the student newspaper. Listen to their music and see their movies.
7. Plan lectures/presentations in short segments with humour interjected. Plan a commercial break.
8. Encourage a give and take climate between yourself and students. Play off their comments. Learn their names.
9. Ask students to supply you with some of their jokes, stories, or anecdotes. Share these.
10. Tell a joke or two. Do outrageous things. Admit you're no good at it. Appear human.


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