Manifesto for Joyful Teaching, Leading, and Parenting

As this unusual and uncertain start of the school year begins, my husband and I returned to a manifesto we wrote for how to prioritize JOY in our family life and in our classrooms. We drew on the seven pillars from my book Start with Joy as a guiding framework to help us think about what matters most to us as parents and educators. When we inevitably face personal and professional challenges this year, we know we can return to this to remind ourselves of what we believe and whether we are being true to those beliefs in the way we live, love, and teach. Since we have to start somewhere, we believe we can start with joy.

We believe…

In Connection

-in assuming the best and seeing the good in all people, especially children

-that “please”, “thank you”, and “I’m sorry” are the most important words to make a habit

-that we all seek connection and belonging 

-that all children deserve to feel unconditional love at home and in their classrooms

In Choice

-that children can be trusted to make choices about their bodies, their clothing, how they use their time, and what they are interested in

-that having choice and agency is a child’s right

In Challenge

-in instilling a love of challenge as a basis for finding courage

-that having real, authentic challenge is a human need

In Movement 

-that our bodies shape our minds 

-that movement is a powerful tool for learning

In Discovery

-that feelings of awe and wonder make learning memorable

-that discovering something about ourselves, others, and the world helps build a happy life

In Play

-that everyone–kids and adults–should play more

-that play is always purposeful and educational–even if we don’t know what the purpose or learning might be 

In Story

-that we are storytelling creatures who want to be heard, seen, and valued

-that our lives are full of stories

In Joyful Parenting

-that our children should feel unconditional love

-that we are responsible to our children but not for them

-that when we face doubt we can focus on what is simple and sustainable

-that all behavior is a form of communication 

Katie Egan Cunningham

The Professor & The Principal Podcast, Episode 3: What’s Worth Learning, Part II

We are on week three of homeschooling since the COVID-19 crisis hit our community and every day is starting to feel remarkably the same while also feeling immeasurably different. I’ve started a list titled “It’s Worth Learning” that I keep in the kitchen to help remind me what’s most important right now. So far the list includes things like:

  • how to tell a good knock-knock joke
  • to wait for others at the dinner table table before eating
  • how to do a Google search that gets you the answer you want
  • that taking a bath with a good book and some Epsom salts can make a lot of things better
  • that a better response to “I’m sorry” is just “Thank you”
Continue reading “The Professor & The Principal Podcast, Episode 3: What’s Worth Learning, Part II” →

Katie Egan Cunningham

Story Puzzles Make Waiting More Joyful

Life is full of waiting. Dr. Seuss even has four pages dedicated to the necessity of waiting in Oh, The Places You’ll Go:

Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come, or the rain to go
or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow
or waiting around for a Yes or No
or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting. (18)

When you are a kid, life can feel even more full of waiting. Waiting on line. Waiting for your turn. Waiting for dessert. Waiting to reach 5 feet. Waiting for teachers. Waiting for parents. Waiting for siblings. Children learn early on, that life is full of waiting.

The nearly wordless picture book, Wait, by Antoinette Portis reminds us that sometimes children are our best experts on waiting. We often need children to remind us there is value in waiting over hurrying. When we reframe waiting as more than an inconvenience, or fact of life, but as a gift to see the world a new way, we make ourselves happier in the process.

Like life in a classroom, life in a family requires waiting. But there are ways to make waiting more joyful. Lately, my husband has introduced story puzzles to our boys especially when we are waiting in restaurants. Story puzzles, also called lateral thinking puzzles, are just like they sound–a hybrid between storytelling and puzzles. Some information is given about a strange situation, but you aren’t given the full story. Someone is the storyteller or quizmaster, and everyone else is a puzzle solver. Listeners can ask yes or no questions to try to explain the situation. Quizmasters can answer with yes, no, or irrelevant. Here are two of our recent family favorites:

Story Puzzle 1: A man was heading home and saw someone in a mask. He turned around and went the other way. What happened?

Answer: The man was a baseball player and the person in the mask was the catcher.

Story Puzzle 2: It was a good thing Betty died in the ocean. It was a bad thing Carla died on land.

Answer: Betty and Carla are hurricanes.

Story puzzles turn waiting into a time to play and connect with one another. Try one the next time you are waiting with someone else and notice the ways the time feels more joyful. You’ll almost be disappointed when your food comes or your wait is over.

Katie Egan Cunningham