Dana reports from India on the word “playfulness”. It’s not a word that is going to get a lot of play in the research world, or with 80% of teachers who might consider it out of the realm of what we do. However, it may be the most important word, or one of them, in what we do. Here is Dana’s take on it:
Hi Ben,
I do guided meditation every morning and the pack I’m working on is “Happiness”. I just finished today’s session and it was about a sense of playfulness and lightness in the mind and how it contributes to our feeling of happiness in our lives and in our relationships.
I realized that the main reason I feel so much happier this year is due to the playfulness that I feel in my classes. My students and I have fun together each and every day. We laugh, we create silliness together and we enjoy being with each other.
I now realize that while I’ve always loved teaching, I’ve always had a feeling of seriousness in my teaching, a feeling of making learning happen. That heaviness was there, though I didn’t realize it.
With the Invisibles, I don’t have that feeling. I don’t have any vocabulary or structures they HAVE to learn. There’s no need to plan out detailed units that bridge vocabulary to a speaking task. It all will happen and we have fun while doing it.
With every new “discovery” on how your system has made my career better, I feel the need to share it with you. I know that you have faced so much resistance and criticism so I want you to know how much joy your contributions to this field have brought to me and my students.
Thank you once again.
Dana