Session 4, Week 3
I recently read a parenting blog post entitled “15 Really Good Reasons You Should Laugh With Your Child Today.” Among the reasons listed and supported were: laughter decreases stress and anxiety, increases learning, fosters brain connectivity, and strengthens bonds. All of these are desirable for our homes, AND our schools. This week I paid specific attention to moments of laughter at CHOICE; let’s just say we should have zero stress and anxiety, and crazy awesome learning, brain connectivity and bonding…
Try imagining the pictures and scenarios below from the Spark Studio this week, without laughing!
Here is a depiction of an airport. The lines are long. Lots of people are waiting. Eventually, the people were put back in the block cart because they got so tired of waiting all day.
Heroes love writing and sharing stories about their favorite TV shows. This one is about a dragon and ninjas.
Magnets are a favorite exploration during the school day. This hero discovered how to make it appear that his HAND was magnetized! “Look! I’m magnetic!”
In our studies of Ancient Greece the heroes are loving the mythology portion. One hero exclaimed, “Ms. Hannah! I made Posideon’s trident!” Heroes also like to sit on a specific color on the discussion rug. “I’m Zeus!” (That means you are sitting on a yellow spot.) “I’m Posideon!” (That means you are sitting on a blue spot.)
Some of the Fire Studio heroes created armor like a soldier from Ancient Greece. They came marching into the Spark Studio and paraded around (march,2,3,4,march,2,3,4) for us to see. The Sparks then gave their feedback by voting with Greek money for their favorite one.
We learned some of Aesop’s fables and put on plays of our own fables. Some had a clear storyline where spectators could identify a lesson learned from the story, while others were performed to invoke laughter.
Lunch is certainly a time of laughter. The heroes like to tell jokes and make up games that sometimes only make sense to each other.
Outside time in the snow is certainly a time of joy and laughter. (As the snow turned to ice, and snowballs turned to iceballs, there were a few other emotions expressed and discussions to be had!)
Heroes are filled with joy as they create and learn. Sometimes that joy expresses itself through laughter!
These heroes spent most of their time doing math. They rolled dice and gathered the amount shown using tiles from the Montessori Stamp Game. Their goal was to make it all the way to 1,000! They traded out their units for tens, their tens for hundreds, and hundreds for a thousand. They were so excited when they reached a point to exchange tiles.
Emergent readers “reading” stories to each other.
Completing the 10 long bead chain is such a proud moment. It goes all the way up to 1,000 beads!
Occasionally there are the times that the Spark heroes may not even recognize as funny, but we as guides enjoy so dearly! Watching the heroes help one another dress for the snow is one of those times:
Watching the heroes problem solve to get all their gear home is another one of those times:
And then there are the awesome quotes!
“I have water in my eyes right now. I’m just feeling a lot of joy.”
“You are such a go-getter!”
“It’s broken logic!”
“I won’t do it for you, but I’ll get you started.”
“You can’t have everything you want because you can’t keep your room clean if you have everything you want.”
“Look! I can make pottery with my feet!”
“The Itsy Bitsy Spider. Hey! It’s like a hero’s journey. He didn’t give up.”
“What is your biggest number you ever did made?”
We like to say “If you haven’t laughed today, then you haven’t been in the Spark Studio!” How true it is.
The Fire Studio has begun meeting weekly with a theater guide to explore the art of Sketch Comedy. I have a feeling it will come pretty naturally to the heroes! From feigned arguments about chess game cheaters to losing arm wrestles with Spark heroes, and from attempting another math test to Socratic discussions about serious topics, FS heroes have a way of bringing laughter into everything they do.
One favorite tradition in the studio is taking a moment during the highpoint of Core Skills to share how they battled with one of the 3 monsters that morning. Their various inventions of how to give a little beating to the studio’s monsters (Mr. Resistance, Miss Distraction, or Mr. and Mrs. Victim) never fail to bring the laughter.
In one discussion about conflict, heroes were referring to only man vs. man conflict so I asked if conflict only happens between people. Without skipping a beat, one hero replied “No! Conflict can be with yourself, like an existential crisis. Also, once I had a conflict with a pinecone,” which of course got everyone laughing. Comments like this happen regularly in the Fire Studio.
Even when conflicts arise within the studio, heroes usually find a way to lighten the mood with their excellent humor–a habit that will surely bless their lives for years to come!
Despite some disagreements between heroes on how different Quest challenges should be interpreted, the joyful exuberance of being a young person with the freedom to explore was on full display during Quest this week. Heroes are finding the quest challenges that excite them and happily completing them individually or with fellow travelers.
The Spartan armor has brought laughter in so many ways. One hero found that his Spartan armor made it difficult to sit or walk. “What’s the most efficient way of Spartan transportation?” he asked. “ROLLING!” Another Spartan hero brought out laughter from everyone as he challenged them with his mini “Christmas tree sword” and nose armor.
As Hestia, the goddess of domesticity, came downstairs to pay the Fire Studio a visit, she was met by an entourage of soldiers. Some came to protect her and some came to attack her. Hestia had a very difficult time not laughing.
Displeased with the persistent dirtiness of the Fire Studio floor the last few weeks, Hestia played a mean trick this week and stole the bank (the box of quest “currency”) from the Fire Studio mortals, meaning no heroes could earn coins for the challenges they completed. Her requirement for returning the money was that no object larger than a paper clip be found on the floor. After several attempts, the mortal heroes earned the bank back and resumed work on their challenges.
Society has much to say about young people the ages of our DELTA Studio heroes. One aspect I find grossly under reported (and underappreciated) is their hilarious sense of humor.
Listening to the arguments and accents of “Franki” (Franklin D Roosevelt), “Winston” (Winston Churchill) and Stalin as DS heroes re-enacted the Yalta Conference during Civ was hilarious (and often insightful).
The “no words, sound effects only” fairy tale renditions during Sketch Comedy had all of us rolling!
Rapunzel
The Three Little Pigs
Hanzel & Gretel
Frozen
Building snowman brings laughter whether you are 5 or 14!
Thursday morning game time is often nothing but laughter:
Listening to them play their Quest game “Organ Attack” during lunch makes all of us laugh. I don’t even understand many of the words they are using!
The boys “marching in” tradition after their Thursday huddles used to make me giggle, but now watching the girls trying to disrupt it with their own marching makes me laugh out loud. What a gift that they can laugh after sharing cool feedback with one another.
How about this for diagnosing practice during Quest?:
Daniel the Doctor: “What are your symptoms?”
Carlos the Patient: “Stomach cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, no appetite…it’s been going on for a few months.”
Medical Team discusses the symptoms for a moment.
Daniel the Doctor: “You are pregnant.”
More Medical Team discussion.
Daniel the Doctor: “I’m sorry to say, but you have Pancreatitis.”
Carlos the patient: “Well, at least I’m not pregnant.”
Laughter can definitely lighten the medical world of terminology, symptoms, diseases, conditions, and procedures. 🤣
When you see this much focus on models and research papers:
The seriousness needs to be balanced with diagnosing activities that allow for movement, laughter, and interaction. Everyone is happy Carlos is not pregnant, and your Delta Medical Students are getting quite comfortable with symptomatic terms such as: Oily Stool, Intestinal Mucus, and Esophageal Sphincter Dysfunction.
Did I mention that during this three-day week the internet was out two of the days, 2 of the furnaces went out and we were down a guide all week? It could have been a very stressful week. And while it did take some creativity and flexibility from all, the overall feel of the week was happy, connected, engaged, and bonding. I attribute this to the constant laughter and fun of your heroes. A common saying in the Spark Studio is “If you haven’t laughed today, you haven’t been in the Spark Studio.” This statement should be expanded to “If you haven’t laughed today, you haven’t been at CHOICE!” Come hang out with us and feel all the benefits of laughter!!