The Playfulness of Teaching

                I observed a teacher the other day in my school. He is a well-respected and successful history teacher with accolades galore and a personality that draws students to him. The stress of teaching advanced placement courses, especially this close the exams, gave a sense of urgency and anxiety to the students and the teacher, but I noted, more than anything else, the teacher kept what I can only call a “playful” mood throughout the class. I came into the class while students were taking a short quiz reviewing what they had discussed the day before. The students at our school are pretty high-stress and goal-oriented, so anyone observing could tell they were worried about this particular assessment. “It’s only five points!” the teacher said a few times with a playful smile.

                Does God laugh? Does God play? Certainly, he does. Some theologians use these images to suggest that Creation is actually the result of God’s laughter and playfulness. So why should we teachers not have the same sense of playfulness? Why can’t we have a balance of rigor and humor? Both are images and likenesses of God; rigor is His rationality and humor is His imagination. So, as teachers, we should most definitely have a sense of playfulness, as it were. It is part of Faith. In fact, I might argue that playfulness in school (with purpose) eases tension and invites students into relationship with the teacher and, if the teacher is acting on the mission of Catholic schools, it invites students into a relationship with Jesus. Playfulness is Faith in action.

                I wrote once to an online student about the balance between Faith as a gift and Faith as an action:

“On a basic level, Faith comes first as a gift from God that He knows can help us grow in relationship with Him. Many people recognize the gift and may even "say" "thank you" to God. These words are important as a sign that we know we are invited into a relationship with God, but our actions that follow those words are at least as important as the word. The actions we take in response to God's invitation (by Faith) are, in fact, us choosing to use the gifts we are given. For my students I try to remind them to first know they are Loved by God...that is the first fundamental of Faith. But it is up to them how they want to use that gift of Love...do they want to keep it to themselves, or are they going to try and find some way to share it and spread the message of Jesus? Some respond quickly and act accordingly, but I have to have Faith that one day the others will act on the Love that God gives to them. As a teacher, I simply let them know they are invited and I try to model for them what it looks like to be Loved and to Love.”

In the classroom, perhaps the best thing we can do, like my colleague does so well, is invite our students into a relationship with us, and, if we are in a relationship with Jesus, our students begin to encounter Him. Some teachers do an outstanding job of inviting students into that relationship precisely by their playfulness and their rigor. Both are signs of Love. To invite our students into a relationship with Jesus in this way is an act of Faith. Then it is my job to pray for my students that they will respond to that gift of Faith, the same way I may have.

(When you're in grad school...ten years ago... it should be a requirement to be playful. Yes...this is me.)