If you follow the hashtag #joyful on social media, you’ll find that making space for more joy in your life means painting your bedroom yellow or investing in some essential oils. Or that to become a joyful teacher, you’ll need to turn content into rap lyrics for your students. At best, such myths oversimplify joy; at worst, they can pressure teachers to become something they are not in order to compete for students’ attention or be seen as effective by their supervisors. Many of us may also have succumbed to the myth that conditions need to be perfect for teaching and learning to feel joyful. They don’t.
When we (the authors) think about joy, what comes to mind for us is the look on a student’s face when they realize they can read a challenging, multisyllabic word like audacity for the first time. Or it’s the energy emanating from a group of students, heads in a huddle, working intently on a multistep math problem. Or it’s the suspenseful silence that comes over a classroom when a teacher starts a read aloud and everyone wants to know what happens next.
When we think about joy, we also think about teachers coming together for meaningful professional learning where they feel seen, heard, and valued. Or we think about school leaders who listen to families and caregivers with compassion, building home-school partnerships that become a source of joy.
Gary Haugen, CEO of International Justice Mission, explains that “joy is the oxygen for doing hard things in the world” (Bowler, 2024). Similarly, we have found that joy is the oxygen for learning, teaching, and leading, which require the “hard things” of deep and sustained thinking. Thinking is hard and effortful, and people typically only gravitate toward activities that are challenging if those experiences bring them joy.
We offer a simple framework, based on the principles of cognitive science and positive psychology, for creating more sustainable joy in learning, teaching, and leading. As educators, if we’re more intentional about what we mean when we talk about joy in our classrooms and schools, we’ll do a better job of creating it.
The Joy of Connection
Decades of research from positive psychology have found that taking care of our relationships is as important as taking care of our bodies (Waldinger & Schulz, 2022). However, our cultural scripts often emphasize rugged individualism over the common good. The original script for the movie Star Wars even had the line, “May the force of others be with you.” However, before the movie made it to the big screen, of others was cut (Achor, 2018). We’re continually getting the message that joy is something we have to figure out on our own; just check the self-help aisle of any bookstore, and you’ll find a lot of books that promote joy as a solo mission.
But it turns out that sustaining joy is more about our human relationships than it is about, say, taking ice baths or drinking more protein shakes. Relational joy is a core part of learning, so let’s look at some ways we can maximize it.
If we’re more intentional about what we mean when we talk about joy in our classrooms and schools, we’ll do a better job of creating it.
Prioritize the “We”
Prioritizing connection can be as straightforward as inviting students to turn and talk to a neighbor to express their thinking. This not only boosts engagement, but also makes the hard, slow work of thinking more motivating. Reenvision a portion of independent practice as collaborative practice by using research-based techniques like reciprocal teaching, in which teachers support students in practicing the strategic thinking involved in summarizing, clarifying, predicting, and asking questions.
We can create a culture that values perspective-taking and even healthy skepticism by inviting students to use phrases like:
- “Yes, and . . .”
- “Yes, but . . .”
- “Help me understand what you mean by . . .”
- “Maybe it actually is . . .”
- “Could it be . . .”
Such sentence frames shift students from I-centered language in their discussions to more we-centered possibilities for them to listen and build on what others are saying. This creates a classroom culture where joy comes from shared meaning-making.
Strengthen Relationships
Relationships are at the core of any community, especially inclusive and joyful communities where each member feels a sense of belonging. These types of communities don’t just happen; they take intentional planning. First, consider ways to strengthen your relationship with your students. Schedule periodic conferences to listen and get to know each of them; we can’t be culturally and historically responsive in our teaching if we don’t know our students, families, and communities (Muhammad, 2020). To build greater equity into one-on-one conferences, keep a record of which students you have connected with, noting not only their academic development, but also tidbits you learn about their weekends, hobbies, or aspirations; this will help you give every student the feedback they need while also strengthening your relationship with them.
Celebrate Challenge
Use feedback structures that support students to see challenge as a source of joy. After all, productive struggle is a hard but necessary part of learning. One technique is to use the language, “Because you have ___, you’re ready to ___” (McGee, 2017). For example, you might say, “Because you have done so well growing your conversation skills with a partner, you’re ready to be in learning clubs with four or five people now.” This tells students that they’ve done something well and that they’re ready to take on a new challenge. Similarly, by celebrating challenge—for example, by having students share at the end of class or record in a notebook one way they grew as a learner that day—we help cultivate resilience and perseverance as a joyful part of learning.
Embrace Moments of Joy
Finally, embrace instances of joy that burst forth in the moment, such as when students laugh out loud at something funny in a text or when they cheer after solving a difficult math problem. Keep in mind, however, that how we seek happiness and regulate emotions is cultural; we need to check our own biases when students express joy in a way we don’t fully understand, such as by dancing in the hallway, having a lyric battle in the cafeteria, or showing exuberant expressions of team spirit. We can create more shared joy if we seek to understand who our students are, what they care about, and how learning occurs in their families and communities. This enables us to create brain-friendly classroom conditions for culturally and linguistically responsive learning (Hammond, 2015). We’ll look at some of those brain-friendly conditions next.
The Joy of Engagement and Brain-Friendly Learning
Brain-friendly instruction starts by considering our students. For example, for those of our students who are from community-oriented cultures rooted in rich storytelling traditions, their brains may be wired to process information orally and actively. This is how they may have experienced learning outside of school (Hammond, 2015). To bridge home and school practices, teachers can be explicit about the routines for using oral and written language in the classroom and can ensure regular opportunities for students to tell stories and engage with one another conversationally as a part of learning. Such practices can be incorporated into routines that would typically start the day or class period, such as morning meeting at the elementary level and “do nows” at the secondary level.
Activate and Assess Prior Knowledge
When we don’t have enough knowledge about a topic or we don’t understand enough of the words being used, we’ll struggle to comprehend the task, especially if it involves reading. And there’s no joy in that. To assess whether students have the requisite knowledge the task demands, use techniques like anticipation guides (Hennessey, 2020), which front-load statements related to a topic that students are asked to respond to as either true or false. At the end of the lesson or unit, students go back and revise their responses on the basis of the new content they’ve learned.
For example, to prepare students to address complex human themes like justice and fairness, Facing History and Ourselves (2009) recommends using anticipation guides that include statements like, “Justice is best achieved when perpetrators repair the harm they have caused.” This quick teaching move will give you a window into the knowledge students already have or into the kinds of knowledge you may need to front-load, not to mention the misunderstandings you might need to untangle. Anticipation guides also often contain opinion questions that students can use to clarify their initial opinion or change their mind as they move through a lesson or unit. Facilitating understanding in this way creates more joyful and productive learning experiences.
Consider Working Memory Demands
Working memory is the limited brain space we have for holding and manipulating ideas. If it gets overcrowded, like when we’re given multistep directions or long lists of unconnected facts or terms, we can go into cognitive overload. Even though we might think the content is compelling, such conditions can lead to student frustration and erode any joy in learning. To address working memory challenges that stem from task overload, provide a series of shorter deadlines for longer assignments, break down tasks into smaller chunks, help students prioritize what’s most important, and incorporate multiple methods for presenting information. When we’re mindful of the limits of working memory and provide supports, we help ensure student success. And success promotes joy.
Motivate with Mastery
When it comes to joyful learning, small successes are fuel for continued forward progress. In his book, The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness, Ed Hallowell (2003) explains, “With mastery comes not only self-esteem, but also confidence, leadership skills, initiative, and an enduring desire to work hard” (p. 7). Mastery of foundational skills forms the building blocks of learning. However, to reach a level of mastery to find joy in learning, many students, especially neurologically diverse students and emerging multilingual learners, may need more repeated practice. An investment in strong foundational skills, including decoding, spelling, and math fact retrieval, will support students to reach the point of mastery, not only in those skills, but also in the more complex skills of comprehension, critical thinking, and problem solving.
Finally, supporting students to recognize their small successes, especially those students who experienced initial setbacks or challenges, helps create the conditions for the hard work that thinking and learning require. Small successes can mean successfully organizing one’s materials, working through a checklist independently, and prioritizing getting to class on time. When we compliment students for those small successes, we help create a culture of motivation for all.
Opening Up to Joy
We’ve given you a few pointers on how to prioritize connection in your classrooms, and we’ve offered several brain-friendly paths toward creating greater joy in teaching and learning. Learning environments where students are active, engaged, and joyful don’t happen by accident. You will need to be intentional about the ways you prioritize joy as an essential part of learning.
And don’t forget to notice joy in your own life outside school. Listen for laughter. Linger over what’s beautiful. Have that piece of cake.
Reflect & Discuss
➛ How would you describe what authentic joy looks like for your students?
➛ What we-centered opportunities do you offer students to strengthen their connections to one another?
➛ How do you celebrate the joy of student resilience and perseverance in the face of learning challenges?
