Did you know that laughter IS the best medicine? An article in the Huffington Post shares a study at California Loma Linda University revealing that laughter provides lower cortisol levels (a.k.a, the stress hormone) and better memory recall abilities. But, as instructors of students, it turns out there is a wide range of benefits of humor and laughter:
- Boost retention
- Build relationships
- Reduce math anxiety and stress
- Just to name a few
So how do you incorporate humor into your classroom? I am interested in how can we capitalize on this in our classroom so that our students feel more at ease?
Comments
I found this article and plan on getting the book it mentions to follow up.
The Humor Code article
I have watched many documentaries about stand up comedians and how they create and invent their humor. If you have Netflix or any other movie streaming service, you might want to check into the documentaries about famous comedians. After watching a bunch of them, I think there are some trends and I wonder how those trends would fit with the finding of the book (The Humor Code Book Link) mentioned in the article linked above.
Does anyone else have research or writings about how we make humor? I think stand up comedy and teaching have many connections and I am fascinated to see if anyone has done studies that have found any connections to the two professions.
I just got a chance to look through the Amazon reviews of that book, The Humor Code. Seems many people did not appreciate the author's approach to the subject and felt there was little to no actual findings. Bummer! Any good materials on what makes things humorous?