Using humor in lessons

Laugh and smile create a positive atmosphere between a teacher and students. It is a great icebreaker that helps students feel more comfortable and free to express their thoughts, it eases tension and makes students more receptive to learning. That’s why humor can be an effective tool to engage students in the learning process and make lessons fun and relevant. Today we prepare some fun activities that can help maximize learning and increase students’ engagement. 

Special Guest

Tell your students that you will have a guest from another planet so they must write three questions to ask him. Make sure that everyone prepares the questions. After that call out two of the students and tell them that one of them will be a guest and the other is an interpreter. As the guest doesn’t know English he must make some random sounds to mimic a foreign language. The interpreter knows the guest’s language and translates the questions and answers. 

Encourage students to ask their questions. When the guest answers them with the help of an interpreter, ask these two students to find replacements to take the roles. Repeat 2-3 times. 

Blindfolds: touch and feel

Using realia in a classroom is a good way to liven it up. 

Bring a bag full of items connected with the topic of the lesson. For example, it is about food. Get the students into small groups and give a bag full of vegetables and fruits to each of them. Write a list of questions on the board. For example: 

• What does it feel like? 
• How heavy is it? 
• What shape is it? 

One of the members from each group sits facing the board and reads the questions. The other members of the group put on blindfolds. They choose one item from the bag and start touching it. The person who reads the questions can’t see the item. He must ask questions until he guesses what it is. If the questions on the board are not enough, he must ask his own questions.  

Funny Quotes 

Start the lesson with a funny quote and let the giggles out. Choose a quote for the lesson from here. It can be connected with the topic or can be just a funny quote. Read it or write on the board and ask the students to say what they find funny in the quote. 

This speaking activity will encourage a meaningful discussion.    

Puns

To enlarge students’ vocabulary, use funny puns (find them here). Puns are also a good way to understand American/British humour. They help students to understand the multiple meaning of the word and get it from the context. For example: 

“Let’s talk about rights and lefts. You’re right, so I left”.

Students discuss and say, for example, if the word “right” is a verb, a noun or an adjective in the first part of the sentence.   

Another way to use puns in the lesson is to organize a pun challenge. You can use a random word generator for this activity. Choose a  word and give students 2 minutes to think over it and make their own puns. 

Jokes

There is a fun way to introduce a topic or otherwise sum up the lesson — jokes. Prepare a joke based on the topic. Ask students to read it, explain it and guess the topic of the lesson. To practice reading skills prepare a joke that is told like a little story.

Silent Cartoons/Pictures

Before a lesson, choose a funny cartoon where characters don’t speak. For example: 

Pair students and let them watch it.  After watching they write a funny dialogue for the cartoon. When each pair finishes writing the dialogue, they perform it to the class playing roles of the characters. At the end of the activity, the class votes and chooses the funniest one.    

Alternatively, you can use pictures for this activity. Just choose a picture. Ask the students to work in pairs and create comics using the picture. It must include a funny dialogue and students can also create or find more pictures to complete the comics.    

In this activity, students have an opportunity to use their imagination, develop creative thinking and improve speaking and writing skills.  

Tongue Twisters 

To practice and improve the student’s pronunciation use tongue twisters. Choose a twister and ask students to read it. Once they have read it, ask to put one marshmallow into the mouth and try to say it quicker. Repeat until one of the students read it the fastest with more marshmallows in the mouth. 

Having more fun…

Lighten up and Laugh 

Everyone makes mistakes, and even a teacher does. But there is no reason to get upset, use it to have a good laugh. Once you make a mistake, mention it and laugh. As soon as you stop taking everything so seriously, you will immediately lighten up your lessons and create a comfortable atmosphere for students.  

Funny Face

When a student makes a mistake, make a funny face. It is a better way to give feedback to a student than interruption and correction. Teach your students the faces for each type of mistake you are going to use. For example, when a student uses the wrong verb tense, make a shocked face. It helps them to see their mistake and correct themselves.     

Absurd Accessories

Unexpected things brought to a lesson can be a reason for a good laugh. Based on the topic of the lesson, choose an accessory to show to students. For example, the topic of the lesson is Future Perfect Tense. And suddenly you take a crystal ball out of your bag and start predicting the future of your students. This can make very funny moments. 

Intrepid Impersonations

While working with kids, teachers sometimes make different voices to represent a topic, for example, animals. But it can be used with adult students too. For example, the topic of the lesson is celebrities. Impersonate a famous person who has a specific manner of talking or try to fake British/American accents. 

So it’s time to take humour more seriously and bring it to our classes. But remember that humour is most effective when it is appropriate.