Professor Sharon

1. the emotion of great delight or happiness  caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation: She felt the joy of seeing her son’s success.

2. a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something or someone greatly valued or appreciated: Her prose style is a pure joy.

3. the expression or display of glad feeling; festive gaiety.

4. a state of happiness or felicity.

5. to feel joy; be glad; rejoice.

Today a guest speaker came to my Creative Experiences for Young Children class at my community college.  We sang children’s songs together for over an hour: we giggled, we laughed, we mixed up hand motions, we marched up and down with the Grand Old Duke of York, we cried over Puff, and – don’t tell the students – probably even bonded a little as friends.   This is the glue of learning.  This is the moment I continuously attempt to capture for my students — that, yes, indeed there are goals, there are objectives, there are standards, there are important reasons to do what we do in the classroom with and for young children.  One enormous important reason to do it all goes beyond that: the joy of learning, the joy of life, the joy of living, the joy of laughter, the joy of friendship and holding one another’s hands when Puff slides into his cave and childhood might be left behind.  Today I’m thinking about joy (and I wish it for all of you).  I hope you learn something tomorrow and the day after that, and the day after that….