“Give people a fact or an idea and you enlighten their minds; tell them a story and you touch their souls.” Hasidic proverb
Welcome to 2011!
There is an old Talmudic (Jewish) custom. When a boy goes to study the Torah (which is a religious text) they have him touch a page of the Torah and then dip his finger in honey to learn that learning is sweet.
There are many ways to make learning sweet. Taken literally, I bring bowls of candy. I create a comfortable learning environment with seating arranged in pods, kinesthetic objects on the participants’ tables (Koosh balls, pipe cleaners, glitter wands, etc.), and colorful kites on the walls.
I sweeten learning by treating the participants with respect, drawing them in to obtain their buy-in to the content, showing colorful comics that capture key concepts on the PowerPoint, and using learning activities that are intended to build their confidence in their own competence.
What are your favorite ways to make learning sweet?
May your learning be sweet.
Deborah