Episode 15 | Humour in Play with Ben Kingston-Hughes
Jul 25, 2024
auto_awesome
Ben Kingston-Hughes, an expert in the role of humor in children's play and learning, joins Alistair Bryce-Clegg to explore the profound impact of humor on child development. They discuss how humor fosters creativity and social connections among young children, emphasizing its vital role in enhancing learning. Personal anecdotes highlight the quirky and silly moments of parenting, while insights reveal how laughter aids healing and boosts emotional well-being. The duo also touches on the unconventional significance of dark humor in educational settings.
Humor in play fosters creativity and social connections, enhancing children's overall learning and emotional well-being in educational settings.
Incorporating humor allows educators to create a playful learning environment that encourages spontaneity, engagement, and resilience among children.
Deep dives
The Importance of Humor in Early Childhood
Humor plays a critical role in early childhood development, serving as a vital social function often overlooked in educational settings. It can foster a sense of joy and connection, especially among vulnerable children who may not have had many opportunities for laughter. The discussion highlights how humor, even in its simplest forms—like toilet humor—resonates deeply with young children and helps them express their emotions and worldviews. Practitioners are encouraged to embrace this aspect of childhood rather than shy away from it, as engaging in humor can create joyful moments that facilitate learning and social interactions.
Creating a Playful Learning Environment
A playful and humorous approach to education significantly enhances the learning environment for children, making them feel safe and open to exploration. The conversation emphasizes the need for educators to plan for laughter and humor as essential components of learning experiences. By allowing for more freedom and unpredictability in the learning space, educators can encourage spontaneous humor, which leads to increased engagement and creativity among children. Recognizing the connection between a playful atmosphere and positive behavior, practitioners are reminded that humor can transform what might appear chaotic into a thriving learning environment.
Humor as a Tool for Emotional Resilience
Humor serves as a valuable tool for coping with challenges and can be especially important for children dealing with trauma or adversity. The dialogue explores how laughter can provide emotional relief and foster connections, even in difficult situations. Sharing humorous experiences supports children's social development and helps them navigate their feelings, which is crucial for their emotional well-being. By normalizing humor in educational settings, practitioners can facilitate resilience and encourage children to engage with their emotions in a healthy, constructive manner.
In this episode, Alistair Bryce-Clegg and Ben Kingston-Hughes dive into the importance of humour in play and its vital social function. They discuss how humour requires a lot of imagination and creativity, making it a powerful tool for engaging children and enhancing learning.
Alistair and Ben highlight how humour in play encourages pro-social behaviour, even if what children find funny seems silly to adults. With a more creative and relaxed environment created by humour, children’s wellbeing and openness to learning is boosted. This episode offers valuable insights and practical advice on incorporating humour into play, helping children become creative and socially adept.
📌 To shop for resources relevant to this podcast conversation, click here.
Listened and loved it? Sign-up here for exclusive follow-up content and be the first to hear about new episodes.
(The views expressed throughout this podcast are the speakers' own, and TTS does not take responsibility for the views and guidance highlighted as part of this recording.)
Please note: When referencing the speakers views, theory and work for development of your own materials, please ensure academic reference of the speaker is cited.
Get the Snipd podcast app
Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode
Save any moment
Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways
Share & Export
Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode