Do You Seek Delight?

Last week, I was listening to someone describe her day when I was startled alert through her use of the word “delight.” She said she looks for delight in her day. It got me thinking…

What does it mean to seek delight? I thought about toddlers who delight in everything. What joy they find in treasures they find – sights, smells, tastes, feels! They can’t help it, but their delight is contagious, right? It’s hard to watch a toddler relishing a new discovery without smiling back. In fact, it’s hard to be around anybody who seeks delight without that joyful mood rubbing off.

Later walking through the woods, I came across the scene above. I paused to let myself experience delight. Look how the branches formed a tunnel. I let myself breathe in the scene and absorb discoveries ahead. Trees embraced each other… a squirrel scavenged for acorns…colorful mushrooms sprouted from a log…and stray beams of sunlight filtered through the leaves. Each gave me a surge of euphoric delight.

Then I started wondering… what about delight in the classroom? We’ve all seen a student become delighted at discovering something new.  His face literally lights up, and we can feel his surge of energy. Most special educators live for those moments.

What could we do to promote those moments for our students – AND for ourselves? Classrooms today can become very stressful places. Try an experiment. Decide that today you will seek delight in learning, in discover, in relationships. Look for delightful comments from your students, meaningful exchanges with your colleagues, precious moments of discovery. Then pause a moment to breathe it in. Encourage your students to pause and relish that moment too. It could be that joyful delight could transform the culture of your classroom.

Please share your thoughts on seeking delight in the classroom!!

Need some ideas?