I love these mints.
Back in December, I brought in a whole bucketful of these mints to the final exams I was giving. As students came in, I greeted them at the door and encouraged them to grab a mint (or two, or five) to suck on while they were writing their exams. A few said a graceful “no thanks,” but most grabbed a couple to take with them to their seats.
And then there was the one young lady who said, “Really?? I LOVE these things!”
I said, “Well, there’s a whole bucketful of them here, grab a big handful!”
And she did—she probably took 20 of them.
I loved that moment.
She was the sort of student who came into my class a little skeptical. It was a brand new course that I was teaching for the first time, and it wasn’t an Education course like most I teach; it was a Core capstone course. (I previously shared a bit about the course here and here.) Suffice to say, some of the engineers, and business majors, and social workers, and agriculture majors were bemused by my pedagogy, because it was different from much of what they had experienced in courses in their majors. And this student was one who was a little reticent from the get-go.
But she came around as the semester unfolded, and I was able to joke with her along the way, and by the final third of the course, she seemed “all in.” And her taking me up on getting a whole mitt-full of mints was just a delightful way to cap things off in our work together for the semester.
The mints were a literal sweet surprise that I brought with me to class for that final meeting of the term, but I like to think I had sprinkled in plenty of other “treats” for students throughout the semester. Little things that might not seem very important at the outset ended up being delightful things for my students. I had comments from them about little things like the way we did partnered discussions (pre-arranging multiple partnerships, but me mixing it up for a little surprise,) the way I regularly told stories that didn’t seem related to class…but somehow ended up being entwined with the concepts we were discussing, giving students a composition book at the beginning of the term and using it extensively for both note-taking and reflection throughout the course.
Look, none of these are earth-shaking teaching moves, right? But they were all things that students mentioned specifically in my end-of-course feedback survey—things that made a positive difference for them, things that surprised them, things that delighted them.
This is my encouragement for you, educator: look for little “sweet treats” that you can work into your teaching. Look for things that aren’t a lot of work for you, but make class a more joyful, more mysterious, more playful experience for students. These little surprises can have surprising benefits for students’ engagement in learning!
Dave’s Faves
Here are three things I’m absolutely loving right now that I hope you might love too…
Dave’s Fave #1: Worship/Theology Podcast
My friend, the Reverend Doctor Jeremy Perigo hosts the Worship/Theology podcast, and as a volunteer worship leader at my church, I am so grateful that he does! Jeremy is also a colleague of mine at Dordt University where he serves as a professor in the theology department, teaching courses in worship, missions, and biblical foundations. This podcast is about bridging the gap between theological studies and worship practice, making it an ideal resource for regular folks like me who volunteer in helping to lead worship in their churches.
The most recent episode is an interview with two other colleague-friends of mine, Justin Bailey (who is a professor theology who teaches aesthetics) and David Platter (who is a professor of visual arts.) The conversation focuses on the role of visual art and beauty in corporate worship settings. You can listen here: A Vision for Visual Art in Worship.
Dave’s Fave #2: The original Jurassic Park film
You guys…over Christmas break I rewatched multiple films from the 90s (not least of which because my college-aged daughter recently discovered the joy of 90s rom-coms, but that’s another story.) Let me just say…for a film made in 1993, Jurassic Park ABSOLUTELY HOLDS UP. Goodness, those raptors are still so terrifying…my palms were literally sweating and I had goosebumps multiple times. The CGI was so good too—honestly, better than I remembered it for a film made THIRTY YEARS AGO. There are some really gruesome scenes and a lot of suspenseful scenes, so let the viewer beware, but I definitely would recommend you watch this one again—or for the first time, if you’ve never seen it. It’s available on Netflix, if you’re a subscriber.
Dave’s Fave #3: Sigur Rós
My guess is that most of you probably don’t listen to Icelandic music very often. (Any Björk fans out there?) But I’ll share an Icelandic band I really like today: Sigur Rós. Their 2005 album, Takk… is probably my favorite of theirs. I don’t speak Icelandic, of course, but my understanding is that not all of their lyrics are even in Icelandic—a lot of it is gibberish, just playing with sounds that are…oddly beautiful to me. The music is rock(-ish) but with some almost Classical influence making for an atmospheric, ethereal aesthetic. I would especially recommend to you the third track on this album, “Hoppípolla,” to start. Give ‘em a whirl—maybe while your students are at work, and you just need a little background music? (I also found this great study music during my doctoral studies…)
The Last Word!
The only bummer about that bucket of mints is that my students only took about half of them. This past week I’ve been back in the office preparing syllabi for the soon-to-begin spring term, and I find myself snacking on them. I probably ate 100 of them—yikes! That’s probably not great for my dental health. (Don’t worry…I’ve got good teeth.)
I guess my encouragement here is moderation, maybe? Yes, look for ways to sprinkle in those sweet surprises in your teaching…but let’s keep in mind the “main course” meal and not overemphasize the snacks. A varied diet is healthy, after all.
Blessings to you, dear colleague, as you do the good, hard work we are called to do!