Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    From $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Teaching Happiness and Innovation
    Teaching Happiness and Innovation
    Teaching Happiness and Innovation
    Ebook97 pages2 hours

    Teaching Happiness and Innovation

    By Mike Ferry

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Our kids will create the future. What skills should they be learning at school and at home to help them along the way? Mike Ferry, veteran teacher and parent of four children, calls for us to teach happiness and innovation. Humorous, optimistic, and personal, this book offers new ways of thinking about parenting and education and the values our children need to attain. Ferry discusses the importance of perseverance, gratitude, creativity, collaboration, and many other characteristics while offering suggestions to help kids develop them.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBookBaby
    Release dateJul 25, 2014
    ISBN9781631921568
    Teaching Happiness and Innovation

    Related to Teaching Happiness and Innovation

    Related ebooks

    Education Philosophy & Theory For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • UNLIMITED

      From Stress To Success

      Jun 28, 2020

      From Stress To Success
      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      7 Reasons To Take Up A Hobby

      Feb 17, 2020

      Obviously, taking up running or yoga will improve your health, but the same is true for non-physical pursuits. In one 2009 study involving 1 400 participants, a group of psychologists found that engaging in enjoyable leisure activities had a positive

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      A Lesson In Self-confidence

      Dec 12, 2019

      A Lesson In Self-confidence
      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Helping Children Unlock Their Full Potential By Building A Stronger Foundation

      Oct 4, 2021

      Essential brain pathways are created during these first few years, but if not correctly formed at the right time or in the right order, they can significantly impact a child’s development. This can lead to later challenges around how they learn, how

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Tots Gone wild

      Jan 4, 2020

      Tots Gone wild
      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Hold Yourself Accountable—You’ll Be Happier

      Nov 19, 2016

      PEOPLE TEND TO EXTERNALIZE WHEN THEY encounter problems—to look beyond themselves and find fault with others when things go wrong. Society’s mantra is “There’s plenty of blame to go around!” You can hear it echo in the reactions to the election. But

      1 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      WHY ROUTINE Is Good For You

      May 13, 2020

      WHY ROUTINE Is Good For You
      1 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      In Pursuit Of HAPPINESS

      Oct 1, 2022

      In Pursuit Of HAPPINESS
      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Parenting The Danish Way .

      Sep 2, 2021

      Parenting The Danish Way .
      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Rethinking Kids’ Grades

      Aug 11, 2022

      Rethinking Kids’ Grades
      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Raising Optimistic Kids In An Era Of Pessimism

      Sep 3, 2018

      WANTED: OPTIMISTS. MUST ENJOY CHALLENGES, APPRECIATE possibilities and possess a deep belief in your ability to master a situation. Hope for the future a must, and confidence in that hope a strong plus. If your motto is “try, try again,” you’re perfe

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Your Kid Is Moving Back Home? How to Make the Most of It

      Jul 23, 2018

      It's true that, statistically speaking, the number of college graduates who move back home after finishing school is on the rise. In fact, 28% of recent college grads currently live with a parent, up 8.8 percentage points in a little more than a deca

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Making The Grade

      May 15, 2018

      Making The Grade
      10 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Connection Is Key…

      Jun 23, 2023

      Connection Is Key…
      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Mindfulness For Children

      Jul 1, 2024

      Do you remember when you were young and the most ordinary things would bring pleasure and inspiration? The touch of skin as you hold hands with someone, raindrops drizzling down a window, the smell of an old library book or the excitement of finding

      3 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Parenting Pit Stops

      Sep 2, 2021

      Seeing our children happy…the ultimate goal and gift in this journey we know as parenting. What truly elicits and brings joy in a child. Is it the latest toy? A funny cartoon? A new activity? What we know about nurturing emotional wellness in childre

      6 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Raising Mentally Fit Kids.

      Dec 1, 2022

      Raising Mentally Fit Kids.
      8 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Helping Your Child To Be Happy

      May 13, 2021

      ■ HEALTH On a very basic level, happiness and psychological wellbeing need a healthy body to foster a healthy mind. Aim for balance in your child’s life. Try not to arrange too many activities, and ensure he gets enough sleep, since a tired child isn

      2 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      How to Keep Learning All Your Life

      Dec 31, 2021

      How to Keep Learning All Your Life
      7 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      The Power Of Prevention

      Aug 15, 2023

      The Power Of Prevention
      5 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Raising The next Generation

      Nov 23, 2022

      Raising The next Generation
      7 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Early Years Science

      Mar 3, 2021

      Early Years Science
      4 min read

    • UNLIMITED

      Emotions: Key To Success

      Aug 15, 2019

      Emotions: Key To Success
      2 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Teaching Happiness and Innovation

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Teaching Happiness and Innovation - Mike Ferry

      Angeles

      Introduction

      What kind of future do we want for our kids? As a middle school teacher and parent of four children, most of my daily activities and thoughts relate to this question. I suspect that many people share my dreams for the world that our kids will lead. Without the advantage of a crystal ball, I hope that Earth will become a more peaceful and sustainable place where people of all cultures can coexist with vitality and purpose.

      A child's parents are his first and most important teachers. At school, teachers also act as parental figures. Working together, parents and teachers impart the skills and values of the next generation. As teachers and parents, what can we do to prepare our kids for success? What skills should we emphasize in our elementary, middle, and high schools? What roles will our colleges and universities play? Furthermore, how can we equip children to become problem solvers who remedy the challenges of the present and anticipate the struggles of the future?

      By teaching happiness and innovation to our children, we will give them the skills to maximize success in all domains of life and to create the new businesses, technologies, and mentalities that will benefit the global economy and standard of living.

      Many of us believe that success brings happiness. Yet, this is not always the case. Research has shown that happier people are highly likely to experience success at school, at work, and in their personal lives. In our schools and in our homes, we should do everything possible to encourage our kids to become happier people.

      If happiness is one critical element of a future-focus, innovation is another. As I write this book, the economic situations of the United States and the rest of the world are precarious. Widespread unemployment and uncertainty have led to austerity programs and general malaise for millions across the globe. Where are we going? What jobs will exist in twenty years? Given the warp speed of technological, political, and cultural changes we've seen in recent years, it is impossible to make predictions with great confidence. We must give our children the skills of innovation so that they can spot new opportunities and have the flexibility to flourish in a future we might not comprehend at the moment.

      This book is about how we can teach happiness and innovation to the next generation. It is part exposition, part memoir, and part dreaming out loud. I am relying on knowledge gained from educational conferences I've attended, books and articles I've read, and lessons I've learned from spending more than a decade as a classroom teacher. My goal is to present this information in a concise way that can benefit teachers, parents, grandparents, policy makers, and anyone else who has a stake in the lives of our kids.

      At the heart of this perspective is the concept of neuroplasticity. Our brains are plastic; that is, they can evolve over time. In other words, who we are at birth is not who we are destined to be for the rest of our lives. We may start out with musical or athletic genes, or we may not. However, brain plasticity shows that we can gain musical or athletic skills with practice.

      Furthermore, it is essential that we help kids develop such skills while they are children. As the old adage says, it is harder, though not impossible, to teach an old dog new tricks. This is related to a process known as neural pruning. At birth, our brains are blank slates. Over time, but especially in the first few years of life, brain cells make connections with each other as new information is learned. These connections are known as synapses. After adolescence, the synapses that no longer serve the brain are discarded. This is why you might not remember something that was the most important thing in your world as a seven-year old. The synapses that remain are those that are traversed most frequently over time. Repetition strengthens synapses and lets them survive neural pruning.

      This means that happiness and innovation can be taught and nurtured, regardless of the genetic predispositions we might have related to these traits. Also, with neural pruning in mind, we must encourage kids to consistently behave in ways that establish positive routines. If the best way to get to Carnegie Hall is to practice playing the tuba, then the best way to create a desirable planet is to practice the habits of happiness and innovation. Let's get to work!

      Happiness

      Happiness fuels success, not the other way around. When we are positive, our brains become more engaged, creative, motivated, energetic, resilient, and productive at work. - Shawn Anchor, The Happiness Advantage

      This means that happiness is not just something we parents should care about; it is something that schools should foster, too. Happiness isn't just a nice-to-have; it is a MUST-HAVE for academic success. - Dr. Christine Carter, author of Raising Happiness

      Happiness

      No one is happy all of the time. Problems at work, difficulties at school, depressing headlines, family disputes, and other setbacks are all around us. It's unreasonable to expect that we will experience perpetual natural highs and the thrill of being in total harmony with the universe each and every moment of each and every day.

      Despite these hindrances to happiness, it is possible to forge personalities that are happy more often than they are not. People who are happier will handle the vicissitudes of life with greater resilience and hopefulness. Happier people will be the change we need in the world.

      If you ask ten people to define happiness, you're likely to get ten different answers. Before we go any further, it might be helpful to share my working definition of happiness. I see happiness as a force that emanates from one's core self. It is an optimistic, communal, and disciplined perspective on life. Counter to our materialistic culture, I don't think that we can be truly happy by pursuing our own selfish interests all of the time. Rather, happiness comes from hard work and by

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1