Laugh and Learn: 95 Ways to Use Humor for More Effective Teaching and Training

by Doni Tamblyn

"We may not all be born comedians, but most people are naturally humorous, says Doni Tamblyn, a comic-turned-trainer whose humorous techniques bring serious results at clients such as Chevron, Wells Fargo, and other Fortune 500 companies, universities, and government entities. While Laugh and Learn offers plenty to keep smiles on the faces of trainers and their students, it’s not a collection of one-liners and knock-knock jokes. It’s an enlightening and practical look at how teachers and training professionals can inject elements of entertainment, creativity, humor, and emotion into their existing methods, even when dealing with serious or technical topics. Filled with fun, challenging, and thought-provoking exercises to help readers feel more comfortable being funny, the book also provides dozens of workshop activities and techniques to introduce humor into the learning environment. Combining the latest brain studies and humor research with the author’s own 23 years of experience in comedy and corporate training, Laugh and Learn is a fascinating look at what makes learners perk up, pay attention -- and remember!"

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Education

272 pages, Paperback

First published October 11, 2002

About the author

Born in the San Francisco Bay area, by a strange twist of fate I spent part of my childhood living in a log house on a cattle ranch in the Canadian Cascades. There I spent my formative years slinging hay and attending a one-room school with neighboring kids whose idea of a "spirited debate" was a snowball with a rock in it. It was during this time that I learned some very useful lessons, like how much weight a 50-pound kid can carry (about 35 lb, if you drag it part of the way); mammals that can be dominated and mammals that can't (dogs and bulls yes, cats and bears sometimes, brothers and sisters seldom); 3) what it means if the tip of your nose turns white (it's frozen, and you need to thaw it at once or it might drop off).

As soon as I graduated high school, I beat cheeks back to the nearest major city I could find (Vancouver BC), and continued to live in urban centers until I got married in 2005 and moved to the Jersey shore. Right now I'm listening to birds. Weird sound... VAGUELY familiar....

Happy times: Studying art in the 70s; performing cabaret in the 80s; arranging and singing a cappella in the 90s; discovering PHILADELPHIA in 2001 (do NOT tell anyone how cool it is -- we don't want to be another Seattle, thank you); the Summer of Love in 2003 (none of your business, but thank you for asking); spending 10 months in Shanghai with my husband in 2005.

Reviews

[Mhaza · Rating 2 out of 5]

It would be more accurate - and more fair - for the description to be reversed (i.e., ":for more effective *training* and teaching") as it is really better suited to those specifically embarking on a career that mirrors that of the author (i.e., teaching groups of adults mandated to acquire a specific set of skills... presumably, in a well-defined and fairly limited span of time). This would significantly reduce the potential audience of course but,traditional teachers stand to gain much less than, say, a corporate trainer. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to discern this before I ordered it online.

As for tone and writing style... (and, of course this is a matter of personal taste)... clearly the author has been told numerous times that she is funny; and, it is equally clear that she believes it. The fan club, however, does not include me.

[Karen Chung · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tend to rate books like this based on what I personally got out of them, in my own particular situation. This book is fine, and contains a lot of good tips, especially if you're just starting out as a teacher, though the writing is bit corny in places. I've been teaching for over three decades, and in many cases was checking off boxes, thinking, yes, I do that, that's a good suggestion. And so I did not come away with a lot of new ideas. But I expect many others will.

[Cara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely brilliant. Tamblyn discusses the humorous teaching techniques she used when she taught mandatory traffic safety classes and how they can energize and enhance any teaching situation. Her writing style is as fun as driving 80 mph in a construction zone (which, incidentally, might land you in traffic safety school). I think this book should be required reading for anyone who ever finds themselves in front of a class.

[Hector Torres · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very helpful book if you're into teaching or trying to acquire learning techniques.

[Rahmawati Nurul]

This is so awsome book :)