We all love to laugh. It brightens the darkest of days and makes the rain clouds go away, if only for a few moments. Laughter is the very thing that can help us to make life a little bit easier. It makes us feel and see the bright side of life when it is hidden in shadow. Life is simply too hard and too serious for us to take it seriously. We have to take things much more easily. We have to know that life is serious but also that we can’t deal with it in a serious way unless we can laugh at it now and then. This might seem like a paradox, and some people might say that it is simply a way to excuse our laziness, but the rest of us know that this is not the case. A good sense of humor is actually a fairly serious thing. Because of this we know that our children need a good sense of humor as well. If children do not have a good sense of humor they will find it hard to cope with all the difficulties of life. The ups and downs of trying to get by can simply be too much for a person if they do not laugh. So how will you encourage your child’s sense of humor? How will you help them to laugh at adversity? These are not simple or easy questions to answer. For one thing, every child is a unique individual with certain interests and dislikes. One child might have a particular sense of humor while another child might laugh at entirely different things. One of the first things you need to do to encourage your child’s sense of humor is to find out what type of sense of humor they have. When you have done this, consider some methods for encouraging that particular type of sense of humor. One method is through creative exploration.
Creativity can help to develop a sense of humor because it takes a quick, creative mind to see the funny things in life. Creativity is the source of jokes and most pranks. You have to be able to think of fun new things to develop a sense of humor. Only the most boring of people are uncreative. Part of the reason why they don’t have a good sense of humor is that they can’t come up with anything funny to say.
So what kind of creative activities will help your children to develop a good sense of humor? Actually just about any creative activity will help them to do this as long as it is oriented toward something comic. Ask your children to paint a funny painting or draw a funny drawing. Ask them to write a funny story. The more their brains are working in a creative way to come up with something funny the more talented they will become. Creativity and humor are like any other activity we can think of. They require practice and patience. Do you think Jerry Seinfeld became a comedian over a single night?
Continue to encourage your child’s sense of humor through creative activities. This is not simply confined to painting or to drawing. Think about dress ups or music. There are all sorts of possibilities here and hardly any limits. Be creative yourself in thinking of ways to help your child be creative. Perhaps you can be creative together, helping both of you to develop better senses of humor. Good luck encouraging your child to have a better sense of humor!
I love to laugh. My wife also loves to laugh. We love to laugh together and hope that some day our children will love to laugh with us. We know that laughter is one of the greatest cures to any problem. While it might not solve anything it nevertheless helps us to get through the bad times and look forward to the good ones. It is our good sense of humor that has helped sustain us when we thought we were not going to make it. Because we know that a good sense of humor is very important, we would like to help our children to have a good sense of humor as well. But how can we make sure that this happens? Is there some sure method? It is difficult to tell what method is really best when personality is at stake. Some children just don’t have the same sense of humor as their parents. Some children are more serious than others and don’t want to laugh. This is okay, although we need to realize that even the most serious child can develop a stronger sense of humor. While we might not be raising comedians, we would like our children to be able to help themselves by laughing at the tough stuff in life.
One of the best ways to help encourage a sense of humor in your children is to set a good example. When parents laugh a lot their children are far more likely to laugh as well. Although personalities are different in families, this doesn’t mean that a good sense of humor cannot be shared by all.
The best time to set a good example is when things are hard. If you can laugh at the difficult times as well as the good you will surely make a great impression on your kids. This will help them to see that a good sense of humor is a tool. They will know that they can use it when things are difficult and when a dark storm cloud hangs over them. Children observe their parents closely, they watch to see how they will respond. A pattern of humor in the face of adversity teaches children to approach things in the same way.
You cannot fake this kind of example. Children can sense insincerity very quickly. They know when you are lying or trying to fool them. Be sincere in your example and your children will learn something. Otherwise they might just suspect you of trying to pull the wool over their eyes.
If you can laugh regularly at many different things your children will notice. Surround yourself with the sorts of things that help you to laugh. Make sure that you laugh and joke a great deal with your spouse or partner in front of your children. This will help to teach your children to be at ease with their future partner. It will show them that a loving relationship is fun and something they should pursue.
Another way to set a good example is to participate in activities that regularly make you laugh. Go to funny movies or to comedy clubs with your children. Regular participation in activities that make you laugh will be an important part of the puzzle.
There are lots of different ways to set a good example for your children. Don’t limit yourself to only one method. Be creative and experiment with various things. You will find that a combination of various methods will help you to encourage a sense of humor in your children.
A sense of humor is such an important part of being a human. If we don’t laugh we can hardly live. Someone once said that man is the social animal. I think that man is the animal that laughs. Laughter is what redeems the darkest days and helps make the bright ones just a little bit brighter. It is the icing on the cake of life. We know that people who tend to laugh are healthier and mentally happier. They can look at the problems of life and get through them because they don’t seem as daunting. This doesn’t mean that laughter is the cure for everything, but it sure can help when things are not going so well. These tried and trusted truths help to show why it is important for all of us, and particularly children, to have a good sense of humor. Children are our future, and while this seems a cliche, it is true. We need children and they need us. The world needs them. But not all children have a great sense of humor. We love most children partly because they are silly and seem to be full of life. You want to develop that sense of humor in your child, both for their well being and yours. How can you develop the sense of humor in your child? It surely isn’t much like training a dog to sit. While this is true, here are a few hints that could help you get your child to laugh more.
1. While we all want our children to laugh and to laugh a lot, consider that not all people laugh as much as others. Some people simply are not hard wired to giggle or guffaw in the way that others do. They might be a bit more sad or introverted. This is just fine. Remember that it takes all kinds to make a world. Don’t try to force a naturally quiet child to laugh all the time. It will probably only make them resent you. However, even a quiet and introverted child wants to laugh and needs to laugh. The key is to achieve a balance. Find the things that make your child laugh and surround your child with these things. If it is a TV show, purchase the DVD. If it is physical humor, show them movies with physical humor. There are all sorts of possiblities.
2. Make sure that your child is not scared or feeling unsafe. A child that feels threatened will not laugh. If you can give your child a safe and comfortable environment they will be far more likely to develop their sense of humor. Although we cannot ensure that our children will not have bad experiences, we do know that we can do a lot to help them stay safe in their early years.
3. Finally, make sure that your child has friends with a similar sense of humor. If you think back to your childhood, you probably laughed the most when you were with a group of silly friends. Watching movies together or singing songs was one of my favorite activities. A child’s sense of humor will develop with the sense of humor of their friends. If your child is not laughing much, consider introducing them to a few more kids.
Remember that a child is a person and deserves to be treated like one. If they don’t want to laugh then they don’t want to. You cannot force them, but if you truly desire their happiness you can help them laugh a bit more.
