OKAY, WHAT'S UP WITH THE RUBBER DUCKS?

All month my posts have begun with a silly joke told by ducks that are dressed up in Halloween-themed outfits. Hopefully, some of you have wondered, “Okay, what’s up with the rubber ducks?”

As a teacher that spent many years with children in kindergarten through fifth grade, I have learned that the ability to understand humor is definitely a developmental milestone. When a child begins to understand many words or phrases can have multiple meanings they tap into their higher level thinking abilities. Altering the beginning sound of a word can totally change the meaning of a phrase or sentence. Just as with the milestone of learning to ride a bike, children begin to grasp the concept of humor at different ages. And, just as a child can be encouraged and guided towards the first solo ride where balance is achieved, teaching a child to understand humor is also possible. For example: Explain that a pumpkin patch is where pumpkins grow. But, a patch can also be used to fix something that is broken, possibly even a pumpkin. If you change the beginning sound of a word from crackers to quackers, endless possibilities for silly humor become available.

The important thing to remember, however, is to remember to keep the silly jokes fun. Guidance should be only a small part of the experience—telling silly jokes is all about having fun. If you keep this suggestion in mind, it won’t be long before your dinner table conversations are filled with knock-knock jokes and humorous plays on words.

Have you heard this one?...

This joke is a shout out to my sailor husband! :-)