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[Teach Like Finland By Timothy D. Walker Book Review] Chapter 2 - Belonging

Belonging is Primary Ingredients of Happiness




Title : Teach Like Finland – 33 Simple Strategies for Joyful Classrooms
Author : Timothy D. Walker
Publisher : W. W. Norton & Company
Publication Date : April 2017
Edition : First Edition
Pages : 240 Pages
ISBN : 978-1-324-00125-6


 Chapter 2 - Belonging (Review)
Last week, I already wrote 7 strategies in the chapter 1 - Well Being. For this time, I would like to explain about 7 more strategies that Walker had wrote in this chapter 2 - Belonging.

In this chapter two, Walker had written another 7 strategies to make joyful classroom. Those strategies are recruiting a welfare team, know each child, play with your students, celebrate their learning, pursue a class dream, banish the bullying and buddy up. Those 7 strategies will help students feel that they belong to their class and feel connected to their teacher.


Recruiting a Welfare Team


The first strategy is recruiting a welfare team. In one Finnish school, every teacher will usually gather to one another. They will usually share their experience to one another and talk about how they teach their students. They also will develop friendship between them. Usually they will have a meeting in school and will help each other problem in class. This will help to increase teachers’ sense of belonging.

Not only students, teachers should have this sense of belonging too. If teachers have this sense of belonging, they easily can increase students’ sense of belonging. So, it’s really important to create welfare team between every teacher. Teacher will feel they belong with school because there is always a friend in school who they can talk to and understand their job. It can increase teachers’ happiness.

Know Each Child


The second strategy knows each child. In Finland, it is really important to know our each pupil. Usually, Finnish teachers will routinely greet students by their name as they enter the classroom. Finnish teachers also will regularly eat lunch with their pupils. Teacher will sit at a cafeteria table with few of their students. During the lunch time, teachers will have casual conversation with their students. Finnish Teachers will also conduct home visit to their students’ houses to know their students better.

In this second strategy, we can see that knows each child is the part of belonging. If we know our each student, it will contribute to our children’s sense of belonging and it will increase their happiness.

Play With Your Students


The third strategy is play with your students. In their first day of the school, Finnish pupils usually will not have a regular class until the following week. Rather than studying in regular class, Finnish pupils will play with their teachers. Finnish teachers want their pupils to feel more at home in their new school before the school begins. Teachers will usually make a game in class and play with their children. It can increase students’ sense of belonging at their first day.

I agree with this strategy. Usually, students aren’t ready to study at the first day of the school. If we force them to study, it will vain because they usually refuse it. So, we can imitate Finland for this case. We can start the first day in school to play several games. This also can gain closeness between teachers and their students. It also can increase students’ happiness.

Celebrate Their Learning


The fourth strategy is celebrating their learning. Usually in Finnish school, students will have home economics (cooking class), textiles class and wood-working class. On these three classes, students will learn to make something. After the end of the class, students will savor their own edible creations. Walker said this practice will promote their achievement and their autonomy in the classroom. It also benefited their sense of belonging. Students also have a chance to present their work in front of the class. This can foster their pride.

I agree with this strategy. Teachers should appreciate students’ work in class. If we appreciate their work, they will feel proud and feel belonging. Just like walker had said, good celebration of learning is a pause to give thanks, communally, for the good work of the children.

Pursue a Class Dream


The fifth strategy is pursuing a class dream. This pursuing a class dream means teachers and their students will collectively choose a shared project in class. Teachers and students will cooperate to reach their class dream. But, discussing what project they will use is really important. Teacher should pay attention to students’ participation.
Students’ participation is one of the most important things in class. If teacher let their students to participate in this class dream, their sense of belonging will increase. It can increase their happiness.


Banish the Bullying
The sixth strategy is banished the bullying. Finland has a anti bullying program called KIVA. This program already implemented in 90 percent of Finland’s schools. KIVA is an abbreviation of Finnish word kiusaamista vastan that has mean against bullying. KIVA significantly improved the mental health of children suffering from the highest frequency of bullying. Finnish school never tolerated bullying so, bullying is greatly avoided.

I’m really impressed when I see how Finland against bullying. Bullying always be the problem in every school but Finland already know how to handle bullying. Bullying is one of the factors which can decrease students’ sense of belonging and decrease students’ happiness.
Buddy Up


The last strategy is buddy up. In Helsinki Finnish School, the older students will buddy up with younger students. For example, the sixth grade classroom will visit the first grade classroom. They must buddy-up with the younger grade and play them. Sometimes, the older graders will assist the younger graders with their schoolwork. This practice will boost the first graders’ sense of belonging at school. This practice also will boost the older graders’ sense of caring to younger graders.

Usually, there is always a huge gap between older graders to younger graders. This can cause the seniority that can affect bullying to younger graders. I think this strategy is really great to be practiced. The first grader who are new in school will feel more belonging if the older grader can buddy up with them. Of course, this can increase their happiness.

In my opinion, these 7 strategies can increase students and also teacher’s sense of belonging. If they feel belonging with the school, it can increase their happiness.

“Belonging is one of the primary ingredients of happiness.”


You can check the previous chapter 1 review here :
[Teach Like Finland by Timothy D. Walker Book Review] Chapter 1 - Well-being



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