Fun Friday

‘Fun Friday’ is a term often used to describe a precious hour of the week in Australian classrooms. It’s a golden hour that sees teachers giving themselves permission to plan for student voice and choice. Fun Friday is often proclaimed as a joyous reward for a week of ‘work’.

During Fun Friday time, the responsibility for learning is released to learners. It is a time to be curious, to experiment and investigate, an opportunity to make a mess and create as they develop understandings and skills. Fun Friday might be the time when students learn the most.

In a classroom that utilises Fun Friday, the remainder of the week is often filled with heavily scheduled lessons - the teacher teaches and the students learn, or so we hope. On Fun Friday, a more inquiry-based and student-centred approach is harnessed. Students are still learning, but just not in the same way – the prioritisation of curiosity, engagement and Authentic Voice often lead to Deeper Learning.

Inquiry-Based Learning is commonly a signature pedagogy of Fun Friday. Teachers dabbling with this approach to learning can often feel safe to lean into the associated practices for a measly hour, knowing that ‘the real teaching and learning’ is occurring across the remainder of the week. This view might indicate that a deep understanding of taking an inquiry stance and its purpose in learning is missing.

The Fun Friday hour is a time when teachers might look more closely at their students, noticing their unique skills and struggles and prioritising that learning is deeper than simple knowledge transfer. Changes in thinking and the development of understanding can be more easily noticed and named during Fun Friday. Our students deserve more Fun Friday in their week, as do teachers.

“What we learn with joy we never forget.” Alfred Mercier.