Teaching Strategies

April Fool’s Day in the Classroom: 8 Resources for Teachers

If you’re looking for ideas for classroom pranks, these are a few of our favorite April Fool’s Day resources and teaching ideas.

March 22, 2013 Updated March 11, 2016

Your content has been saved!

Go to My Saved Content.

I still remember April Fool's Day when I was a fourth grader. A reading comprehension worksheet went out to the class, and in minutes, we were all dumbfounded. The story and questions were incomprehensible, written in complete gibberish. But our teacher went along with the joke. We had a half hour to finish it, and it was going to be worth a substantial amount of points.

I don’t remember how long the gag lasted exactly, but I do remember all of us sitting there, mouths agape, wondering if the assignment was serious. Then, once we’d all thrown our hands up, our teacher let us in on the joke: “April Fool's!”

April Fool's Day is the perfect time to play some light-hearted pranks on your friends, family, and co-workers; and if you’re a teacher, pulling an unexpected fast one on your students can be entertaining -- and memorable -- for everyone. So if you’re looking for ideas for classroom pranks, or you’re hoping to bring a humor lesson into the classroom, these are a few of our favorite April Fool's Day resources and teaching ideas. Plus, we've also added some more general resources for using humor to reach students. First, check out this incredible prank pulled last year:

Do you have other ideas for classroom pranks? What resources are you using to bring April Fool's Day into your class?

Tips, Strategies, and Resources for Using Humor to Engage Students

The research is clear about using humor in the classroom -- humor is an extremely engaging tool. But for educators, it can be a challenge to bring a little levity into lessons. Where should you begin? What types of humor are the most effective? And how exactly is humor best incorporated into lessons? Here are a few articles that provide ideas, tips, and strategies for engaging students with humor.

Quick Links From Edutopia for Getting Started

Share This Story

  • email icon

Filed Under

  • Teaching Strategies
  • Curriculum Planning
  • Student Engagement

Follow Edutopia

  • facebook icon
  • twitter icon
  • instagram icon
  • youtube icon
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
George Lucas Educational Foundation
Edutopia is an initiative of the George Lucas Educational Foundation.
Edutopia®, the EDU Logo™ and Lucas Education Research Logo® are trademarks or registered trademarks of the George Lucas Educational Foundation in the U.S. and other countries.