The Art of Sleights and Perceptions: The Alchemy of Teaching

On our best days we are magicians- engaging illusionists. For most of us, teaching is not a paycheck, or profession but a passion. We are not the bestowers of knowledge but rather performance artists. Supplicating surprises and beseeching inquiry at every turn. Like a magician observes and gets to know his audience, a teacher forms relationships with their students in order to understand their fears, dreams and interests. We treat each student as an individual and slowly throughout the year we learn their idiosyncrasies so we can best mesmerize, magnetize and motivate them. We have tricks of the trade, strategies we use to bring curiosity, mystery and allure to our classrooms. We want to conjure enthusiasm and enthrallment any way we can. The art of sleights and perceptions, the alchemy of educators, the hidden gems we pull out daily to create fascination. A magical teacher understands the difference between hypnotism, bringing people to compliance, and the animation of creating a world of imagination, power and prediction. A great magician does not need to worry about losing their audience for they truly capture every one's attention through discrepancy and deception. A dedicated teacher need not worry either because they know their students and the stratagems and how to coalesce the two.

Teachers are conduits between subject matter and student. Conductors of the energy of discovery and exploration. An important skill in a teachers bag of tricks is the art of performance. Engagement through action. Entertainment through creative measures. There will always be hecklers in the audience any magician can tell you this, but if we keep them on their toes, students will wonder where the "show" will go next. What act two will be. The intrigue will keep them on the edge of their seat, literally. 

"The first job of a teacher is to make the student fall in love with the subject. That doesn’t have to be done by waving your arms and prancing around the classroom; there’s all sorts of ways to go at it, but no matter what, you are a symbol of the subject in the students’ minds."- Teller

The best teachers understand that learning subject matter is a balance between engagement and boredom. Not every student is interested in science or writing or math. Creating an enchantment between the facts and demonstration is an art form. We need to transform apathy and indifference into autonomy and independence. We need to forge a mythical place where students are working, but they feel like they are playing. An environment where memorizing becomes participation and practice. Magical educators can do this with a flick of a wand. A shift of focus from recording our knowledge to living it. This is the art of sleights and perceptions. The place where illusion meets reality. Where students perceive that moment of awe. The curiosity that is often lost with the monotony of standardized testing. The top hat & cape, wand, and white gloves are all familiar apparel of a magician. While a teachers' guise varies, it all comes down to not what we wear but how we make our students fall in love with learning. Our true attire comes from our smile, eye contact and hand-shake which are genuine and absolute. Our slight of hand is not pulling a colored scarf from our sleeve but letting students design the trick and providing time for the magic to sink in. Tinkering and play are the confetti that sparkles across the stage, redirecting their attention.

Teachers are both magicians, luring students into a world of wizardry and allurement and realists understanding that no matter the performance, there will be students who do not believe. A pop of divergence will bring them back in to the fold. It is personal satisfaction that instills confidence and belief that keeps our students invested in the show. They are the true talent after all with minds just ready to soak up the insight. There are students who need remediation, a slower demonstration or enrichment those who need the more advanced conundrum to keep them curious. Excitement and entertainment must be accompanied with bona fide educational strategies. Any magician knows that pulling a rabbit out of a hat or sawing a woman in half might be the show stopper for some while card tricks and illusions are for others. So teachers too need a mixed bag of tricks. If we are not uncomfortable, as with the uncertainty of magic, we are not growing. Students need to feel challenged as do teachers. Every magician needs to up the anti, learn more masterful subterfuge if they want to remain relevant. Teachers are the wizards of knowledge and we need to continue to learn new spells in order to be masters of our craft. But more importantly we need to pass the skill of self-awareness and perception on to our apprentices.

Imagine if you will, a darkened stage, a hushed audience. Quiet music playing in the background almost lulling, creating a sense of familiarity and comfortability. A table is in the middle of the stage, prominent and mysterious. Objects bulging from beneath a silky red scarf. A few onlookers are trying to determine what mythical commodities lie underneath. The spectators are curious already, talking among themselves, is this going to be a good show? A moment passes, anticipation building with every breath, a sound brings the focus to the spectacle before them. What is about to happen? All eyes and attention are directed at the stage. In moments all will be revealed- a magical mystery tour will commence. The gathering becomes interactive, a unified focus on the performance. Is this a theatrical show or the beginning of your class?