The most dangerous story we tell in schools is that joy is seasonal that “serious work” requires emotional coldness once the decorations come down. We treat this energy as a Christmas novelty that can’t survive a grey Tuesday in February.
That story is a lie. The students who sang their hearts out in December haven’t changed by March. Their need for connection didn’t expire on New Year’s Day. Enthusiasm isn’t a reaction to a good day; it’s the tool you use to build one. If we want to bottle that energy for the bleakest months of the year, we have to treat it as a deliberate professional skill.