Getting Students Motivated.

I’ve heard that good students will survive a poor teacher, but bad students will never recover.

I’ve also heard:

Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.

-Chinese proverb

Quality teachers get students involved.

How do you get students involved?

· Make them feel safe in the classroom

o Safe from violence

o Safe from ridicule

o Safe to be wrong

o Safe to ask for real help

· Preview what will be learned

o Point out the things they will learn

· Give an activity and let them do it

o Refuse to accept anything until after they try

§ Students don’t try because

· They don’t see the point

· They don’t understand

· They need to keep up walls physical and mental

· They know it isn’t important

§ Give them the skills they need to complete the project.

· There are students who don’t try because they don’t know how to do it and they are afraid to admit weakness.

· Especially at first keep the activities short

o Check for understanding often

· Summarize the learning after each activity

o I cannot emphasize enough how important this is

· Summarize learning for the day

o Again, I cannot emphasize enough how important this is

· Tie learning into concepts taught and learned earlier.