Motivational+Ideas

**Motivational Ideas for Students:**


 * "The Eye Can" -- Take a soda can and put paper around it with eyes cut out from magazines. Whenever a student says "I can't", make them pretend to drink from the "I CAN can"
 * "Thank your Brain"-- To encourage thinking
 * "Relax Bottle"-- When students become stressed, hand them this bottle filled with crayon shavings and colored water. Glue the lid on. Have an out of control, unfocused, or unmotivated student shake and hold until the crayons stop. Then have them get back to work.
 * Talk to your unmotivated student, find their interests, and discover why they are unmotivated
 * Ask the student if they can help teach others
 * Ask student if you can work with them one on one at some point throughout the day

**Motivational Games:** []

**Rules for Motivating Students**: **Rule 1:** Emphasize the most critical concepts continuously. **Rule 2:** Provide students with a "visual aid" when possible to explain abstract concepts. **Rule 3:** Rely on logic when applicable. Point out to students which information is merely "fact" that must be memorized and which course material is based upon "logic." Show students how to employ logical thinking to learn and retain new information. **Rule 4:** Use in-class activities to reinforce newly presented material. After a new concept or subject has been presented via text reading, lecture, or class discussion, allow the students to put the concept into action by completing an in-class assignment. **Rule 5:** Help students create a "link" when teaching something new. If the student can "link" the new material to something already learned, the odds of learning the new material are greatly increased. **Rule 6:** Recognize the importance of vocabulary in a course. Students often struggle with new vocabulary in many courses, especially introductory ones. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">**Rule 7:** Treat students with respect. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">**Rule 8:** Hold students to a high standard. If students are not required to maintain a specified level of learning and performance, only the most highly motivated students will devote the time and effort necessary to learn.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">**Why students may be Unmotivated:**
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They all want to have their individual needs met. They want to feel like they are more than part of a crowd, that their individual talents and abilities are respected and deemed worthy
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They all want to have their individual needs met. They want to feel like they are more than part of a crowd, that their individual talents and abilities are respected and deemed worthy.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They want teachers who are //real// people, who recognize them as human beings -- teachers who care about them -- not just their test performance.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They want to be challenged, not decimated.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They want caretakers who check on them regularly, who support their individual learning, who inform them individually of their progress, and who assign a variety of tasks that give them the opportunity to learn in modes that fit their individual styles and that are designed to meet their level of learning.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They like teachers who talk at their level, who can joke and take a joke, and who let them talk and learn with other students.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">They like clear, complete explanations and concrete examples, thorough (but brief) explanations of difficult concepts, and opportunities to have their questions answered.