8 Tips to Keep Students Motivated Through the End of the School Year
The weather is warming, the end of the semester is near, and your students are getting antsy for summer vacation. Getting all your students focused, eager, and on task at the beginning of the school year is challenging enough, but it can be near impossible as summer approaches. There is no cure for spring fever, but here are 8 tips to keep students motivated through the end of the school year.
1. Get them outside - Take advantage of the better weather and take the class outside for lessons. Offer students an extra recess as an incentive. When it is earned, go outside and play a rousing game of kickball.
2. Challenge Them to Personal Best – Encourage your students to beat their personal best on assignments. Reward them when they do, even if it’s just a piece of candy.
3. Friendly Competitions – Challenge your students to beat each other in friendly competitions.
4. Mix up Teaching Styles – To break things up a bit, use this time to experiment a bit with other teaching styles. Let students teach each other, do group work or team up with another classroom to keep things exciting.
5. Allow Breaks – Turn on some music and have a short dance party. A thirty second break every now and then is preferable to a loss of thirty minutes caused by distractions and boredom.
6. Take Time to Reflect – The end of the school year is the time for reflection. Have students complete a survey that asks them how they felt about each unit or activity. Their feedback can help you plan for next year.
7. Preview Next Year – This is a good time to start previewing the curriculum for the upcoming grade. Kids will be surprised to know that they already know a lot of the material.
8. Assign a Fun Project – Allow students to do a project with a creative presentation on a topic that they choose. Keep students engaged by capitalizing on their interests.
These last few weeks of school can be challenging, and it is understandable that both students and teachers would be tempted to "slack-off" a bit. If you follow our tips to keep your students motivated through the end of the school year, you’ll be sure to stay energized and finish the year strong.
- SBD, Inc.