17 Ideas to Motivate Students

Every teacher has seen it — the incredible drive and the resulting accomplishments of a motivated student. Motivation, whether the student is self-motivating or whether you are encouraging it, is more than a powerful emotion — it is a behavior and a characteristic that helps mature students and propel them to success.

As a teacher, you have the privilege of being able to encourage and inspire motivation and to give your students the tools they need to hone a motivated mindset intrinsically. Of course, developing good characteristics can be a monumental task that requires patience, discipline and input from you and your students!

These 17 ideas will show you how to motivate students in the classroom and beyond by providing you with fun tips and practical methods.

The Importance of Motivation in Learning

Motivation is pivotal in how well your students perform in and out of the classroom. A student can be academically adept but may have low grades due to a lack of motivation. On the other hand, another student may not have the strongest skill set but can grow and excel simply because they keep themselves motivated.

Consider these vital aspects that motivation impacts to drive home how essential it is to a student’s education:

• Goal-setting
• Socializing
• Developing interests
• Honing skills and talents
• Achieving goals
• Finding meaning and purpose in studies and self
• Growing in confidence

Low motivation can potentially affect all these elements of learning, school interactions and home life, so it’s vital to encourage habits that help students stay motivated!

17 Ideas to Motivate Students in the Classroom

Wondering how to motivate students in the classroom? Look no further! These 17 ideas show practical and effective ways to inspire and encourage your students.

1. Decorate Your Classroom

Having a vibrant classroom is an instant way to motivate your students. The sky is the limit when decorating your classroom — it can be as easy or elaborate as you want.

You can have anything from seasonal calendars to vivid motivational posters that encourage your students. You may find that your decor brightens up your classroom and also serves more than one purpose. In a biology class, for example, a decorative anatomy set also serves as an educational reference tool.

And while you are busy decorating, why not take the time to organize your classroom, too? Decluttering is an excellent way to motivate your students. An organized classroom environment is conducive to learning as you eliminate distractions and make it easier for learners to access valuable resources.

2. Change up the Scenery

If and when you can, create the opportunity to learn outside the classroom. Can you take your lesson outside for 30 minutes? Go for it! A simple change of scenery can shift your students’ outlook and boost their well-being and mood. That’s not even to mention the amazing health benefits of being outside — including improved focus and alertness.

The fun part is finding other ways to change scenery when you can’t head outside. You can change your posters or your theme to create a positive change in the environment that is sure to motivate your learners.

3. Use Interactive Resources

The more engaged students are, the more motivated they will feel. An easy way to compel students to engage is to use interactive resources. You can incorporate anything from video lessons to educational posters and props. Other great ways you can make your lessons more interactive — especially if you don’t have teaching aids — include:

• Encouraging student participation by regularly asking questions that stimulate responses and prompt discussions.
• Letting students work in groups so they engage one another regarding the coursework.
• Breaking up your lessons into different segments — giving your students time for listening, brainstorming, sharing opinions and asking and answering questions.

4. Praise Your Students

There is almost nothing as motivating as hearing that you are recognized, that you are capable and that you are appreciated. While you may want to give praise around every turn, recognition is most effective when it’s earned. It shows students that your praise is not empty — it means something and shows that you notice when they put in the extra effort and that you appreciate it.

5. Keep Track of Progress

Help your students visualize their progress by keeping track of their hard work and their goals. Students don’t always realize just how far they have come or just how close they are to achieving their academic goals. But when you track their progress, it gives them a clear visual that is very motivating. Tracking various aspects of a student’s progress gives you a more holistic overview of their achievements:

• Attendance records
• Quiz and exam and standardized test scores
• Behavioral growth
• Assignment completion

To add to the value of tracking your students’ progress, look for creative ways to chart their achievements and make them accessible to your students.

6. Give Your Students Choice and Control

You may be surprised at how effective giving your students a sense of control can be. Students are immediately engaged when they have a degree of decision-making over what happens in the classroom. When you give your students a sense of control they are motivated to participate in their own choices. Allowing your students to have a degree of control also shows them that you trust them to take initiative and trust them with the responsibility of decision-making.

You can give your students choice and a sense of control by:

• Giving them a choice of assignments.
• Allow them to vote on which activities to do.
• Letting them choose the books they read.
• And letting them share feedback on courses and your teaching methods.

7. Give Your Students Responsibilities

Responsibilities go hand in hand with choice and control. Giving your students the freedom to choose is motivating, but so is handling the responsibilities that are part and parcel. But it also goes beyond stewarding their freedom — nothing can stifle motivation quite like being micromanaged!

By assigning duties, your students learn how to manage their own tasks and that helps foster intrinsic motivation. Allocate various activities that your students are responsible for and share those tasks clearly. A few ideas include:

• Arriving to class on time.
• Having a good attendance record.
• Being prepared for lessons.
• Completing assignments on time.
• Packing up resources and keeping the classroom clean.
• Feeding the class pet or keeping the classroom plant alive.

You can also delegate tasks like handing out resources and draw up a roster that gives everyone a turn.

8. Create a Safe Learning Environment

Creating a safe classroom environment may be the most beneficial thing you can do for your students’ motivation and well-being. When students feel secure in the classroom, it becomes easier to also feel confident and look forward to their day.

Confident students are more motivated and feel that they have the support and security they need to go after their goals and excel in their academics, sports and other extracurriculars. You can create a safe classroom environment by letting your students know that they belong, giving them space to be themselves, offering support and encouragement and keeping your classroom free of bullying.

9. Set Clear Learning Goals

Your students will only find motivation to achieve their goals if they can have a crystal-clear understanding of what those are. Students who have trouble getting the results they want, managing their time and missing deadlines can all benefit from setting goals. Goal-setting is a positive practice that can drive students to achieve what they set their minds on. And when your students do reach their goals, they enjoy a boost of confidence that further flames their enthusiasm and catapults them to further success.

10. Provide Opportunities for Hands-On Learning

Offering hands-on learning experiences is an easy way to get students feeling motivated. Hands-on activities help students to engage instantly — and to stay engaged as they focus on the task at hand. Students also get to see the fruits of the efforts when they work hands-on. Explore different ways to involve students in projects in various subjects. Art projects are always engaging and you can also do biology and science projects, puzzles, writing activities and add your own educational spin on popular board games.

11. Encourage Collaborative Work

Another simple yet effective way to engage students and build motivation is by promoting teamwork. Group settings give your students space work collaboratively — a life skill that will serve your students well beyond school.

When students work in a team, they:

• Learn to break down complex tasks.
• Improve their communication skills.
• Delegate and take on responsibilities.
• Share their knowledge and ideas.
• Learn new perspectives.
• Give and receive support and praise in a social setting.

The skills students gain from teamwork keep students motivated as they work toward a common goal.

12. Foster Healthy Competition

There is something about competing that drives students to do their best — but only when competition is fostered and expressed healthily. Fun, friendly competition can be highly motivating and help students who are unsure of themselves to go for the prize. You can set up silly rewards for everyone who participates to keep things even. Always remind your students that the motivation behind competition is to better yourself — never to put others down. By promoting competition in a positive environment, all your students get to develop intrinsic motivation.

13. Be Enthusiastic in Your Teaching

One of the best ways to motivate your students is to be a role model of motivation. Learning from an enthusiastic teacher who is excited about their subject and loves teaching is one of the most inspiring experiences a student can have. And enthusiasm can be infectious! Continuously displaying joy in what you are doing can motivate your students to feel and do the same.

14. Get to Know Your Students

A simple way to motivate your students effectively is by getting to know them. When you know who your students are, you have a better understanding of how you can motivate the individual. For some students, social activities and friendly competition may encourage them. For other students, they need to be hands-on and in control of their way of working to feel motivated. Discovering what works best for your students and your classroom as a whole will make your task to inspire and drive your students easier.

15. Offer Collective Rewards

Motivate your entire class by offering rewards and incentives! Collective rewards are especially effective. For example, you can tell your class that if everyone hands in their assignments by the due date, the entire class enjoys a free period or if the class works together to clean up, they can choose their next activity. Collective incentives motivate your students to work toward the same goal and enjoy the reward together.

16. Offer Authentic Support

Anyone would find it challenging to feel motivated if they felt alone and unsupported. Help your students find motivation by offering genuine support in the following ways:

• Offer resources that help students build social skills
• Provide helpful and individualized feedback
• Acknowledge a student’s individual needs and address their unique challenges
• Let students know that they are always welcome to come to you for help regarding schoolwork or personal struggles

However, if you do open yourself up to supporting students through personal challenges, be wise in how you handle it. You can offer some guidance, but there are some situations where it’s best to acknowledge your student’s obstacles, offer encouragement and then refer them to the school counselor who is equipped to deal with their circumstances.

17. Set Your Students up for Success

How motivation works is quite interesting — motivation can lead to success and success leads to more motivation. For some students, the path isn’t that straightforward though. Various strategies may not work if a student is truly struggling in an area and attempts to motivate them in the face of their challenges may not be fruitful. But if you can play to the learner’s strengths and set them up for success, the motivation to do better in other areas of schoolwork can easily follow.

The Benefits of Motivation in the Classroom

Far from being a buzzword — and far from being a trend — motivation is a powerful trait that reaps many benefits in the classroom: Motivation helps your students:

• Change their behavior and habits into healthy ones.
• Develop their natural talents.
• Set and accomplish goals.
• Acquire new interests and skills.
• Feel more equipped to deal with challenges in their schoolwork.
• Develop important social skills.
• Become more involved in their studies, sports and hobbies.
• Develop other important characteristics like confidence and leadership.

Motivate Your Students With Resources From The Classroom Store

Motivation plays an important part in the classroom, but encouraging your students takes some thought and the right resources. At The Classroom Store, we have you covered! We have a massive selection of classroom resources that you can use to inspire your students.

Whether you want to motivate your students with fun decorations or engage them with arts and crafts or other materials, you are bound to find what you need at our convenient one-stop online store.  As your classroom partner, we strive to provide teachers with an extensive range of education tools and resources that transform your classroom into a positive and productive learning environment.

Browse our top-quality classroom products today, contact us online or phone us at 844-818-5966 to learn more about how we can be your trusted classroom partner!