14 Strategies to Motivate Your Child to Learn

Most students who are good learners weren’t born that way. Yes, individual personality plays a big part in a child’s motivation to learn and their overall disposition when it comes to schooling and education, but most children who are good learners had to work to become good learners. More importantly, any student, who possesses the basic aptitude and receives the right motivation, can become a good learner.

One of the worst things that teachers and parents can do when trying to create students and children who are good at learning is to only allow learning to happen in the classroom. The classroom will probably be the main place where instruction happens, but intellectual, social, and academic growth should happen outside of the classroom too if you want to make a child want and be able to learn more.

The tips and strategies below have been proven to motivate children to learn. If you use them correctly, your child or student will find learning to be enjoyable.

Why It’s Important to Make Learning Fun for Kids

How can we make school more engaging and interesting for students? One way is by making learning exciting. When teachers make learning exciting, students are more willing to participate and often find the lesson more memorable.

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1. Develop an atmosphere of reading

Some people argue that reading is the key to success in life. Developing a love of reading leads to a love of learning, and children who struggle with reading will struggle with learning.

Consequently, students who struggle with reading often experience difficulty in other areas as well. Reading helps children develop a richer vocabulary and learn how to process concepts and formal communication. The skills gained from reading extend to other subjects, including math and science. Students who struggle with reading often have difficulty in other areas as well.

By frequently reading to your child, you can help them develop reading skills and a love for reading. Try to set aside 20 minutes every day for family reading time, where everyone focuses on reading. You can also create a reading-friendly environment at home or in your classroom by filling it with reading materials like novels, posters, newspapers, and magazines. This will show your child how important reading is.

A good way to develop readers is by making reading fun, instead of frustrating. If a child finds reading boring or frustrating, they won’t want to do it and their ability to learn will be affected. Let children choose their own books to read, help them read, and do activities with them that make reading enjoyable.

2. Put your child in the driver’s seat as much as possible

Some kids only experience control when it comes to their education, which causes them to withdraw from learning. It’s important to guide children and let them have control of their own learning experience. To do this, provide children options. For example, when assigning a writing project, allow children to choose their topic to write about.

We recommend allowing children to choose their own extracurricular activities to help them become more engaged and motivated in their learning.

3. Encourage open and sincere communication

You should create an open atmosphere where the child feels comfortable expressing his opinion on his education, whether it be likes, dislikes, or concerns. It’s important to validate the child’s feelings, even if you don’t agree with them. If the child feels that his opinion doesn’t matter, he will disengage from the learning process. Good learners know that their opinion matters and feel reassured that they can express their opinion on their educational experience without judgement.

4. Focus on your child’s interests

Children learn best when they are engaged in areas and subjects that interest them. If you want to help your child become a good learner, encourage him to explore topics and subjects that fascinate him. If he likes dinosaurs, help him find engaging and interesting books and stories about dinosaurs. Then challenge him to identify his five favorite dinosaurs and explain why he chose each one.

Incorporate Hands-On Learning

Hands-on activities have been long used by teachers to make lessons more fun and engaging. These activities can be applied to almost any subject, from a preschool alphabet lesson to math, English and geography.

Active learning, or “hands-on learning,” gives students more control over their education. With this style of learning, students are encouraged to come up with original insights, which leads to a deeper level of understanding. Additionally, they can get direct feedback from instructors on their projects, which can help motivate them to do their best in class.

An assignment like an arts and crafts project that is focused on action is more meaningful to students and they will probably remember it better.

5. Introduce and encourage different types of learning styles

The learning styles that work best for each child vary depending on the way they learn best. Some children have a preferred learning style, while others learn best by using a combination of styles. There is no one correct way to learn, but identifying your child’s preferred learning style can help you implement techniques that will improve their learning.

There are seven fundamental learning styles: 1. Visual learners learn best by seeing how things work. 2. Auditory learners learn best by listening to things being explained. 3. Verbal learners learn best by reading and writing. 4. Physical learners learn best by doing things. 5. Logical (mathematical) learners learn best by understanding patterns and relationships. 6. Social learners learn best by working with others. 7. Solitary learners learn best by working alone. For young children, it’s beneficial to explore and employ different types of learning styles.

6. Share your enthusiasm for learning

If you’re enthusiastic about learning new things, your child or student is likely to become enthusiastic about learning too. Help them see that learning is an exciting journey of new discoveries. Show them the joy and excitement learning brings to your life, and they’ll be more enthusiastic about learning new things.

7. Make learning fun through game-based learning

Although game-based learning has been around for a while, it provides many advantages. Not only does it allow for deeper learning, but it also develops non-cognitive skills. Furthermore, children are motivated to learn when they are actively engaged in a game. This is the case for both entertainment games and more serious games.

Students tend to work harder when they are playing games because they are more engaged than they are in a normal classroom setting. The competitive nature of games also motivates students to perform at a higher level.

Incorporate Games

Games are a great way to get your students engaged in your lesson plan. They make learning more fun, from review time to memorization drills. Games don’t need to require a lot of prep time or expense, as there are thousands of free educational games online. Students will look forward to review days and other lessons with gamified elements.

8. Focus on what he’s learning, not his performance

Try asking your child about their day in math class instead of how they did on their latest test. It should help them realize that you prioritize their understanding and comprehension of the material over their grades. Good grades are still important, of course, but by focusing on their daily learning experiences, you can help them better remember and articulate what they’ve learned.

9. Help your child stay organized

You can help your child feel motivated to learn by helping them stay organized. It can be tough to stay organized at a young age, but it can also lead to feeling overwhelmed. If a child feels overwhelmed, they’ll spend more time being frustrated instead of learning. Be patient and consistent when helping your child organize school supplies and assignments. This will help them feel more in control and motivated to learn.

10. Recognize and celebrate achievements

It is important to celebrate your child’s accomplishments, no matter how small. This is especially important for elementary school children, who need constant positive reinforcement to stay motivated to learn and do their best. We’re not suggesting that you praise mediocrity, but that you recognize and celebrate your child’s accomplishments. Finishing a difficult project deserves a special treat; doing well on a math test could call for a trip to get ice cream. Always use positive reinforcement as your way to motivate learning with your child.

11. Break up Your Lessons

Although lectures are a common method of teaching, they are not the most effective way to engage young students. It is important to break up your lesson to add excitement and keep your students interested.

The author recommends that teachers break up their lessons with activities and mix up their teaching methods every day to help students pay attention.

12. Create Group Time

When students work together, they remember information better and for a longer time. Working together also helps students develop critical thinking and communication skills. Breaking up the routine by having students work in groups makes learning more enjoyable.

-Set a schedule and stick to it as much as possible -Have a clear goal or objective for the meeting -Start and end on time -Make sure everyone is on the same page -Don’t let people go off on tangents Here are a few tips to make group time more productive: – Having a set schedule to stick to – Having a clear goal or objective for the meeting – Making sure everyone is one the same page – Not letting people go off on tangents

Keep it short: Cap group time at five minutes to keep students focused on the task they need to accomplish. Once time runs out, call students back to discuss their takeaways and answer any questions they may have.
Assign roles: Give each student a role within their group. Students will know what to expect when group work begins, so they’ll be able to focus easier.
Provide sentence starters: Jumping into a group conversation with classmates can sometimes be awkward or intimidating. By providing the start of a sentence related to the topic, you’ll give students a jumping-off point to get the discussion started right away.

13. Get up and Move

Most elementary school children do not like to sit for long periods of time. It is beneficial for both you and your children to take periodic breaks and move around.

If your kids are struggling, give them a break or incorporate movement into your lesson to make it more fun and engaging. These breaks are a great way to give your students a quick two minutes of downtime.

Here are some effective teaching methods that will encourage kids to move around more.

Silent discussion boards: Put up poster papers around the room with questions written on them. Students can walk around the room and write their answers to the question on the paper before moving on to the next question.
Walking and talking: This method combines group work and movement to create an engaging setting for discussion. Students partner up and discuss the topic while moving around the classroom together.
Stations: Divide the room into several groups based on different tasks or questions related to the topic. Every few minutes, students will rotate to the next station and begin the next task. This method keeps them engaged and allows them to tackle the topic from multiple angles.

Offer your kids opportunities to move around often to keep them engaged and happy.

14. Be Open to Creativity

It is easy to teach from the same lesson plans every year, however it is important to remember that each year you have a new group of students with different interests. Mixing things up and being creative is the best way to ensure that learning is fun.

As a teacher, it is important to be open to your students’ creativity. You should allow your students to modify assignments and projects, as long as they run the changes by you first. You may find that their ideas give a unique twist to a lesson. Also, when students come up with something on their own, it is more meaningful to them and they can develop confidence in their decision-making skills.

If you want to mix things up in your classroom,try holding discussions. This can help students focus, improve their public speaking skills, and give you an idea of how well they understand the material. discussions work best in humanities or language classes, where there are lots of different possible answers, but you can try it with math and science topics, too.