7 Sentence Stems that Strengthen Student Motivation

I had a request the other day to write a post on motivating kids at the end of the year in preparation for end of year testing.  While I felt honored that my thoughts meant so much, I thought to myself, “How would I motivate my kids at the end of the year?”  “What would I say?”  “What would I do?”

As I pondered these questions, the only word that came to mind was sincerity. Sure at the end of year, we can do the group motivation strategies, such as pep rallies and assemblies. We could give out motivational trinkets and gifts. We can also feed them, and that also makes all kids feel really good. But I remind myself what motivates kids more than anything is a meaningful relationship, and what builds relationships more than anything are sincere words of appreciation and praise. 

7 Sentence Stems to Motivate All Kids...

In addition to all of the positive things we do for kids, they need to hear, see and feel our belief in them. To help strengthen student motivation, I have included these 7 Sentence Stems for educators to use when finding the right words to use to praise their students.

• I really appreciate how much you have (describe behavior or attribute that led to growth)...
• At the beginning of the year, you (insert deficiency), but now you have (insert strength).
• I like how much you have grown at...
• The best thing about your work ethic is...
• Don’t forget that you are most successful when you (insert attribute or strategy)
• I have seen your best work when you (insert best work ethic)...
• I am so proud of you this year because (insert best example of overcoming odds)...

Everyone loves a pep rally or group motivator, but those things lose their effect with each passing day.  Extrinsic motivators work temporarily, but intrinsic motivation works much longer. Kids won’t always remember what you taught them, but they will remember what you said and will always remember how you made them feel. If we want all kids to be intrinsically motivated, we must commit to saying personal words to students that will penetrate their hearts in a positive and ultimately productive manner. 

Best of luck as you finish the year strong. 

Finding the True Winner's Mentality

At the Masters, the world witnessed arguably one of the greatest personal and professional comebacks in sports history.  When Tiger Woods sank the putt on 18 to seal his first victory at the Masters after an 11 year major victory drought, he didn't tell his caddy, "I won".  He jumped for joy as he screamed, "We Won!!!".  In this individual sport, one of the greatest golfers in history didn't take all the credit or even a majority of the credit.  He shared it with his caddy, who in reality was his teammate, friend, and coach.

In a sport that’s individualized like golf, @TigerWoods telling his caddy “WE DID IT!” Not “I did it”.

“I Guys” don’t win. Simple as that. pic.twitter.com/SBOef78oAS

— John LaCorte (@CoachLaCorte) April 15, 2019

Do you have the 'I Win' or 'We Win' mentality?  
As the leader, are you the only one winning?  We must remind ourselves that our success is rarely accomplished in isolation because we never really win anything for ourselves.  No matter how big or small the role, people in every facet of our organization are contributing to our collective win, either with their encouragement, their advice, their talent, or even by sharing their expertise with us.

So the next time you win, answer this question.  Who will share your victory with?  How much of the credit will you take?  Will you predominantly use the pronoun, I, or will you make darn sure that the word, We, comes out of your mouth more than any other?  In the game of organizational improvement, there is no I in the team.  The leader must bring forward the strengths of everyone and that only happens when we intentionally recognize everyone's contribution to the team's success and take little to no credit for ourselves.  After all, the leader is the coach and not the players who do the real work that ensures that the team wins the game as a collective unit.

The Easter Reset Button.

Easter is here and the story of the resurrection is the most powerful story in the history of mankind. The most gruesome death is followed by the most amazing victory. Life defeats death. Love conquers all. What inspires me the most about this story is how one person could take so much punishment for me and you, and then conquer death in the end, so that we could all have life. It is the epic comeback story that saves us all.

So here’s a question for you. 

Where’s your resurrection?  

I mean if we’re honest, you and I have experienced some challenges and perhaps some pretty bad things in life. We’ve experienced some the elements of crucifixion, such as being denied, rejected, and rebuked. We have been attacked or hung out to dry. Yet in spite of all of that, we are still here. With all that has happened to you, have you risen from it all to a better place?

Is your leadership lacking?  Do you feel down trodden with your work? Do you feel like things are just not going your way?  Do you ever feel like you wish you could just push the reset button?

Push the Reset Button!

The reality is that Easter is our reminder that we can overcome anything. We can hit the reset button! We can be renewed, and we can recommit to our ultimate mission. The reset button is there for us everyday and we can push it as much as we like, because the resurrection is our reminder to reset our lives with Him. 

All we have to do is reach out to God, ask Him for forgiveness, accept Him in our lives, and recommit our works and words to fulfill His glory. Because He lives, we are saved, but we aren’t saved until we invite Him to live in our thoughts, in our hearts, and in our actions. Hit the reset button. The world and your soul will thank you for it. 

Happy Easter!

You Are What You Perceive.

Have you ever heard the statement, "The camera adds 10 pounds"?  The video below and the article with it illustrates why this phrase is true in our minds.  We are what we perceive.

So why is perception so important? 

Well our kids are what they perceive they are.  Perception is self-fulfilled prophecy, and it is their

reality in the making.   If kid feel they are weak, they will be weak, but if they have a strong sense of efficacy, they will be strong and ultimately successful.

The point is this. Motivation adds 10 more points on the test.  Believing in yourself will make your time faster, your execution more precise, and your overall success even higher.  What kids believe is what they will achieve.

Our job as school leaders and teachers is to create the conditions that foster motivation in every child and every adult.  If a culture of motivation is strong, performance will no doubt mirror the perception in the minds within that culture.

How Much Do You Love Your School? #LoveMySchoolDay

The 6th year of #LoveMySchoolDay is coming up on Thursday, April 11, and I am excited to see once again all of the wonderful stories of how awesome your school is.   Each year, the hashtag inspires educators and friends of education around the world to believe in the transformational power of education.   To kick this yearly event off, I have a quick question for you.

Just How Much do you Love your School?

The reason that I ask this is simple.  Some love our schools to a point, and that point defines how much we are willing to take a stand for the people inside that school.  If we like our school, then we are just fond of it.  We respect the leaders and associates who we work with in a safe manner, but we may not go far enough to say that we love the school.

If We Love our Schools, Let's Stand Up for Them.
That means that while we know that not everything is perfect inside our school, we sacrifice for our school.  We take a stand when others would remain silent.  We acknowledge the fact that like every other organization, we don't always do everything right, but we also don't sit there while the critics on the sidelines use our shortcomings and mishaps as weapons to attack the school.  We do this because we believe in the progress that we are making to educate all students.

The Bottom Line is This.

No one will ever know just how much we love our schools until the educators inside them tell people
outside the school just how much they love what they do, the students they do it for, and the colleagues they do it with.  #LoveMySchoolDay is our choice to take our stand, to raise our collective voice, and to join educators around the world who also love their schools in telling the real stories.  Schools don't exist to merely teach kids; schools are designed to transform communities, states, and nations by shaping both the young and adult minds within them. 

At the end of the day, when we actively demonstrate our love for our schools, schools have the potential and the needed support to instill faith, hope and love in all of our students, of which the greatest of these three is love.  (1 Cor 13:13)  I hope to see your story on April 11, and I look forward to inspiring the world with you as we unite to tell the world just how much we love our schools.

The Difference between Expectations and Nonnegotiables

Nonnegotiables... things not up for discussion. Obviously, they’re not up for discussion. They are not negotiable. Or are they???

Leaders set expectations, but expectations aren’t nonnegotiables until the failure to meet those expectations is called to account until they are met. Have you ever had a leader expect something that you knew they were not going to follow up on?  If we’re honest, the answer is obvious. The challenge in all of this is creating expectations that we can guarantee. 

• Plan for Accountability - The first step to turning expectations into nonnegotiables is to make plan of how those expectations will be monitored and responded to if not met. 
• Time to Monitor - If expectations are importer. Enough to assign, they are important enough to dedicate time to see if they are being met. 
• Systems of Support - If they are not being met due to lack of skill, leaders must proactively provide a system of supports to help people meet the expectations. 
• Confidence to Confront - If expectations are not met due to lack of will, leaders must demonstrate courage and commitment to both the expectations and the organization by addressing the person and their lack of will. 

Expectations without a plan to guarantee them are nothing more than a leader’s aspirations. Nonnegotiables are expectations accompanied by a plan to guarantee their success. The difference between expectations and nonnegotiables is essentially a leader’s determination to see then through. The question weleaders must ask ourselves is if we have the grit and determination to see them to fruition. 

Those, Who Can, Teach

It has always been most frustrating listening to someone who has never taught a day in their life make the following statement.

Those, who can, do, and those, who can’t, teach. 

This statement could not be more inaccurate and more insulting to the tremendous people who commit their lives to serving children. Here’s the deal; the statement above is completely false. Teachers don’t know the word, can’t. You know why? It’s because they don’t like failure at all, and they like excuses even less. Furthermore, teachers can and they do make a difference because they take full responsibility for every student that walks through their doors regardless of issue, background, disability or zip code. Teachers do what few can do. 

For those who truly don’t understand what it takes to be in the profession, let me ask you a few questions. 

• Can you motivate and inspire 25 students for 6 hours per day every day?
• Can you teach kids while also serving as their mother, father, counselor, friend, and sounding board?
• Can you prepare every student to perform successfully under the highest standards in the history of education?
• Can you ensure that all, not some, kids learn and grow?
• Can you do all that even as funding dissipates, benefits erode and retirement looks less and less solvent?

Are you getting my point???

Teachers are the lifeblood of our democracy. Better yet, they hold the future of our democracy in their hands, but here’s the real story. They can and they do all of this without the full support they deserve. 

So What Can We Do?

In this time, we can advocate to our legislators the critical importance of legislating on behalf of all teachers and the education profession as a whole. We can persuade legislators to take meaningful action on their behalf, not just in funding, retirement, and accountability, but also in restoring respect and reverence for the profession. 

Those, who can, teach, and they do it everyday. The question is whether we can and will do more to restore respect and reverence to the profession, so that teachers can do even more for all kids.