Mista Motivata!

“Lights, camera, action! Get ready for the all singin’, all dancin’ show of shows, the most entertaining…” Teaching can be a funny job, one where the serious aspects of curriculum and education meet the theatre and imagination of showbiz. Motivating students is a demanding and exhausting part of what we do, but whose job actually is it? For my own part, the creativity needed to produce imaginitive and interesting programmes is one of the most enjoyable parts of being a teacher. I get excited when introducing new activities and seeing the students’ enthusiasm at becoming immersed in discovery and learning. On the flip side, though, it can often feel as flat as a popped balloon when, despite my best efforts (clown makeup, dancing shoes etc.), I look onto a classroom of blank, expressionless faces that look as enthusiastic as a sloth in an unusually lazier mood than usual. On days like these I feel like the students forgot to pack their own motivation when they packed their recess and sandwiches that morning. And that can be the point, in the three-way partnership between student, home and school, who takes the lead in motivation? Is it the teacher, the parents or the students themselves? Whatever the answer is, I’ll carry on regardless and await my inevitable Oscar!

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