Student Motivation Lesson Plans

Students are motivated to read and complete a project after reading.  In this reading lesson, students select a book from a favorite genre or subject and choose a project from a selection of activities to demonstrate their comprehension of the text. Students share their projects and are graded.

Students demonstrate their understanding of the material being taught in a variety of ways.

Third graders read The Hundred Penny Box and complete comprehension activities. In these perspectives and letter writing lessons, 3rd graders read and discuss the story then complete a Venn Diagram to explore the different viewpoints in the story. Students also write a persuasive letter to one character from the story. 

Students interview each other and their parents to examine why and when writers write and where published authors get their ideas. They complete a class T-chart, fill-out an interview worksheet, and read and discuss a variety of book flaps about different authors. As a culminating activity, they read the book "Amelia's Notebook," and decorate their own idea notebook.

Second graders explore media and advertising; discuss how music is used in advertising; examine and compare different commercials; do a taste test between name-brand and store-brand cereals; and create a commercial to sell a product.

Students react to a series of statements about elephants, then read a news article about how workers at an elephant orphanage are working to return the animals to the wild. In the animal studies and current events instructional activity, the teacher introduces the article with a class vote and a vocabulary activity, then students read the news report and participate in a class discussion. Lesson includes interdisciplinary follow-up activities.

Fourth graders learn the steps that must be followed in order to have an election. This is a great way to get students motivated to be involved in the election process.

Students examine excerpts of Thomas Paine's Common Sense. In this early American history lesson, students read Paine's pamphlet and analyze the information according the rubric provided.

Fifth graders, after discussing the teacher's handout examples, practice writing five story problems about mammals using relevant/irrelevant information. As a class, they solve the story problems while identifying the key concepts that make each story problem relevant/irrelevant .

Students demonstrate how to write about travel experiences. In this narrative writing lesson, students discuss what the purpose of postcards are and any personal experiences they have had with writing a postcard. Students observe the instructor write a model postcard and decide on a city from which to write a mock postcard.