Motivation - Your Best Means of Communication

Lesson Plan #: AELP- INT0044

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An Educator's Reference Desk Lesson Plan
Author: Chris Schorr, Raton, NM

Date: 1997

Grade Level(s): 5, 6, 7, 8

Subject(s):

  • Interdisciplinary
Overview: Student motivation in middle schools seems to be at an all time low. Teachers struggle constantly to challenge students to strive for a higher level of performance often time with little success. Responsibility for ones performance is also a concern. Students seem to blame others for their inability to achieve satisfactory grades.

Purpose:

1. Challenge students to express their creativity in a medium that is comfortable, rewarding, attractive, and most importantly, nonthreatening.
2. Allow students to accept responsibility for their performance.

Objective: Students demonstrate understanding of the lesson taught, (book read) in the medium of their choice.

Activities and Procedures: After a lesson (chapter, unit, book read) has been presented, students demonstrate their understanding of the material in a variety of ways.

1. conventional test or book report
2. an artistic interpretation of material (individual or group) - poetry and illustrations or clay (or other medium) interpretation
3. theatrical presentation (short skit)
4. oral presentation and demonstration

When students complete their assignments, they will grade their projects based on the following criteria.

a. completeness 25 points
b. neatness 25 points
c. effort 25 points
d. accuracy 25 points

This is turned in to the teacher with the project. My personal choice is to not look at the students grade before I grade the project. The two grades are compared, discussed and then averaged for the final grade.

Tying It All Together: It has been my experience that this type of assignment gives students the flexibility they need to demonstrate their understanding of material presented in a way that better suits their abilities. Allowing students to express themselves in ways other than words often motivates them far beyond their own self-expectations. When the students have ownership in the grade achieved it often allows them to take responsibility for their performance.