Motivate Middle-Schoolers With Two Cool Classroom Tools
Posted on: 28 September 2018
If you want to give your students a new enthusiasm to learn, create an environment that is fun and educational. For middle-school students, usually fifth to eighth grades, this can be achieved through your choice of classroom décor and the images you surround your pupils with. Don't let kids become bored and unstimulated by their surroundings; instead, pump them up with educational accents and decorations that capture their attention and reinforce what they are learning.
Motivate middle-schoolers with cool classroom décor and make learning fun with these two educational tools:
Word Walls
There is nary a subject that cannot be conveyed or reinforced through the use of a word wall; the key is to utilize bright, distinctive decorations to adorn the wall and reiterate the material. Instead of cutting and making your own décor, buy images and letters on quality, laminated cardstock from educational vendors that can be used time and time again.
Use these ideas to create a word wall for your classroom:
- Demonstrate the life cycle of animals, organisms, or cells through a visual learning aid that makes it easier for students to grasp.
- Consider highlighting a list of words each week on your word wall and commending students who use these words appropriately throughout the week. Change the words regularly with word wall decorations; over time, you will notice your students looking for the new words.
- Word walls are an excellent tool when teaching a foreign language as it gives you a platform to display the word, an image representative of the word, and the translation.
You can find wall decorations for your word wall online widely and narrow your search to the age demographic that you are teaching. From vocabulary words and punctuation to math problems and algebraic formulas, there are unique wall décors that will create the perfect learning tool for your classroom.
Math Trees
A second way to provide some motivation to your students is with math trees; these are similar to word walls, but you use the outline or silhouette of a tree with branches that each carry arithmetic problems and answers that your students can match up. It may be helpful to keep the math questions on a tree on one wall and the correct answers on another tree for your students to consider, contemplate, and figure out during class time. You may choose to use recycled artificial holiday trees for a three-dimensional variation on this tool, and you can suspend the questions and answers with string or ornament hooks.
Give your classroom a makeover this semester with one of these middle school math classroom decoration ideas intended to stimulate and engage your middle-school students. Visit online resources to find wall decorations that reflect the lessons you teach, from math to vocabulary, and that are age-appropriate for your distinct group or setting. Create an environment that helps kids become excited about learning and that could enhance their skills through visual reinforcement in a fun environment.
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