In my opinion, students need positive rewards now more than ever! Surely, you can make an argument about intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation…. but that’s for another blog post. All I know is that I love my job, but I wouldn’t work for free! So, with that said, how can we motivate students to do the things that we as teachers need them to do in a positive way… including their mental and physical wellbeing ?

1. Stickers, Small Toys, Pens Etc.

• Every year my students fall in love with something. Examples include pop it toys and Jibbitz. At the start of the year, I send out a teacher wish list from Amazon to parents, friends and family who love to support. I am not a fan of spending my own money, so you cannot be afraid to ask!

2. Physical Activity

• At my school, I have provided all grade levels with an equipment bag. During Physical Education class, I am not advocating for “Free Friday”. However, allowing students to pick a favorite activity or stations seems logical to me. Its free, its easy and it drives home the point that exercise, and physical activity are a reward!

3. Ticket System or Point System

• The idea here would be to reward students for behavior we want to see with some type of ticket or points. I have seen teachers use the system as a raffle. Each ticket a student gets enters them to win a prize. At my school, we use the PBIS system that tracks points. Each teacher as a class store that students can buy items from.

4. Positive Phone Calls Home

• Not only can this motivate students, but this can also be a great way to build relationships with parents. Can finding the time to do this be difficult, of course. However, I have noticed this is particularly impactful for the students who do not receive much positive attention throughout the school day.

5. Get Creative

• When I was teaching online during 2020, finding creative rewards was a necessity. I did things like if enough students turn their cameras on or complete an activity, I would have my partner “shove shaving cream in my face”, try a backflip, or show your pets day. Not that you have to do any of these things, point is there are creative ways to get students motivated.

Teachers are amazing at finding creative ways to motivate students to do something! However, I would like to make the point because it easy or “kids love it” do not mean it’s the best tool for their health and wellness. When picking a reward, I try to think: will this reward impact other teachers classrooms? Does this impact students relationship with food? Will this help or hinder the students focus for the rest of the day. I would like to challenge you to make sure your students are getting rewards in a healthy way!

This microblog post was a featured post in #slowchathealth’s #microblogmonth event. You can search for all of the featured posts here. Please do follow each of the outstanding contributors on social media (including Adam Mullis, the author of this post) and consider writing a microblog post of your own to be shared with the global audience of slowchathealth.com

Pair this blog post with the following:

Positive Phone Calls Home by Mike Chamberlain

How to Sustain a Culture of Health and Wellness at your School by Adam Mullis

No More Cupcakes for Birthday Parties? by Jess Lawrence

Empower Student Leaders by Erin Hiltbrand Hall

Have you read the latest Book of the Month recommendation?