One of the most difficult aspects of becoming a teacher is learning how to motivate your students. It is also one of the most important. Pupils who are not motivated will not learn effectively. They won’t retain information, they won’t participate and some of them may even become disruptive. A student can be unmotivated for an array of reasons. For instance, they may simply feel that they have no interest in the subject, or they find the teachers methods boring. Some may simply be preoccupied by external distractions.

When it comes to motivating students there is no one-size-fits-all approach. As individuals we are all different, therefore we are all motivated by different things. Some students are self-motivated with an innate love of learning. Some students are motivated by extrinsic factors such as their parent’s expectations, or the knowledge that they will earn a place on a particular course if they work hard.

Other students are motivated by a desire to avoid failure and will often do what it takes to pass an exam or course, but they won’t choose to go beyond the minimum required as a consequence of their fear of failure. Nonetheless, even students lacking that natural drive can be inspired by a good teacher. This involves making learning fun and encouraging students to reach their full potential.

To understand what the best methods for motivating students are, it is important to know how motivation in the classroom works. James Middleton, Joan Littlefield, and Rich Lehrer have proposed the following model of academic motivation.

First, given the opportunity to engage in a learning activity a student determines if the activity is one that is known to be interesting. If so, the student engages in the activity. If not, then the student evaluates the activity on two factors – the stimulation (e.g. challenge, curiosity, fantasy) it provides and the personal control (e.g. free choice, not too difficult) it affords.

If the student perceives the activity as stimulating and controllable, then the student tentatively labels the activity as interesting and engages in it. If either condition becomes insufficient, then the student disengages from the activity, unless some extrinsic motivator influences the student to continue.

If the activity is repeatedly deemed stimulating and controllable then the student may deem the activity interesting. As such, the student will be more likely to engage with the activity in the future.

If over time activities that are deemed interesting provide little stimulation or control, then the student will remove the activity from his or her mental list of interesting activities.

Based on this model, one of the main challenges for teachers is providing learning activities that are both stimulating and offer students a degree of personal control.

Here are a few more ideas of how teachers can motivate their students:

Get to know your students on a personal level. This will allow you to understand what stimulates them and what they struggle with. Taking a personal interest in students learning will help inspire them to work hard. Moreover, it will create mutual respect between you and your class and minimise the likelihood of classroom disruption.

Give students as much control over their own education as possible. Let students choose paper and project topics that interest them. Assess them in a variety of ways, whether its tests, papers, projects or presentations. This gives students more control over how they show their understanding to you.

Be free with your praise and constructive in your criticism. Negative comments should relate to particular performances, not the individual themselves. Offer non-judgmental feedback on students’ work, stress opportunities to improve and avoid dividing students into sheep and goats.

Do something different. For instance, why not write personalised uplifting messages across your student’s desks in the aim to give them a boost of confidence before an exam. Gestures such as this can help to demonstrate that you genuinely care about the success of your students. You will then become an extrinsic motivator for them as they won’t want to feel as though they have let you down if they don’t work towards achieving their full potential.

George Orwell’s political fable Animal Farm has been voted the nation’s favourite ever school book in new research commissioned for International Children’s Book Day 2021.

The study, conducted by Oxford Home Schooling, asked 2,000 of the nation’s adults which books they most enjoyed reading when they were at school, with Orwell’s classic picked by 25% of respondents. 1984 also came in fourth place.

In second place was Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol with 21% of the vote, followed by John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men (19%).

Orwell and Dickens both appear twice in the top 10, as does William Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet is the UK’s favourite play by The Bard, ahead of Macbeth.

The majority of the most popular books were written in the 1900s, with just three publications from the 21st century making the top 40. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, a Holocaust Novel written by John Boyne was the highest rated work from this millennium (published in 2006).

The UK’s top 10 favourite school books are:

1. Animal Farm (George Orwell)
2. A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens)
3. Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck)
4. 1984 (George Orwell)
5. Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare)
6. To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
7. Great Expectations (Charles Dickens)
8. Macbeth (William Shakespeare)
9. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë)
10. Lord of the Flies (William Golding)

Greg Smith, Head of Operations at Oxford Home Schooling, said: “The books we read at school can affect our general interest in reading in later life, so it’s really important that people enjoy the novels given to them.

“Animal Farm is an incredibly powerful story and it’s not surprising to see that people remember it fondly. It also topped our rankings when we ran this study five years ago, showing that its popularity is enduring.

“However, it’s also interesting to see other works creep up towards the top of the lists. We’ll have to see whether Orwell can complete a hat-trick in years to come, or whether a new favourite will emerge!”

Boris Johnson’s government is considering extending its schools breakfast programme beyond the current deadline of July, the children’s ministers has confirmed.

Funded by the Department for Education, the programme aims to support children in disadvantaged communities by providing access to free healthy breakfasts during the on-going Covid-19 pandemic.

Vicky Ford confirmed that the government is “considering options” when pressed on the issue by Labour’s Emma Lewell-Buck in the House of Commons yesterday.

Lewell-Buck, MP for South Shields, asked: “The Government’s current school breakfast programme only provides for 7% of schools that meet the Government’s deprivation criteria and it ends in July.

“Pre-pandemic, up to two million children were starting their school day without a breakfast.

“My School Breakfast Bill would extend and scale up provision via funds from the soft drinks levy – please can she ask the Chancellor to implement my Bill and get breakfast in the Budget?”

In response, Ms Ford said: I completely agree that a healthy and nutritious breakfast sets a child up for a learning day. We have extended the programme until July of this year and are considering options for breakfast provision beyond that date.

“We are engaging with the market to help develop those options and we expect to be able to say more very soon.”

The school’s breakfasts programme was revised in Autumn 2020 to ensure that more disadvantaged pupils, across both primary and secondary schools, have access to a free and nutritious breakfast.

Schools are offered breakfast delivery grants and deliveries of healthy food to ensure all children who need it can access breakfast, at home or at school.

The programme is run by Family Action and Magic Breakfast, two UK based charities focused on providing practical, emotional and financial support to those who are experiencing poverty, disadvantage and social isolation across the country.

Pancake Day in the UK is also known as Shrove Tuesday and is celebrated as Carnival and Mardi Gras elsewhere in the world.

Traditionally, Shrove Tuesday was seen as the last opportunity to use up eggs and fats before embarking on the Lenten fast and pancakes were viewed as the perfect way to use up these ingredients.

This year Pancake Day falls on 16th February 2021 – just over one week away!

Get involved

We know that it can be really difficult to find new things for children to do during the current lockdown restrictions, which is why pancake day presents a great opportunity to do something fun and different as a family!

That why we’ve put together a really simple guide to help you get involved. All you need to do is follow the five-steps below and you’ll become experts in creating the perfect pancake.

Five steps to make the perfect pancake

What you’ll need
To make eight or so pancakes you will need 8oz plain flour, two large eggs and one pint of milk.

Step One
Mix all of the ingredients together and whisk well.

Step Two
Leave to stand for 30 minutes.

Step Three
Heat a little oil in a frying pan, pour in enough batter to cover the base of the pan and let it cook until the base of the pancake has browned

Step Four
Shake the pan to loosen the pancake and flip it over to brown the other side.

Step Five
Satisfy your sweet tooth by topping your pancakes with sugar, lemon or syrup, or perhaps buck the trend and go for often overlooked savoury favourites like classic cheese and ham. The choice is endless…

‘If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book.’ J.K. Rowling.

One of the most important aspects of a child’s early academic development revolves around reading. Many studies show that reading for pleasure makes a big difference to children’s educational performance as it improves their vocabulary, understanding, communication and logical thinking skills.

The national curriculum states that schools must teach students about reading in two stages. The first stage involves learning the sounds of letters and the pronunciation of words. This is usually achieved in the early stages of their school life. The second stage involves teaching children about the different forms of literature such as fiction, non-fictional stories and poems.

However, it is thought that many students distance themselves from reading due to the choice of literature available to them at school. This can have a detrimental effect on a student’s development, causing them to miss out on vital information they would be exposed to if they were motivated to read.

Here we provide a few of our own suggestions on how schools can introduce a wider variety of reading and literature to its pupil:

Allow students to pick their own reading material: Students will have increased motivation to read if they are reading something that interests them. This can have a positive impact on a pupil’s academic performance as they are more likely to retain information and develop the skills reading promotes if they are hooked on the book in front of them.

Implement ‘reading for pleasure’ sessions: Reading can be relaxing for students when they are reading a form of literature that they enjoy. Non-fictional books can help children use their imagination and transverse into a world of fantasy, allowing their minds to wander and escape issues they could be facing in the real world.

Hold after-school book clubs: People who choose to attend book clubs will share the same passion for reading. This will allow students to discuss and share their enjoyment of certain texts with one another. This can lead to a greater social experience and allow students to build new relationships and make new friends.

The last few days of school before the Christmas break can be an exciting time for young children, and many will start to lose focus as the last week of term approaches. For teachers it can be difficult to harness all that excitement and maintain your student’s concentration and willingness to learn.

That’s why we’ve come up with a few fun Christmas themed lessons (which require minimal preparation) that should help to keep your primary school pupils engaged right up to the break.

Creating Christmas cards

Creating Christmas cards is a great activity to give children that festive feeling. From button baubles to fingerprint reindeer, this arts and crafts themed lesson allows your pupils to be creative and show offer their artistic flair. They also make great classroom decorations and your students’ parents will love them!

Christmas writing

Christmas themed poems, stories or letters are a great way to improve your students writing and English language skills. It also allows them to use their imagination and be creative. For instance, you could ask children to pretend they are one of Santa’s elves and write a journal entry about their day, or to write a persuasive letter to Santa arguing why they should be on the nice list.

Christmas singalong

Why not try a festive singalong with your class? Its inclusive, allows the children to express themselves and have fun. Plus, learning new songs is great for vocabulary retention.

The hugely popular Educating Greater Manchester has returned to television screens across the UK.

It is the fifth series of the BAFTA award-winning British documentary Educating, broadcast on Channel 4. The documentary follows previous instalments in the Educating series including Educating Essex, Yorkshire, East End and Cardiff. The fifth series was filmed at Harrop Fold School in Little Hulton, Salford.

The new 2020 series revisited Salford for a second time – the first time the Educating series has returned to the same school.

Filmed as a fly-on-the-wall documentary, the series provides a warm and honest exploration of what life’s like for students and their teachers at Harrop Fold, a secondary school at the heart of a changing community on the outskirts of Manchester.

The programme was filmed continuously across the 2018 school year, before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and provides a closer look at the daily lives of students at school. The series also follows the hard work of the school’s staff, led by Headteacher Drew Povey.

Cameras capture the drama of teenage life within school, following numerous student characters to give viewers a true insight into life in a modern British school.

From bunking off and prank phone calls to leadership debates and therapy animals, the series will have you laughing, crying and reminiscing about your own experience of life at school.

You can watch the new series by clicking here.

More than one million people have signed a petition from Marcus Rashford’s Child Food Poverty Taskforce calling on the government to extend the free school meals scheme.

The online petition, titled “End child food poverty – no child should be going hungry”, was set up by the Manchester United forward on the eve of a Commons opposition debate on the extension of free school meals over all holiday periods.

Tory MPs voted against the motion, leading to a huge swing in public support behind the England footballer – with the petition passing the million mark shortly before 5pm on Wednesday. It is one of only five parliamentary petitions to attract a million signatures and the first since the last general election.

Rashford wants the scheme to cover future school holidays after he successfully forced a government U-turn in the summer holidays, a feat which received wide public acclaim and led to him being awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

The scheme would cost about £20 million per week and an estimated £260 million a year if it was applied to all 13 weeks of school holidays. It would provide meals for an additional 1.5 million children aged seven to 16, who come from households on Universal Credit or equivalent.

Rashford has been open about the challenges of families struggling through the coronavirus pandemic, having “lived through” similar financial circumstances when growing up in Manchester. Speaking about the campaign, the 22-year-old footballer said: ‘as long as they don’t have a voice, they will have mine.’

More than 2,000 volunteers and small businesses, including takeaways, restaurants and pubs, have been inspired by the campaign and are now offering free food to children over the half-term.

In response, the government has insisted it is in the process of examining how holiday clubs could be used to feed hungry children. Yet it’s decision to vote against the proposal of providing free school meals throughout the summer has provoked an ugly backlash against MPs from many of their constituents.

Despite the widespread public condemnation, Boris Johnson has not backed down, and the Chancellor Rishi Sunak has recently followed suit, saying he does not ‘think it’s always the right answer that central government comes in and dictates things’.

A primary school teacher has been hailed a local hero for delivering food to children in need who are off school as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Zane Powles, a deputy head at Western Primary School in Grimsby has been commuting on foot to deliver 78 packed lunches each morning to those children that qualify for free school meals. The lunches contain a sandwich, a packet of crisps, an apple and a cake or biscuit.

At each drop off on his round he leaves the food on the doorstep, knocks on the door, and retreats to the pavement.

Mr Powles says the discomfort he feels carrying heavy quantities of food in his rucksack is minimal compared to the ordeal faced by families forced to stay at home during the national lockdown.

The key worker says he’s been congratulated and described as “a hero” but says he is just doing his job.

“I am doing this so that the children and their parents don’t have to come out to collect their meals. Otherwise they would be passing other people in the street and it makes sure they get at least one good meal a day.”

Kim Leach, Executive headteacher of Western Primary said: “We are very proud. He is a superstar and is a credit to the school and the local authority.”

Four in 10 pupils at the school are classed as disadvantaged, many of which rely on the free lunches they receive whilst at school.

Teachers should focus on praising children for good behaviour rather than telling them off for being disruptive, according to a study.

Pupils are more likely to focus in class and concentrate on their schoolwork if they are commended rather than reprimanded, according to research published in Educational Psychology.

Researchers in North America spent three years monitoring 2,536 children aged between 5 and 12 at schools across three US states.

They examined the number of praise statements teachers gave out, compared with the number of reprimands – which they termed the praise-to-reprimand (PRR) ratio, and the impact it had on pupils.

In half of the classrooms, teachers followed a behaviour programme in which students are told the social skills they should be showing in lessons and are rewarded for using them.

Teachers used their typical classroom management practices in the other half of the classes.

The research findings suggest that in the classes with the highest PRR, pupils spent 20 to 30 percent longer paying attention to the teacher or their task, compared with those where the PRR was the lowest.

Dr Paul Caldarella, the academic from Brigham Young University who led the study, said: “Unfortunately, previous research has shown that teachers often tend to reprimand students for problem behaviour as much or more than they praise pupils for appropriate behaviour, which can often have a negative effect on classrooms and student behaviour.

“Praise is a form of teacher feedback, and students need that feedback to understand what behaviour is expected of them, and what behaviour is valued by teachers.”

“Everyone values being praised and recognised for their endeavours – it is a huge part of nurturing children’s self-esteem and confidence,” he added.