Sometimes students can do amazing things. If we’re lucky, then the stories behind these achievements will be shared with us. And this will let us be inspired and motivated to be better teachers, students, and people as well. That’s why we decided to compile a few stories about students who’ve overcome difficult obstacles. They’ll make you feel hopeful about our future, and this will encourage both students and teachers to be better every day. So enjoy yourself as you read these motivational stories for students.
Motivational Stories For Students You’ll Love To Read
Creative Teaching Done Right
“Eliot came into my kindergarten classroom at the beginning of the year not knowing any letters—he couldn’t even sing the alphabet song. I felt overwhelmed and frustrated because I believed my students would already know the alphabet by the time they got to my classroom. This was going to be a lot of work, but I was determined to conquer this unexpected challenge.
As I continued to follow the literacy curriculum, I was continually frustrated with how little progress Eliot was making. It made me question whether the way I was teaching was meeting his needs, so I decided to try a different approach. I began to incorporate more movement and songs into my literacy lessons.
Soon, I noticed things were clicking for Eliot in a way they hadn’t been before. Soon, he was able to identify not only his letters, but his sounds, too. This taught me the importance of being flexible and open to trying new approaches. Seeing Eliot grow so much in my classroom was among the most rewarding experiences I’ve had as a teacher.”
(Source)
The Power Of Connecting
“Patrisia was my first ESL student. She was struggling to learn to read in the classroom and was a little shy. In early lessons I realized that most of our conversations stemmed from activities that were culturally relevant to her. So I began choosing books that featured children who either looked like her or had Hispanic names. This gave her personal connection to the stories and it increased her eagerness to read!
The first book I chose for her was Tacos because her parents owned a restaurant and tacos was something I know she would be very familiar with. She was captivated by the book and began to read. She got to the word cheese and said “queso.” I explained to her that in Spanish you would say queso but in English it’s called cheese.
We practiced going from the Spanish word to the English word a few times and she had it. We both had an “aha moment” that day. Patrisia felt important because I acknowledged her culture and could even speak a little Spanish. I realized that Patrisia just needed the English links to the Spanish she already knew. We discovered together how my language and her language compared and we worked out the structural kink that interfered with her learning how to read.
Happily, Patrisia successfully discontinued! It was at the award’s day ceremony that I really realized what I had helped her to achieve. Her mother came to me with tears welled up in her eyes and explained (with some help) that Patrisia was the first to learn how to read English in her family!”
(Source)
You Could Be Teaching The Next Genius
What these two stories teach is there are no bad or dumb students. What matters is creating an environment that suits your students. Yes, you may need some inspiration and creativity to help some students. But, what you need to remember is that all students are capable of learning. Knowing this fact will help you get through even the most frustrating situations.
Consider these famous figures who struggled with school:
- Thomas Edison. He didn’t do well in math and could never focus in school. It was so bad that a teacher supposedly said “he was too stupid to learn anything.”
- Albert Einstein. Couldn’t read until he was seven years old. His teacher couldn’t see his potential and said he was “mentally slow, unsociable and adrift forever in foolish dreams.”
- Benjamin Franklin. Dropped out of school at 10 years old to work in a candle and soap shop with his dad.
By some miracle, they were able to bounce back from their school struggles and become successful.
But you shouldn’t expect such luck with your own students. Not doing well in school can drastically affect a student’s confidence and in turn, their future prospects. Instead, use these stories to inspire your own out-of-the-box teaching methods to create success and happiness in their lives.
Use These Motivational Stories For Students To Improve Your Teaching
Remember that how you teach your students can affect their future. All students are capable of learning, even if they are not succeeding now. So, if you feel like you are stuck in a rut, look for some innovative teaching methods to try. It could be everything your students need to succeed.
And if you’d like a simple and reliable way to get started then improve their typing skills first. You can try the programs at KeyboardingOnline to help them learn a skill MANY companies expect their workers to know already… which will give them a huge boost to their future success.