Creating a Fun Learning Environment

Creating a Fun Learning Environment kids and teens

Aren't educators tired of worksheets? It is time for us to think differently. Many tutoring centers provide additional practice worksheets after students complete their homework from school. Seeing how students reacted to the extra practice work can be deflating from a teachers perspective. Therefore, I am a big advocate of S.T.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) programs. These programs focus on giving students the opportunity to apply their knowledge to real world activities. It is important to provide students with a place where their mind is allowed to explore and create, and most importantly, a place where they feel motivated and actually want to come solve challenging problems.

 It is also important that a program is a place where failure is okay but not trying is unacceptable. I want students to see how they can learn to accomplish challenging tasks through the failures they experience. This is the learning process and this is how everyone goes through it. It is important that schools or learning centers provides students with the ability to learn from their mistakes. This will help them to build confidence, develop strategies and develop the drive to continue to work no matter how many times they fail. That is one of the main goals of a S.T.E.A.M program.

When I was a student, I loved doing things with my hands. Being able to see what I created made me excited. When I see students motivated and excited to learn... that is an educator's ultimate dream. However, when I see the dissatisfaction and the moans and groans of a student having to do more worksheets after they completed their homework, I feel like I have been punched in the stomach. It is disappointing and disheartening that students are not excited; I am not achieving my goal. I want my students to want to enjoy what they are doing. Is it that farfetched of an idea that I want my students to want to learn and feel excited about accomplishing a goal?

I will admit it has been a difficult and challenging task to convince parents that it is effective to enroll students into classes such as a robotics course, where students are constructing robots and programming them to do different tasks. With the emphasis on high scores in school, robotics, art, and other similar courses take a back seat in the educational world. I argue that these courses are as important, if not more important, for students to reach their full potential.

how we can help students stay motivated.

Creating a Fun Learning Environment kids and teens