POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT PEEEEEOPLE!!
Students work very hard. And even when they aren't working very hard, we need look no further than ourselves for why that is so. But I'm proud of the work my students put in. I make sure I walk around the room constantly, always in a non-threatening and authentic manner. I make it a point to talk (I mean really talk to them, to be genuinely interested in what they are doing and have done) and ask them what they have done and then pass along a positive yet specific comment. It is so important that it is specific and not some nebulous pooh-pooh jargon that tells your student you're looking past thme and not in them. Now, the comments do not need to be pillar-of-heaven-shaking, but even the smallest and seemingly insignificant compliment can literally change the trajectory of their life!
I have had students come to me months, and many times years, later and say to me that my compliments and my encouragement was teh very "thing" teh very motivation for them to dedicate their minds, their time, and their character to learning.
Sometmes just a little comment, a few kind and intentional words can go a long, long way. Remember that the next time you walk around your seemingly ordinary classroom and do something extraordinary in it for your student's soul.
