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Remind Students You Believe in Them

Tags

Social-Emotional Learning All Ages Strategy

Skills

Anxiety

Remind Students You Believe in Them

All students, particularly those who have lower self-confidence

Teach It!

  1. Objective: Consistent reminders from trusted adults that they believe in their students' abilities will contribute to supporting development of self-confidence.
  2. Teacher Takeaways: Provide consistent reassurance to students, even if they do not express self-doubt. Take note of how you provide feedback. A good rule is three compliments for any type of criticism. All feedback, both positive and negative, should be focused on the work and not the person. Instead of, "You didn't try," lead with, "This is not your best work because..." Be sincere and encourage students to view feedback as your belief in their ability to succeed. Adults can under-estimate students' ability to detect insincerity but sincerity is key to a trusting relationship that motivates students.

Why It Works (the Science Of Learning)!

Adults might not always realize the impact of their words on students' self-esteem, but research shows that adult relationships are key to developing students' self-esteem and motivation. Adults want to provide authentic encouraging feedback that will challenge a student while engendering trust through sincerity.