Encouragement in the Classroom: How Do I Help Students Stay Positive and Focused?

We all know the factors that can threaten a positive classroom environment: stress from testing, lack of motivation, and problems that students bring from home, for a start. What if we could implement some simple practices to buffer against these factors' negative effects? The good news is that we can. Encouragement in the Classroom explores the small yet high-impact changes that teachers can make to transform students' school experience every day. Drawing from positive psychology research, educator Joan Young explains how fostering humor, mindfulness, resilience, curiosity, and gratitude in the classroom empowers students to learn from their mistakes, celebrate successes, and actively engage in learning. Filled with examples, this publication offers practical, classroom-tested strategies, routines, and rituals that teachers can use immediately to defuse the negative effects of stress and create a stimulating and supportive classroom culture.