Help Me Seek More
My teacher encouraged me to push myself and apply myself to always be willing to learn more things. - Kalei
Curiosity is something we are all born with and something that never truly goes away. We sometimes look at our middle school students slumped over on the desk, too tired to do anything, and wonder if this could still be true. That same middle schooler will be asking a friend a million questions later on about whatever the latest fad is or the newest video game.
It is not so much that they have lost their interest in learning but more likely that the learning has lost interest in them. I am not saying that you don’t have interest in your students.
I know you do.
When you walk into a kindergarten class, you see learning happening in a very natural way, where students are exploring, sharing, or at least learning to share, and trying things out. Sure, there is an element to play that doesn’t feel like learning, but we all know it is happening, as the progress made by the end of the year is monumental.
Deeper than that, there is an effortlessness to learning because they are seeing it out, chasing a goal or at least trying several times over. The clever teacher is guiding them through their exploration and are arriving at the “aha moment” in stride.
As they get older, the tasks change, and the learning is less obvious but still there. It is disguised in the work. There is nothing wrong with the work, but there is also nothing wrong with a little play or exploration.
Kids love learning. It is innate. We have to tap into that and see if we can lead them along that path of curiosity. When they get hold of something as a 3rd, 5th, or 7th grader, then they really go deep. That's the beauty of learning. You can fall so in love with a topic, story, or quest.
Help them find the quest and let them show you what they can do. It is usually pretty amazing and a whole lot of fun for us as well.
Help them stay curious. Lead them down a rabbit hole or two. Hook them on a little bit of learning today!