Over the past week I have had two great experiences that made me realise that what I say, along with the timing and tone of my words, can have a huge impact on the students I teach.
I had the pleasure of attending the NSW Futsal State Titles with a year 9 and 10 team last Wednesday. On route to the event I was asking myself what motivated me before my big games. How did I make sure I was ready and in ‘the zone’ to perform as soon as the whistle was blown?
After a brief discussion with Paul about mentality and various approaches I decided to get the team in a huddle and fire them up with some choice ‘Spartan’ motivational words. I asked the boys to look deep into each other’s eyes when they shook hands and realise that, as team mates, they must be willing to give their all, leave nothing behind or risk regretting something they didn’t do! The boys responded and, as a team, were ready to take on anything – much like the 300 Spartans vs the whole Persian army!!!!
The impact of my loud, brash motivational words had fired the boys up and the tempo and effort levels in all of their matches that day were phenomenal. I was extremely proud of each and every one of them in reaching the top four of the competition.
In contrast to this, my year 10 group have ‘gone off the boil’ the past week so once again I decided a pep talk was required. This time I talked in a soft, calm tone and explained that, academically, the students needed to raise their game. This resulted in students arranging a pupil-only meeting where they discussed and then wrote an apology letter for their recent lack of effort. It was signed by every class member. This made me reflect and realise that in various situations the way I react and speak to students has an immense effect on their thought process and the outcome of the situation.
Personally, I prefer the ‘gladiator’ type talks, but it was good to witness that a few quiet words can have just the same effect on students!
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