Public Media from Michigan State University

Q: How do I help my children stay motivated to learn with school closures?

From Mrs. Pizzo's Workshop

A: Although a difficult task, motivation can be found by turning a child's learning toward what interests them most.

Have the children you are supporting with at-home learning brainstorm a list of their ten favorite topics of interest. This could include anything from a favorite sport to a favorite genre of music like Jazz.

Once they have their list of ten, have them select their top five from the list. Then narrow again to top three.

Once the top three interests are selected, have them produce a well-rounded project introducing those topics to the world. This can include researching the topic’s history to creating a replica.

Have them imagine the world has never heard of these topics before and they are the expert.

Remembering the five Ws & H -- who, what, when, where, why, and how -- will guide their research and produce a stellar presentation.

Mrs. Pizzo

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Robin Pizzo leads the education outreach efforts of WKAR Public Media at Michigan State University, the PBS and NPR affiliate serving Michigan's capital region. Robin convenes partnerships and coordinates station initiatives such as WKAR Family and Ready to Learn to bring workshops, learning tools, and other resources into the community to help kids be resilient, lifelong learners.