Ah yes the age old question, how do we get students excited about school? There are so many different answers to this question but which one will work for you depends on your school culture. Minga has cultivated a short list on how you can foster excitement and school spirit in your students based on research studies, testimonials, and first hand experience with schools across North America.
- Team Bonding – We use the words team bonding because they leave room for creativity. Whether you want to create teams based on year, split up in 4 large groups among the school, or based amongst other things. Creating teams that your school can use just about anytime will pay off because students will feel a sense of community and belonging within their teams, they will make new friends and in turn feel more school spirit.
- Gamification – If you are already an expert on team bonding, take it a step further by running a school wide points system. Even middle and high school students are motivated by the same gold star as a second grader is, just in a different form. If you have seen Harry Potter you know what we’re talking about. We suggest you gamify school involvement to create a more united, spirited, excited, and fun student body.
- Organization – Students (and teachers alike) are confused by the use of multiple platforms and channels of information distribution. We find it extremely beneficial to stick to one channel for reminders and spirit information. Whether the most effective channel is Minga, email, Instagram, or the school web page. Then once again reiterating the information over the announcements and reminding students of where they can find the details. This tip is not so much to get students excited, but more so to keep them informed.
- Think Big – Hosting big events that are recurring and may even be considered traditions is a great way to get students involved. When students know ahead of time that a big event is coming, they do everything in their power to be there with their friends. Some examples of big events could be out of the box annual fundraisers, or school wide grad events.
These ideas might seem like a lot of work but the payoff is out of this world, and with Minga you can juggle all these tasks with a couple clicks. Extracurriculars are so important for the learning and growth of students in today’s society and they should be treated with the same enthusiasm as academics. Let’s help these students succeed through extracurriculars. Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date on all the fun Extracurricular Management updates.
