How do I motivate students outside the classroom?

Distance learning took many teachers by storm.

With the advent of Covid19, teaching went from being in front of a classroom of students to being behind a computer with periods of facetime. The magic of the classroom and active student engagement was gone. Every teacher was faced with the same question. “How do I motivate students outside the classroom?”

Before I describe the following Harry Potter contest, imagine using other books you’d like to feature. How could you incorporate a biography? A STEAM book? Historical Fiction? Think how this system could work in your own classroom between students, between classrooms within the grade level teams, or between grade levels in the same school. Have fun. Think outside the box.

Our school librarian was concerned that our students would opt for entertainment games instead of reading a good book. She and the other librarians in our school district came together and created a Harry Potter Contest. The contest was designed to be a competition between schools.

After creating the different elements of the contest, the librarians designed a website with weekly instructions and a leaderboard featuring house points. Before the contest began, the librarians sorted the schools into houses. My school was sorted into Hufflepuff.

(As a side note, we just finished the contest and it was a HUGE success. Students were engaged, books were read, lively conversations took place, and best of all, the schools came together in a friendly reading competition. Oh, and Hufflepuff won!)

Harry Potter Contest

Week One

1. Reply to your Hogwarts invitation letter via electronic owl (Google Form)

Prompt positive responses are worth 5 pts; late responses will still be accepted, but will only be worth 1 pt.)

2. Access a copy of the first Harry Potter book. The audiobook is currently available to stream for free online (in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Japanese) from Audible Stories; and the ebook is free on Amazon for Amazon Prime members (please talk to your parent/guardian for assistance).
3. Take a picture of yourself reading/listening to the first Harry Potter book (worth 1 pt). Submit to your house email box.

Week Two

1. Read Chapters 1-4
2. Find out what wand you would get by taking this quiz
3. Design your own wand or Arm yourself with a wand such as a chopstick, stick, or pencil. Post a pic with a sign showing your quiz results (worth 5 pts). Submit your results to your house email box.
4. Take the Ch 1-4 Trivia Quiz (Teacher created Google Form) Your answers must be submitted by noon on (TBA). Participation is worth 10 pts. The winner from each House will battle the other Houses in a Trivia Match. Extra points will be awarded to the house that wins.

Week Three

1. Read Chapters 5-8
2. Show your House spirit by making a House bookmark. Post a pic of you using your new bookmark (worth 10 pts)
3. 3. Ch 5-8 Trivia Quiz Your answers must be submitted by noon on (TBD date). Participation is worth 10 pts. The winner from each House will battle the other Houses in a Trivia Match. Extra points will be awarded to the house that wins.

Week Four

1. Read Chapters 9-13
2. Create your Patronus animal out of origami
   • Dog (easy)
   • Cat (easy)
   • Horse (that flips) (medium)
   • Bird (that flaps) (medium)
   • Snake (medium)
   • Rabbit (medium)
   • Fox (not hard, per se, but has more steps to it)
   • Phoenix (not hard, per se, but has more steps to it)
   • Mouse/Rat (doable, but slightly tricky at times)

Share a pic of your Patronus (worth 15 pts)

3. Chapters 9-13 Trivia Quiz. Your answers must be submitted by noon on (TBD date). Participation is worth 10 pts. The winner from each House will battle the other Houses in a Trivia Match. Extra points will be awarded to the house that wins.

Week Five

1. Read Chapters 14-17
2. Make something for the Hogwarts end-of-year feast (for some inspiration, click here)
3. Take a pic of your food/beverage for the virtual banquet table (worth 20 pts) Submit to your house email box.
4. Ch 14-17 Trivia Quiz Your answers must be submitted by (TBA) to be in the running to compete in the Trivia Cup Final against the other Houses; the winner from each House will battle the other Houses in the Trivia Cup Final held at (TBA) with questions from the whole book.
   

   The winning school wins the HOUSE CUP!

   The winner is awarded the right to display the HOUSE CUP for one year, until the next competition.

Robyn Gioia

Award winning author/teacher Robyn Gioia has worked in both private and public US schools, as a principal at an international school in Japan, taught Emirates in the UAE, gifted MS students in Puerto Rico and is currently teaching in South Korea for the DoD. Her controversial history book, America's REAL First Thanksgiving, St. Augustine, Florida, Sept.8, 1565 was featured on the front page of the USA Today Life section and continues to be the topic of numerous newspaper and radio shows. In her new historical fiction Under Siege!, two boys must go behind enemy lines to help in the 1702 siege of St. Augustine. (teacher resources available on website)
website: www.robyngioia.com