What motivates children to learn?

Every child learns a little differently.  It would be convenient if each child fit into one of the traditional learning styles, such as visual learner, kinesthetic learner, or auditory learner.  The truth is that each child is a unique combination of these learning styles as well as other points in their personalities that make their learning style unique to each child.

Learning styles tend to explain how a child learns.  Visual learners like to see the educational material demonstrated, they tend to like learning on the computer.  Kinesthetic learners need to touch and feel to learn, they like to build models. Auditory learners learn best when hearing the information presented.  Besides having a way that they like to learn each student has a reason, a motivation, why they learn.

It is important to take advantage of not only the way the child learns, but what motivates the child to learn. 

Some children learn what is put before them because they feel some sense of obligation to do what they are told to do.  For these children it doesn’t seem to matter how the material is presented, but that the material is presented. Sometimes these children are called compliant learners.  They do not seem to need external rewards to learn unless you consider the approval of adults as a reward.

Other children seem to need a more tangible reward.  Some athletes are examples of this.  They do the school work because the end result is that if they do their schoolwork they are allowed participation in their chosen sport.  An example might be football players who must maintain a “C” average to be allowed to play in the game on Friday night.

There are things that are considered rewards, and for each child there is a different reward that is important. Some children are motivated by rewards that are internal.  They learn because it gives them pleasure, or they are driven to know more about a subject, or they are driven to learn to know more than other children, in a sense to become an expert.  There is a set of children who learn for the joy of accumulating knowledge; in a sense the knowledge itself is the reward.

Some children are motivated by the act of completion.  For example, each chapter in science is an exercise to be completed.  When they finish the chapter, they have checked off some mark, and are ready to begin the next chapter, so that they can complete it.  For that child, the reward is the check mark, not necessarily the knowledge gained.

Grades are another important reward. Receiving the praise for the grades or the gaining attention for grades can be a reward and a motivator.

It is important to find out what the motivator is for your child.   External rewards, internal rewards, accolades, privileges, or simply the joy of learning can all be powerful motivators.  Once you find the right combination of motivating rewards for your child you will better understand what inspires them to learn.  In combination with learning styles, motivational styles can help you get the most learning into your child, with the fewest drawbacks.

Source: http://www.edarticle.com/articles/27922/what-motivates-children-to-learn-.php


        Este artículo trata sobre las distintas motivaciones que tienen los niños para aprender.
Los niños aprenden de diferente forma pero a veces se cree que cada niño aprende solo con uno de los estilos de aprendizaje tradicionales, como estudiante visual, kinestésico alumno o aprendiz auditivo. Realmente cada niño combina los distintos estilos de aprendizaje y los hacen únicos.
Los estilos de aprendizaje tienden a explicar cómo un niño aprende.
Es importante aprovechar la forma en la que el niño aprende, pero también lo que motiva al niño a aprender.
       Existen diversas motivaciones que los niños necesitan para llevar adelante el acto del aprendizaje. Algunos niños aprenden con aquello que se les es presentado y sienten la obligación de hacerlo. A estos niños se les llama como aquellos que cumplen con las tareas y para ello no necesitan o no esperan recompensas. Otros niños necesitan de recompensas tangibles cuando aprenden. 
      Hay niños cuya motivación principal es aprender por placer, por saber más sobre determinado tema. También existen aquellos que al aprender buscan recibir elogios de los demás.
Conocer qué es lo que motiva a los niños nos ayuda a poder conjugar estrategias que relacionen los distintos estilos y motivaciones de aprendizajes.

Read the text and answer True or False

1. Kinesthetic don´t like to build models.

2. Wath motivates the child to learn is not important.

3. Compliant learners do not need external rewards to learn.

4. The athletes are examples of need more tangible reward.

5. There is a set of children who learn for the joy of accumulating knowledge.