We’ve all struggled at one point or another. As adults, we’ve learned that life can throw curveballs, and sometimes, we’ve to push ourselves to overcome the challenges that lie ahead. But most kids haven’t quite figured that out yet.
When they hit a hurdle in school, they often freeze or, worse, give up. They don’t always know how to cope, and they definitely don’t always see what’s on the other side of the struggle. That’s where you come in.
You have the power to help students tap into their full potential, even when they feel like school just isn’t clicking. Using the right teaching strategies can make all the difference. You can help students build confidence, develop new habits, and keep moving forward—even when the work is hard.
Key Strategies for Supporting Struggling Students
Encourage a Growth Mindset
Students who are struggling in school often don’t have high self-esteem. The more they struggle in school, the more their brain is telling them that they are no good. One way to unlock a student’s potential is to encourage a growth mindset.
You can do this by sharing stories about people who overcame obstacles and persevered. Talk about how famous people like Albert Einstein, Whoopi Goldberg, and John Lennon all had learning disabilities but overcame them with hard work and dedication and still made history.
Discuss how Thomas Edison, Bill Gates, Whoopi Goldberg, etc. all had to learn how to fail before they could succeed. By discussing the many success stories of famous people who overcame great adversity through perseverance, you can make a real impact on a struggling student’s life. Sometimes kids just need to hear that it’s not about being perfect, it’s about pushing forward even when things aren’t easy.
Embrace Failure as a Learning Opportunity
There’s a saying that goes, “If you never fail, you’ll never succeed”. This saying perfectly sums up what we are trying to instill in our youth, especially in our struggling students.
In today’s society, there seems to be an illusion that everybody’s life is perfect, or at least it should be. When you scroll through social media, you’ll see perfect grades, perfect families, perfect everything. For students who are already struggling, that pressure can feel impossible.
What kids don’t see is what goes on behind the scenes. We need to remind them that failing doesn’t mean you’re a failure. Failure means you tried, and when you fail, you must learn to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again.
Tell your students that failure is part of learning. It’s not a sign to stop, it’s a sign to keep going. When they learn how to fall and get back up, they build resilience. That’s where growth really begins.
Build Authentic Connections with Students
Many struggling students in school can benefit from some encouragement. If students are not getting the encouragement they need from home, then they need to get it from a teacher or a peer. Just a few inspiring words can have a profound impact on a student’s academic performance.
Start with something simple, like the “Two by Ten” strategy. Take two minutes each day for ten days to check in with a student—no academics, just conversation. Ask about their hobbies, their weekend, and what they like to do outside of school.
The more you know them, the easier it becomes to support them in the classroom. The more you know them personally, the better you’ll be able to help them academically.
Show Students How the Brain Learns
Most children who struggle in school don’t realize that their brains can rewire themselves to learn better. When they struggle, they assume something is wrong with them. However, research shows that through practice and repetition, your brain becomes stronger. Teaching them about how the brain learns can change everything.
Teach students that everyone learns differently, and it’s important to find the way that their brain works best. Recognizing how they learn can be a huge advantage to their academic success. Students should also think of their brain like any other muscle in their body. The more they exercise it, the stronger and better it becomes.
Let struggling students know that it’s normal to struggle at first, but the more effort they put in, the more progress they’ll make. Understanding how their brains work helps students feel more in control of their own learning.
Break Down Complex Tasks
Big assignments can feel overwhelming, especially for students who are already behind. When they don’t know where to start, they often just shut down. Instead, break things down. Turn one big task into smaller, doable steps.
Give students a checklist or visual organizer they can follow. For example, if they’re writing an essay, help them focus on just the intro first. Then the first body paragraph, then the next, and so on, one piece at a time. Chunking work like this helps students feel like they can finish what they start, making it less overwhelming to deal with.
Utilize Multi-Sensory Teaching
All students learn differently; some need to see it, while others prefer to hear it, touch it, or move around to understand it. Consider adding visuals, physical objects, or movement to your lessons. Let students act out vocabulary words, use color-coded cards, or manipulate math tools.
Let them hear the information in a song or watch a short video to reinforce a concept. These aren’t just add-ons, they’re ways to reach learners who need information explained in a way that clicks for them. When you teach them in a way that makes sense to them, they’re more likely to understand it.
Provide Personal Feedback
Telling a struggling student how they are doing, and if they need to try harder, doesn’t always help them improve. What struggling learners need is specific feedback they can use to actually improve. Instead of saying “This paragraph is confusing,” consider saying, “Can you try breaking this into two shorter sentences to make your point clearer?”
This way, you are both encouraging and clear. Let them know exactly what they’re doing well and where they can improve. Personalized feedback helps students see the path forward, as well as showing them that you’re paying attention.
Struggling in school can be frustrating for both you, as the teacher, as well as the student. As long as you encourage a growth mindset, teach students that it’s okay to fail, show them how we learn, and take the time to really connect with them, then they’ll eventually be able to reach their full potential.
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