Make Learning Relevant by ‘Getting to Know Your Students’ is a five-part series in my Ed Week column.

Relevance is a key component of developing intrinsic motivation (see my Edutopia post, Strategies for Helping Students Motivate Themselves).

Assisting students to see how they can apply what they learning to new situations – both inside and outside of school – can be one way to cultivate that sense of relevance. This idea is called “transfer of knowledge,” and you can read more, as well as watch a short video I did with Ed Week on the topic, at The Best Resources For Learning About The Concept Of “Transfer” — Help Me Find More.

There are also other ways to help students see lessons as relevant to their interests and to their lives.

I’ve previously shared posts with practical ideas about what teachers can do to assist towards this goal. In addition, in the last twenty-four hours, two groups whom I respect have released new lessons on this very subject. So, I figured it was time to bring them all together.

Let me know what resources I might be missing.

I’m adding this list to Best Posts On “Motivating” Students.

Here is what I have so far:

These first two links are posts where I shared lessons (and research) I used in my own classes:

“Relevance” & Student Learning

How Do You Think Working Hard & Learning Everything You Can In This Class Might Help You Now & In The Future?

I wrote this post yesterday about related resources from The New York Times Learning Network: I Like This NY Times Learning Network Student “Challenge” To Make Connections

Today, Character Lab released Build Connections, a pretty detailed and practical activity, including hand-outs, on this topic.

Here’s a video describing it:

Build Connections from Character Lab on Vimeo.

Statistic Of The Day: Students Don’t Feel Lessons Are Relevant (Maybe)

An Important Piece of the Student Motivation Puzzle is a really good piece from Future Ed.

‘When Are We Going to Use This?’ Strategies to Help Students Find Relevance in School Work appeared in Ed Week.

No Surprise: Study Finds Students More Engaged When Studying Topics Related To Them

PURPOSE & RELEVANCE is from Mindset Scholars.

NY Times Learning Network Wants To Hear How You Connect Curriculum To Current Events

The Best Resources & Ideas For Teaching About Current Events

When Am I Ever Going to Use This? is from Edutopia.

Making Connections: 53 Teenagers Suggest Creative Ways to Link School Curriculum to the World of 2019 is from The NY Times Learning Network.

Dear Teachers: Please Don’t Make Your Lessons Relevant is by Peter Greene. The “Why” Before the “What” and the “How” is commentary on it from George Couros.

How Is What You Are Studying in School Relevant to Your Life and the Larger World? is from The NY Times Learning Network.

‘Future Selves’ and Helping Others: What Motivates Students to Engage in School is from Ed Week.

Making Curriculum Matter to Students is by Erin Nerlino.

Let me know what I’m missing!