This blog was written by Carly Spina, author and Multilingual Education Specialist at the Illinois Resource Center. 

Energy is contagious. We’ve all felt the drag of negative vibes and the lift of positive ones. Our students feel it even more and can be (sometimes painfully) honest about the moments when the vibes aren’t vibin’. 

That’s why I choose to exude high energy so that I can elicit higher engagement from the learners in front of me. I can do that by monitoring my own energy (facial expressions, tone of voice, body language, movement), but also by cultivating high energy with those in the room about what we’re learning. Combining multimodal experiences with laughter and opportunities to bond and connect can unlock the door to instruction that has HIGH IMPACT. All of our students deserve high-impact instruction. 

Starting small

I might consider starting small by swapping out one learning experience with something that might feel better. For example, instead of asking students to complete a vocabulary packet, we instead co-construct vocabulary tools together throughout the unit. We collectively decide on a visual icon that represents a vocabulary word by pulling up printable options on The Noun Project, Flat Icon, or IconFinder. We create tools as a class that feature variations of the word with different tenses or prefixes/suffixes, synonyms where applicable, and tri-level sentence stems and starters that feature those words. 

Maybe we create a tic-tac-toe oral language game that features our key words/phrases with a prop or two to bring some novelty. Perhaps I will partner with a teammate (or I seek out our school mascot?) to create playful GIFs that represent some content-specific vocabulary words. Maybe we play a fun variation of Heads Up as a whole class with teams. Or, I create my own content-specific vocabulary word Spot-It games! The limits are … actually endless! 

Seeking out inspiration

Not everything has to feel fun all of the time. As the teacher, if I’m dreading teaching a unit, that’s the unit I will decide to target. How can I jazz this up? How might I incorporate novelty here? Who on my team might have a creative idea? Can I observe someone else teaching this for a few minutes? How can I make this unit more immersive? 

Once, when I asked my third graders to draw a scientist, and I saw that they all drew old white men, I decided to go on a mission to gather funds to buy each student a lab coat. It absolutely transformed the way we did science, and it transformed their perceptions of who/what a scientist is. In my first book, Moving Beyond for Multilingual Learners, I discuss how my students reflected on their own science identities. I was thrilled when my students started to draw themselves —one young scientist even included me in her final description. Scientists can have pink hair, too!

Inspiration can strike us no matter where we go —I’m constantly thinking about ways to incorporate random things into my classroom. At the time of this writing, there are little keychain “buddies” called Labubus. When something starts trending, I think of how/when/why that could show up in my instruction. Is it just part of a themed slide deck, or do the Labubus have to listen to us as we speak about our science dialogues today? Do we create a Labubu marketing plan during math,  create language-rich persuasive commercials in language arts, or write a descriptive paragraph during writing?

Reflecting with trusted teammates

Start by exchanging one activity for another with a colleague. Reflecting with them afterwards can help us to reflect on what works for you and your students. What felt GOOD to deliver? How did students respond? Did it make their learning STICKIER? No, not everything will go the way we want it to all the time, but that’s also a great teaching moment for ourselves and our students. The honesty it takes to say out loud, “I wanted to try something here but it definitely didn’t go as planned” is a great reflection to share with a colleague about how important it is to TRY and take risks! Telling our students, “Well this didn’t quite go as planned” is also a great way to demonstrate our humanity and share with them how we still try new things as adults and professionals. We might even take the opportunity to ask the students to share their reflections—if we tried this again, what might we change? What a beautiful way for us to grow and reflect on our practice but also collect feedback from students.

When students are able to lean into the instruction because it feels both accessible and relevant (and maybe even a little fun and exciting), it often helps to seal new learning into our long-term memory. Might these structures allow for spaces to grow connections with other peers? Might they also allow for more linguistically safe dialogues and conversations with peers? 

Being creative—and having some fun never has to come at the expense of maintaining high standards for those we serve. Multilingual learners deserve instruction that is challenging and rigorous while also maintaining intentional support. Our students should feel a level of excitement, curiosity, and wonder about what they’re learning and how they’re learning it. All of us educators also deserve to feel excited about how we teach the beautiful minds in front of us. 

When high-energy is a struggle

There are certain days, times, and seasons where I struggle with energy. This is the reality of being a teacher (and just a human being!). It doesn’t have to be an either/or moment. The truth is, while I know that my students deserve my best energy —I also want to acknowledge that as the teacher, I also deserve to feel excitement about what I’m teaching. Perhaps the topic or standard isn’t my choice, but my art is what I can bring to make the learning come alive. The HOW is up to me. I am setting myself up for a joyful teaching experience if I’m walking into my classroom thinking, “I cannot wait to see the look on their faces when we do…” or, “We’re going to laugh so hard today during science” This will bring me such excitement to start my day. For me, this makes a difference for my mental health. It helps me to have a little more energy during my seasons of difficulty.

Final thoughts

Take some risks. Be playful and goofy. Nurture your creativity. Seek out inspiration. Find a buddy to do this work with and reflect often. Keep those standards high, laugh, mess up, and grow. We got this! 

Carly Spina has two decades of experience in multilingual education across various roles. She is currently a Multilingual Education Specialist at the Illinois Resource Center, providing professional learning opportunities and technical assistance support to educators and leaders across the country. Her first book, Moving Beyond for Multilingual Learners, was a 2023 Equity in Excellence Award Winner. Her second book, Igniting Real Change: Equity and Advocacy In Action (June 2025), centers on actionable steps for more equitable outcomes for multilingual students and families. 

Resources:

Moving Beyond  for Multilingual Learners: The Blog

Moving Beyond for Multilingual Learners (2021)

Igniting Real Change for Multilingual Learners: Equity and Advocacy in Action (2025)