Having a motivated student is important for productive sessions and skill progress.  It is a long-term goal of coaching to have the student be self-motivating and to have internal motivation for effort.  However, having an external reward system is effective for achieving initial buy-in from the student and can serve as a good motivator while internal motivation is being developed.

 

Reward programs are effective when they are cumulative so that the student is working toward a goal that is not accomplished in a single session.  The tokens toward a mid-range goal should provide some immediate motivation within the session.  Tokens that count toward the reward should be awarding with specific praise connected to student effort, rather than results.  This is consistent with the overall approach to build confidence and reward development rather than static ability.

 

Reward Token Tracker in Word

Reward Token Tracker in pdf

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See the Session Structure and Content page for more details on implementing the reward program.