Before students can be available for learning, their basic human needs must be met. Here’s how teachers can use Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to help ensure students are best prepared for learning.

<h2>Using Maslow’s Hierarchy to Ensure Students’ Basic Needs are Met</h2><p>As scholastic demands increase for both educators and students, it’s vital to consider student needs. A motivation to learn can only be possible when the needs of the student are met. <a href="http://www.changekidslives.org/actions-4" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs</a> is a theory used to assess the basic needs of a person. Educators should take these factors into consideration and do their best to ensure these needs are met.</p><h2>Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs for Students</h2><p>Before we can expect students to be available to engage in learning, we must foster fulfillment of these four foundational needs:</p><ol><li><strong>Physical Needs:</strong> Basic necessities of life such as food, water, rest and shelter. If basic needs are not met, then thinking and communicating become challenging. </li><li> Suggestions for the Classroom:</li></ol><ul><li>	Allow water and snacks</li><li>	Communicate with the office to find out whether a student can rest when sleep-deprived</li></ul><ol><li><br></li><li><strong>Safety Needs:</strong> How a student feels in both their home and classroom. </li><li>Suggestions for the Classroom:</li></ol><ul><li>	Build relationships with students to help gain empathy and an understanding of their lives both in and out of school</li><li>	Provide coping strategies for when students feel anxiety or stress</li><li>	Emphasize that your first and most important job as an educator is to keep students safe</li></ul><ol><li><br></li><li><strong>Social Needs:</strong> The requirement to have relationships, love and belonging. </li><li>Suggestions for the Classroom:</li></ol><ul><li>	<a href="https://www.crosscountryeducation.com/blogs/community-building-eases-transition-back-into-the-classroom" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Focus on building community before teaching content</a></li><li>	Consider a seating chart based on inclusivity</li><li>	Give students opportunities to work together</li><li>	Find the “real-world connection” in learning materials (<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/44810059" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bergman</a>)</li></ul><ol><li><br></li><li><strong>Self-Esteem Needs:</strong> The ability to have a positive sense of achievement, self-worth and peer validation. </li><li>Suggestions for the Classroom:</li></ol><ul><li>	Use a daily positive affirmation</li><li>	Give students positive, specific, timely and constructive praise often</li><li>	Allow time in the day for students to give specific compliments to one another</li></ul><h2>Fulfilling Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to Promote Learning</h2><p>Applying these practical suggestions based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs will help create daily connections with your students. Educational growth and learning are what we, as educators, strive to guide all of our students toward. We must work to ensure Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is fulfilled for each student before the student is available for learning. Creating an educational space with a student-centered approach means addressing safety, socialization and needs, first and foremost. Research from the University of Tennessee shows that “with these needs met, a student has a better chance of achieving academically” (<a href="https://scholar.utc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1679&amp;&amp;context=theses" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Caraccio</a>).</p><p><strong>Remember…</strong>Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs isn’t only for addressing student needs. To serve our students to the best of our abilities, we must ensure that, as educators, we address our own basic needs as well!</p><h2>Resources on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs in the Classroom</h2><p>These additional resources can help you use Maslow’s Hierarchy to ensure your students’ needs are met so they are prepared to learn:</p><ul><li><a href="https://doi.org/10.35608/ruraled.v41i1.831" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">From School of Crisis to Distinguished: Using Maslow's Hierarchy in a rural underperforming school</a></li><li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niHrV9JM8EM" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Making Every School a Health-Promoting School</a></li><li><a href="https://www.who.int/health-topics/adolescent-health" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">World Health Organization: Adolescent Health </a></li></ul><p>To find out where you are needed most as an educator, view our <a href="https://www.crosscountryeducation.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">teaching jobs</a> today!</p><p><br></p>

4 Things Students Need Before They Are Available for Learning