For some art teachers, motivating students is easy. If you have students with an independent interest in art, you probably won't have any trouble motivating them. However, if your students have little independent interest in art, you will need to motivate them by helping them to see art as fun, or at least rewarding.

Intrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic motivation is directed towards the action itself, rather than perceived rewards from completing an action. The key to intrinsically motivating your art students is to get them interested in doing art. One way to do this is to let your art students draw something they like. For example, if you are teaching elementary students, you can get them to draw cartoon characters from their favorite shows. Another way to get your students intrinsically motivated is to let them use electronic illustration tools to make art. The electronic aspect of this form of art creation may pique the interest of tech-savvy young people.

Extrinsic Motivation
Unlike intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation is directed toward a reward. An extrinsically motivated art student may not really care about art, but they will at least work at it to gain a reward. This type of motivation is less desirable than intrinsic motivation, because it results in artistic output with less "feeling" in it. However, if your students just aren't into art, it can help you achieve classroom objectives. One way to extrinsically motivate your students is to offer them some time for leisurely computer use if they complete an art portfolio that meets curriculum objectives. Another way is to give them a physical reward, such as a candy bar, in exchange for high quality artistic work.

Autonomy
A study by art educator Anne Baumann has shown that students are most motivated toward artistic pursuits when they are allowed to pursue them autonomously, or without too much control and supervision from the teacher. Following these findings, one tip for motivating your students is to allow them a lot of freedom when they work. Do not tell them what or how to draw; instead, tell them to follow their own passion and create work that they themselves would want to look at. Another tip is to allow your students physical autonomy when they work. Let them work on their projects at home, and do not look over their shoulders when they work at school.

Learning Environment
One of the best ways to motivate your art students is to provide them with an inspirational learning environment. If students work on their art projects in a drab classroom with no art or decorations, they may struggle to find sources of inspiration. Decorate your classroom with copies of great works of art. This strategy will work well for students who are independently interested in art, since the sight of great art in the classroom will give them something to live up to. Fill the classroom with magazines, picture books and photo albums. This will give students resources for ideas when they are not sure what they want to draw or paint.