Yang Gong, Ziyi An
Interaction rituals are structured social encounters where participants share mutual focus and emotions. Although language classrooms are often rich with such rituals, little research has explored how these interaction rituals form and their roles in generating emotional energy. To address this gap, the present study investigated interaction rituals within the context of Chinese as an additional language learning. Drawing on classroom observations and teacher interviews across four proficiency levels, the findings reveal that teachers structured three key strategies to boost students’ emotional energy through interaction rituals: (1) flexibly utilizing course design and routines, (2) leveraging shared knowledge and specific topics to build emotional connections, and (3) strategically reframing linguistic rituals to sustain emotional energy. Overall, the study highlights the importance of emotionally attuned pedagogy in the context of learning Chinese as an additional language, showing that fostering students’ emotional energy through intentional interaction rituals not only enhances student learning and confidence but also deepens teacher responsiveness and strengthens classroom solidarity. This study pioneers the use of interaction rituals in language education, expanding emotion-based pedagogy by showing how emotions are socially constructed, shared, and sustained through classroom interactions.