This article examines the role of interactive teaching methods in strengthening student motivation and academic performance in chemistry. In contrast to lecture-dominated instruction, interactive chemistry teaching engages learners in experiments, project-based tasks, collaborative discussions, digital simulations, and multimedia-supported inquiry. The study is based on a year-long classroom intervention involving 60 high school students divided into control and experimental groups. A pre-test/post-test model, motivation surveys, and classroom observations were used to evaluate conceptual understanding, participation, and attitudes toward chemistry. The findings indicate that students exposed to interactive instruction demonstratedbetter conceptual retention, greater willingness to participate, stronger peer collaboration, and more positive perceptions of chemistry as a meaningful school subject. The expanded literature review also shows that active learning, cooperative learning, peer-led learning, flipped approaches, virtual laboratories, and problem-based learning can improve chemistry learning outcomes when instruction deliberately connects symbolic, macroscopic, and microscopic representations. The article argues that motivation in chemistry increases when students experience autonomy, competence, relevance, and visible success in classroom tasks. Interactive teaching is therefore not only a methodological alternative but a pedagogical necessity for making chemistry more understandable, engaging, and sustainable in the long term.