The Happy Learning Den: Helping Your Students Create a Growth Mindset

Hi again! I hope last week was amazing! Today I would like to share with you the importance of helping your students create a growth mindset.

During the past 20+ years I have come across several students who firmly believed that they were stupid if they made mistakes, that they were not good enough when faced with a challenge, and that they would never understand, so why try. Naturally I spoke with students, referred many to our guidance counselor and had parent conferences. But year after year, there was always one student who I just couldn't reach. I never knew how to fight back against those negative beliefs, but then I learned about Growth Mindset. I was so excited, that I created posters, activities, and a bulletin board set to use with my students.

I not only teach Fixed vs. Growth Mindset, but I also use Brag Tags with my 5th graders. I purchased and downloaded many freebies and have been using both with fidelity since the first day of school. (Tags that I use are perseverance, empathy, etc.) My students LOVE it!

In the past I have had students hang their brag tags on a chain, and then hang them off of clips on the wall... this took up way to much space. So thinking outside of the box is what we teachers do, right? One small wooden pasta drying rack over near my Growth Mindset bulletin board, and done!!!

So much easier! I put three of my favorite posters on the bulletin board along with their growth mindset writing. This way every time they line up or put a brag tag on their necklace, they are reading these posters:

1.) Mistakes are proof that you are trying. Never Give Up!

2.) I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that won't work. ~Albert Einstein

3.) I will persist until I succeed. I will keep trying.

How I Teach Growth Mindset to My Students

The first thing I teach my students is that their brain is always growing and that challenges are good for them. I ask students if they have any baby brothers or sisters. (Many will raise their hands.) I inquire if their siblings were born knowing how to walk. Then we have a conversation about how it is difficult for a baby to learn to walk. They often tell stories about siblings falling over and over and laughing each time they fall, but they always get up. We discuss that this is challenging for babies, but with practice they get better... and how their brain goes through growth every time they learn something new.

Next, I ask students to share a time they were learning something new. Something that they really wanted to learn but was frustrating for them. I want them to share something that used to be challenging for them to learn... but that now they feel that they were experts at it. I lead them to discuss that they practiced and practiced and practiced some more. That they didn't give up. Their mindset allowed them to learn ride a bike, learn to skateboard, learn to dance, etc. That this is called a growth mindset, and I explain to them that they are going to learn the difference between a fixed and a growth mindset this year.

I teach growth mindset vs. fixed mindset all year through discussions of perseverance, the various writing activities I created, and with the brag tags. Having a growth mindset sets up my students for success as we tackle the grade level curriculum and the rigorous assessments that go along with it. Ideally, you would teach and reteach Growth Mindset all year. Here are the Growth Mindset activities and bulletin board that I implement in my class.