I spent some time in the fourth grade classrooms over the past two weeks. What a change from third to fourth grade. The kids are changing classes, keeping up with their materials (some better than others) and learning how to really use their time wisely.
I spoke with the fourth grade teachers and we agreed that talking about goal setting could be beneficial. I also wanted to incorporate "Fixed vs. Growth Mindset" into the lesson.
I began by showing the story Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beatty. I show a lot of stories on YouTube because I can't always get the book. The YouTubers also tend to make the story more fun. The story is about a little girl who loves to make things out of junk. Her aunt begs Rosie to make her something to make her dreams come true. The contraption hovers and then crashes and Rosie thinks that she is a failure. Instead her aunt explains that the plane was a success. You can only fail at something if you quit trying!
We then discuss the "Fixed vs. Growth Mindset". Fixed mindset assumes that we can't change our character, intelligence, and creative ability. I give the kids an example of my seventh grade art class, when my teacher said "Stephanie, art isn't your thing." So as a twelve year old girl, I decided that "art wasn't my thing." No amount of practice or affirmation could get me to change my mind. Growth mindset, on the other hand, thrives on challenge and sees failure not as evidence of inability but as a jump-start for growth and for stretching our abilities. My teacher encouraging me through words or actions could have made a huge difference in the way that I view(ed) myself as an artist. I'm not saying that I would be in museums by any stretch, but I probably wouldn't be so anxious about drawing a simple stick person.
The kids and I developed a chart where we looked at different ways of thinking about things. Instead of thinking "I'm not good at this" we try thinking "What am I missing?"
The kids did a terrific job of coming up with the negative things that we tell ourselves, as well as how to reword them.
Finally the kids made pennants with their goals for the year. They had to complete the following sentences: I will be a better... I will practice... I will not be afraid to...
I spoke with the fourth grade teachers and we agreed that talking about goal setting could be beneficial. I also wanted to incorporate "Fixed vs. Growth Mindset" into the lesson.
I began by showing the story Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beatty. I show a lot of stories on YouTube because I can't always get the book. The YouTubers also tend to make the story more fun. The story is about a little girl who loves to make things out of junk. Her aunt begs Rosie to make her something to make her dreams come true. The contraption hovers and then crashes and Rosie thinks that she is a failure. Instead her aunt explains that the plane was a success. You can only fail at something if you quit trying!
We then discuss the "Fixed vs. Growth Mindset". Fixed mindset assumes that we can't change our character, intelligence, and creative ability. I give the kids an example of my seventh grade art class, when my teacher said "Stephanie, art isn't your thing." So as a twelve year old girl, I decided that "art wasn't my thing." No amount of practice or affirmation could get me to change my mind. Growth mindset, on the other hand, thrives on challenge and sees failure not as evidence of inability but as a jump-start for growth and for stretching our abilities. My teacher encouraging me through words or actions could have made a huge difference in the way that I view(ed) myself as an artist. I'm not saying that I would be in museums by any stretch, but I probably wouldn't be so anxious about drawing a simple stick person.
The kids and I developed a chart where we looked at different ways of thinking about things. Instead of thinking "I'm not good at this" we try thinking "What am I missing?"
The kids did a terrific job of coming up with the negative things that we tell ourselves, as well as how to reword them.
Finally the kids made pennants with their goals for the year. They had to complete the following sentences: I will be a better... I will practice... I will not be afraid to...