This weekend was gorgeous - nearly 65 degrees in March! To celebrate and get some fresh air, my family and I headed to the beach near Huot's.
I tried to fly a kite, but the wind wasn't cooperating and the kite fell apart. I gave up my kite-flying attempt and searched for sea glass instead. Growth Mindset.
My 18-month-old daughter tried to walk in the sand, but she's just learning and found the even territory was a bit tricky. Each time she fell, her pants got a bit soggier and sandier, and she got a bit crankier. But she got up and tried again and again and again! Growth mindset.
My husband tried skimming stones. The first few sunk like lead, but he kept looking for better stones and finally found several to skip across the calm water. Growth Mindset.
My 5-year-old son tried skimming stones, too. Each time he tried, his stones sunk. He became more and more frustrated, and eventually he said "I'm never going to be good at throwing. I'm never going to be good at skipping rocks. I'm never going to be good at baseball." Fixed Mindset.
It was heartbreaking to hear him giving up and equating a tough time with rock skimming to a lifetime of failure at everything. It left me thinking, what can we do to help our children learn to try/try again?
Then, this morning, I picked up a book called Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. It's not my normal book - I typically choose fiction - but the title had me! I'm reading it as fast as I can, and already I'm thinking about the ways that I can help develop growth mindset for myself, my students, and my own children.
I tried to fly a kite, but the wind wasn't cooperating and the kite fell apart. I gave up my kite-flying attempt and searched for sea glass instead. Growth Mindset.
My 18-month-old daughter tried to walk in the sand, but she's just learning and found the even territory was a bit tricky. Each time she fell, her pants got a bit soggier and sandier, and she got a bit crankier. But she got up and tried again and again and again! Growth mindset.
My husband tried skimming stones. The first few sunk like lead, but he kept looking for better stones and finally found several to skip across the calm water. Growth Mindset.
My 5-year-old son tried skimming stones, too. Each time he tried, his stones sunk. He became more and more frustrated, and eventually he said "I'm never going to be good at throwing. I'm never going to be good at skipping rocks. I'm never going to be good at baseball." Fixed Mindset.
It was heartbreaking to hear him giving up and equating a tough time with rock skimming to a lifetime of failure at everything. It left me thinking, what can we do to help our children learn to try/try again?
Then, this morning, I picked up a book called Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. It's not my normal book - I typically choose fiction - but the title had me! I'm reading it as fast as I can, and already I'm thinking about the ways that I can help develop growth mindset for myself, my students, and my own children.