Growth Mindset and Young Children
You know what I see when I look at this photo of a classroom from the 1960s? I see a growth mindset classroom! All the tools are there: painting, sensory, blocks, puzzles, dramatic play, art, and smiling faces. As a teacher for nearly 3 decades I know that children learn best through natural curiosity, discovery, a rich environment, through trial and error, through cooperating with others, through failing and succeeding, -- through play.
An integrated, playful classroom is a powerful tool for nurturing growth mindset in young children because they can learn how to apply their strengths in one area to the places in which their mindset is more fixed. For example, a child who is having trouble counting may be an exceptionally strong painter. In an classroom where this child is allowed to explore multiple sensorial experiences, she can learn that all things take time and effort, and just as she patiently mixes colors until she finds the right shade of blue, she can learn to count a set of objects until she is sure the count is correct.
A classroom that educates the whole child can also encourage a student to learn skills of persistence and endurance that he might not otherwise have found in himself. A child for whom reading comes easily may have a difficult time building a block tower that doesn't fall over. Without the chance to experience the activity that challenges him, he may never learn that failure is okay and something to learn and grow from.
Teachers and other adults should provide opportunity, environment, and strategies that fosters a child's natural path of learning. They should provide opportunities for discovery and opportunities to learn new skills and develop an understanding that mistakes and failure are the natural result of learning experiences, and that it takes time and repeated trials to find success.
A growth mindset is a powerful outlook that our students need to apply to all areas of learning, but as teachers of young students we know that they already have this mindset within them. Have we ever heard a student say that he can't paint? Or build a block tower? Or play make believe in the dramatic play area? We need to reclaim these powerful experiences in which our students are already experiencing a growth mindset and use them to our advantage to teach them about the power of yet and help them to learn the content with the same joy that they experience on the playground or during free play.
This is where an integrated curriculum comes in, by combining different areas of content knowledge into powerful, contextual experiences, we can help children hold onto their positive outlooks and learn the power of yet. Not sure what that looks like? Click here for some ideas.
“Be sure to continue to scroll down to find our brand new song, “I Can’t Do It... Yet” This song and poster are yours to use in your classroom or homeschool setting. Please keep our copyright in mind as you share this catchy song with your students, friends and colleagues.”
Would you like to learn more about Growth Mindset in the classroom? Check out this interview with Heather Hundley and Annie Brock, the author's of The Growth Mindset Coach and be sure to continue to scroll down to find our brand new song, "I Can't Do It... Yet" This song and poster are yours to use in your classroom or homeschool setting. Please keep our copyright in mind as you share this catchy song with your students, friends and colleagues.
The song "I Can't Do It... Yet" is available for you to download to use in your classroom to inspire and teach your students about growth mindset. Please make sure that you credit "Kindergarten Kiosk" or "Lyndsey Jarman" as the author of the song when you use or share it and link back to this website.
Also available at Teachers Pay Teachers!
Growth Mindset is a simple, yet powerful idea that can unlock the potential of all students.
The following monthly lessons will help you create a classroom community that fosters a growth mindset. We’ve spread the activities out over the year, but feel free to use them at whatever pace works best for your classroom!
Table of Contents
August: We Respect Ourselves, Our Classroom, and Each Other
Monthly Overview......................................................................6
Respect Poster.............................................................................7
Respect Song...............................................................................8
“Respect Land” Activity..............................................................9
“We Are All Different” Activity.................................................13
September: We Take Care of Each Other’s Feelings
Monthly Overview.....................................................................14
Care Poster.................................................................................15
Care Song..................................................................................16
“How Do I Feel” Activity..........................................................17
“Name That Feeling” Activity...................................................86
“S/he Feels, S/He Needs” Activity............................................90
“We Take Care of Feelings” Activity.........................................91
October: I Do My Personal Best
Monthly Overview.....................................................................95
Personal Best Poster..................................................................96
Personal Best Song....................................................................97
“I Am” Activity..........................................................................98
“We Work At Our Own Pace” Activity......................................99
“No Put Downs” Activity.........................................................101
“I Can Always Get Better” Activity.........................................102
November: We Can Grow Our Brains
Monthly Overview...................................................................103
Brain Poster..............................................................................104
Brain Song...............................................................................105
“The Brain Makes Connections” Activity...............................106
“I Can Make My Brain Work Hard” Activity.........................107
“My Brain Needs To Work”....................................................108
“My Brain Doesn’t Know How...Yet” Activity.......................110
December: We Love Mistakes
Monthly Overview...................................................................112
Mistakes Poster........................................................................113
Mistakes Song..........................................................................114
“Red Light, Green Light” Activity...........................................115
“Memory” Activity...................................................................116
“My Favorite Mistake” Activity...............................................118
“To The Next Level” Activity..................................................120
January: We Can Persevere
Monthly Overview...................................................................121
Perseverance Poster.................................................................122
Perseverance Song...................................................................123
“Don’t Tell Me” Activity.........................................................124
“My Persistence Pal” Activity.................................................125
“My Goals” Activity...............................................................127
“Toss The Ball” Activity..........................................................129
February: We Can Use Positive Self Talk
Monthly Overview.............................................................130
Positive Talk Poster............................................................131
Positive Talk Song..............................................................132
“I Am Kind To Myself” Activity........................................133
“I Talk Nicely To Myself” Activity....................................137
“What Are They Thinking” Activity...................................139
“I Am My Own Cheerleader” Activity...............................140
March: We Can Do Hard Things
Monthly Overview..............................................................141
Hard Things Poster..............................................................142
Hard Things Song................................................................143
“Tangram Puzzles” Activity.................................................144
“Nonsense Words Bam!” Activity........................................146
“Front Car-Back Car” Activity..............................................157
“Beat The Boss Activity........................................................159
April: We Can Solve Problems
Monthly Overview................................................................160
Problems Poster.....................................................................161
Problems Song......................................................................162
“Use Your Words” Activity...................................................163
“Brainstorm” Activity...........................................................164
“Think About It” Activity.....................................................165
“Take A Deep Breath” Activity.............................................166
May: We Are Always Growing
Monthly Overview.................................................................168
Growing Poster......................................................................169
Growing Song........................................................................170
Portfolio Pages.......................................................................171
Help your students learn the power of persistence and YET with this adorable read and color guided book.
Growth Mindset themed guided readers make learning to read fun and engaging! Kids LOVE these paper themed books!
Offering students a paper book that can be colored and taken home offers students authentic purpose for the guided reading instruction and opportunity to practice techniques at home. Plus your kiddos will love them! You will have students' begging for more by using these engaging guided readers.
Get a companion song free here
Get the full unit here