Just one more week to go and summer school will be finished and I can finally REST... I'm just going to pretend my principal didn't email me yesterday and tell me my room was ready whenever I wanted to come in, get unpacked and set up!
Back in June I had the honor of attending a professional development in which my good friend Adrienne was presenting how she cultivates a Growth Mindset in her first grade classroom. Which got me to thinking about what I've done and can do in my own classroom. This week I want to focus on developing a Growth Mindset in the classroom.
Growth Mindset in the Classroom
1. Learning Environment- My go to resource for teaching this is the Mindsets in the Classroom book and their Resource book. Here's what it says about the learning environment:
Teacher believes that all students can achieve at high levels.
Deliberate instruction of perseverance, resiliency, grit and persistence.
Teacher feedback/praise is based on effort, process and strategies used.
Students are given opportunities to safely struggle.
Failure is looked at in a positive light.
Grades and scores are not emphasized.
Students are saying "I don't understand this yet. I'm am not going to give up. If I practice, I will get it."
Teacher is saying "Let's think of a new strategy. Yet. I can see the effort you have put into this. Keep Trying."
2. Parent Communication- It is very important to communicate growth mindset to parents so that they understand and support this mindset at home as well. I give out this newsletter to my parents at Back to School Night. I also cover it in my presentation. This can be downloaded for free from Teachers Pay Teachers.
3. Literature- There are so many books that can be aligned to growth mindset. I like to read them during morning meeting. A few of my favorites are:
Mindset Messages(I highly recommend doing a monthly mindset message in your classroom!)
Do you think you could implement any of these ideas in your classroom? Have an idea to help cultivate a growth mindset in your students? Leave a comment here or hop on over to our Facebook page and leave a comment.
After a long and arduous school year, I am thrilled to be on summer vacation...even though I've taught a week of Camp Invention and I'm currently teaching summer school. I'm excited to have time to get back to blogging and I'm super excited about this new blog series, so let's jump right into it!
Positive Classroom Enviornment
1. The main component of creating a positive classroom environment starts with you. I know... I know... easier said than done. But when I start to get ready in the morning and can't find the energy to have a positive attitude, when my stomach starts to hurt the moment I get in the car, and those times, though rare, when I actually cry all the way to school...I walk into my classroom and I'm immediately uplifted. I've tried my best to make my classroom a welcoming, motivating environment. It doesn't take much, there are many resources out there for you and some great printable posters on Teachers Pay Teachers. I especially like these Positive Posters and posters from Digital Divide and Conquer. So with the bright and inspirational decor {and the smell of my essential oils} I can usually turn my frown, upside down.
2. I implemented the Super Improver Wall from Whole Brain Teaching years ago. My student teacher this past year loved it so much that she's implementing it with her first graders next year. With the SIW, students can earn stickers to level up the wall for anything you want. So pass out those stickers, the students love them! If you want to read more about it, check out my blog post here.
3. I implemented Brag Tags {SMART Tags} in my classroom two years ago. Students can earn them for a variety of reasons but I especially like to give out the tags that relate to positive choices and character traits. Search the Teaching Oasis for Brag Tags you can use!
4. I bought this Positive Notes bundle last summer and I LOVED writing my students notes daily to encourage and celebrate them. I got great feedback from the parents of students who were absolutely excited to receive these notes. I used the square size and just purchased the clear sticker pocket sleeves from Target to put on students desks so I can slide the notes in them at the end of the day for students to read in the morning. You can download a free set of Fun Pun Notes here. Are you and your student's into Emoji's... she's got a set for that too!
Do you think you could implement any of these ideas in your classroom? Have an idea to create a positive learning environment? Leave a comment here or hop on over to our Facebook page and leave a comment.
