“Mistakes are our friends!” Is such an important message to share with our learners. Every year, I get on my soap box and share the importance of mistakes in our classroom. It is always nice to hear educators and researchers share information in regards to the brain. Knowing now that not just mistakes , but awareness of mistakes activates and grows the brain is fascinating. It reminds me to not only celebrate when a mistake is made, but also prepare and provide opportunities for students to make mistakes in the classroom.
I also appreciated the importance Carol Dweck and Jo Boaler put on the word, yet. So many students and adults think if something is easy for them, then they are smart. But really they should feel cheated from an experience to grow and learn. One of my students came in the other morning and asked,”Ms. Waring, do you have any challenges for me today?” I would never have done that as a student. I was so worried about getting the right answer and scoring well on my math facts tests. So I do not think we need to educate our young learners about growth mindset. I hope the adults in schools and at home can change their mindsets from how they grew up. Parents and teachers should focus on the hard work and effort put into student work rather than the perfection and score they get.
Sessions 3 and 4 reminded me of the importance of providing opportunities for students to make mistakes, get messy, and grow as learners. We’ll continue to make “challenge the new comfort zone."
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