The Growth Mindset Classroom-Ready Resource Book: A Teacher's Toolkit for For Encouraging Grit and Resilience in All Students
By Annie Brock and Heather Hundley
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About this ebook
Thanks to the revolutionary power of growth mindsets, teachers everywhere have been helping their students realize their boundless potential. However, with busy schedules and crowded classes, infusing growth mindset principles into your lessons every day is sometimes easier said than done. From the best-selling authors of The Growth Mindset Coach, this new book makes implementing mindset strategies easier than ever before.
With over 50 ready-to-use resources all focused on fostering growth mindsets, The Growth Mindset Classroom-Ready Resource Book, is your new go-to teaching assistant. These resilient- and grit-building ideas include:
- Interactive lesson plans
- Creative conversation starters
- Mindful reflection exercises
- Classroom management strategies
A perfect supplement for any teacher looking for additional support in banishing fixed mindsets and instilling a growth mindset culture in their classroom.
Annie Brock
Annie Brock is a former high school English teacher, library media specialist, and coauthor of the best-selling book The Growth Mindset Coach. She currently works as a freelance writer and educational technology consultant. Annie has a degree in journalism from Kansas State University and earned her secondary English education credentials from Washburn University. She is also the coauthor of The Growth Mindset Playbook, In Other Words: Phrases for Growth Mindset and My Growth Mindset Journal, and the author of Introduction to Google Classroom.
Read more from Annie Brock
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The Growth Mindset Classroom-Ready Resource Book - Annie Brock
SECTION 1
ALL ABOUT GROWTH MINDSET
Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of being.
—John Wooden
In this section, we’ll focus on the concept of growth mindset and the science behind it. These lessons range from introductory vocabulary to critical thinking exercises that require examining our own experiences to see growth mindset at work in our lives. Once this foundational piece is in place, you can move on to subsequent sections that take a deeper dive into concepts, skills, and abilities essential to cultivating growth mindsets in your classroom.
LESSON 1
Mindset Assessment
Duration: 15–30 minutes
TEACHER TALK
We know what you’re thinking—ugh. Another assessment? But do not fear, this super-simple, straightforward mindset assessment has no right or wrong answers. You can (and should) take it right alongside your students. The purpose of this assessment is to gauge whether the test-taker leans toward a fixed or growth mindset in their overall attitudes and beliefs about learning. Use it as a foundational tool for examining the entrance into the mindsets. Once students (as well as colleagues, parents, and anyone else who wants to take the assessment) begin to understand their own beliefs about intelligence and how a fixed and growth mindset might influence achievement, you can begin the process of dismantling barriers to a growth-mindset environment and building practices that promote growth and improvement.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to identify whether they tend toward a fixed or growth mindset.
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS
The resources and materials necessary to conduct this lesson are:
Copies of the Mindset Assessment
Growth Mindset and Fixed Mindset definitions
METHOD
DO
Hand out a copy of the Mindset Assessment. Ask the students to put a check mark next to the statements they believe to be true. After all students have concluded the assessment, they will calculate how many odd-numbered statements had a check mark and how many even-numbered statements had a check mark. The odd-numbered statements represent fixed mindset thinking; the even-numbered statements represent growth-mindset thinking. If they have more of one than the other, it is likely they default to that mindset when dealing with life events and challenging situations. Share the definitions of growth and fixed mindset with students.
Growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and other qualities, abilities, and talents can be improved with effort, learning, and dedication over time.
Fixed mindset is the belief that intelligence and other qualities, abilities, and talents are fixed traits that cannot be significantly developed.
SAY
Research has shown that when students approach their school work and other pursuits with a growth mindset, they get better results. We will be talking a lot about growth mindset this year. I want you to have the ability to call on your growth mindset when you need it—like when you are taking on a hard challenge, solving a really difficult problem, or when you feel like you want to give up.
If your score leaned toward a fixed mindset, that’s okay. We are all a mixture of fixed and growth mindsets. (Here, you have an opportunity to share personal examples of situations in which a growth or fixed mindset impacted your outcome.) But we’re going to start practicing how to use our growth mindsets as we approach challenges and learning in our classroom, because I believe you can learn anything, and I want you to believe that too.
CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING
Review the students’ Mindset Assessments for completeness and accuracy of calculations. Check for understanding of fixed mindset and growth mindset definitions.
SUPPLEMENTAL/EXTENSION IDEAS
EXIT TICKET
Ask students for examples of when they had a growth mindset and/or a fixed mindset in their own lives.
WATCH
Growth Mindset for Students (1 of 5)
by ClassDojo on YouTube
WATCH
RSA Animate: How to Help Every Child Fulfill Their Potential
by The RSA on YouTube
DO
Have students take copies of the assessment to parents to start an at-home discussion.
MINDSET ASSESSMENT
Directions: Put a check mark next to all the statements you agree with.
______ 1. There are just some things I will never be good at.
______ 2. When I make a mistake, I try to learn from it.
______ 3. When others do better than me, I feel threatened.
______ 4. I enjoy getting out of my comfort zone.
______ 5. When I show others I’m smart or talented, I feel successful.
______ 6. I feel inspired by the success of others.
______ 7. I feel good when I can do something others cannot.
______ 8. It is possible to change how intelligent you are.
______ 9. You shouldn’t have to try to be smart—you just are or you’re not.
______ 10. I enjoy taking on a new challenge or task.
______ 11. If something is extremely difficult, it means it’s probably not for me.
______ 12. When I fail at something, I usually just try again.
______ 13. Some people are just born good at some things, and that’s okay.
______ 14. Anybody can improve if they put in the effort.
______ 15. It makes me feel good to show off what I’m good at.
______ 16. I like taking on a challenge.
______ 17. When someone criticizes me, I just ignore it.
______ 18. When someone criticizes me, I try to listen with an open mind.
______ 19. I don’t like asking questions, because people might think I’m dumb.
______ 20. I am not afraid to ask questions about things I don’t understand.
GROWTH MINDSET
The belief that intelligence and other qualities, abilities, and talents can be improved with effort, learning, and dedication over time.
FIXED MINDSET
The belief that intelligence and other qualities, abilities, and talents are fixed traits that cannot be significantly developed.
LESSON 2
What Is Growth Mindset?
Duration: 40–60 minutes
TEACHER TALK
Teaching mindset begins with giving your students the vocabulary and understanding of the mindsets. When taught explicitly even the youngest learners can understand the differences between growth and fixed mindset. Beyond learning the textbook definition, it’s also important that students are able to conceptualize growth and fixed mindsets at work in their own lives. Continued reflection on student beliefs about their ability to improve their intelligence, skills, and abilities is essential to cultivating growth mindsets in the classroom. Once you introduce the ideas of fixed and growth mindset, bring them into your daily teaching, discussion, and feedback as often as possible. This continued reference to the mindsets during authentic learning times will help your students cement the notion that their effort and perseverance have a direct impact on what they can achieve as learners.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to define growth mindset and fixed mindset and provide examples of each.
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS
The resources and materials necessary to conduct this lesson are:
Copies of My Fixed and Growth Mindsets
Pencils or pens
Nontoxic markers
Growth Mindset and Fixed Mindset definitions
White paper or white board
T-Chart (Draw a T-Chart on a whiteboard or poster.)
Projector
Internet-enabled device
YouTube access
METHOD
DO
Activate prior knowledge by first asking students to fill out the first section of the My Fixed and Growth Mindsets. Have them write or draw about a time they tried really hard at something and got better. Then, ask students to think of a time when something felt hard and they gave up because they believed they could not get better. Ask students to write or draw about that experience.
Ask for volunteers to share their examples with the class. A Pair-Share would also be appropriate for sharing individual stories. Tell students that the examples they provided are examples of the fixed and growth mindsets.
Define growth mindset: Growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and other qualities, abilities, and talents can be improved with effort, learning, and dedication over time.
Define fixed mindset: Fixed mindset is the belief that intelligence and other qualities, abilities, and talents are fixed traits that cannot be significantly developed.
Read the following two stories to the students:
When Jude joined the basketball team, he was excited, but at the first practice, Jude felt embarrassed that all the other players were better than him. He struggled to dribble the ball and his shots barely made it to the basket. His coach asked him to stay after practice to work on some shots, but Jude was tired and he thought it was unfair that no one else had to stay after, so he refused. At the team’s first game, Jude sat on the bench for much of it and didn’t score any points. After the game, he asked his mom if he could quit. When his parents asked why, Jude said he just wasn’t cut out for basketball.
When Erica joined the softball team, she was nervous. She had never played softball before but really wanted to try something new. At the first practice, she realized she had a lot of learning to do. Slowly, Erica learned the rules of the game, how to swing the bat, and how to throw. She often asked her dad to help her practice in the yard after dinner. During the first game, Erica struck out every time and missed two pop flies. She asked her dad to take her to the batting cages and she stayed after practice with the coach to practice fielding. During the last game of the season, Erica fielded two balls almost perfectly and hit a double that helped tie the game. She sat on the bench as well, and even though she knew she wasn’t the best player on the team she was proud of herself for how much better she had become. She looked forward to joining the softball team again next year.
Now, make a T-Chart (see page 14
). Ask students to examine the two stories and give examples of fixed and growth mindset. (Examples of fixed Mindset: Jude quit the team, Jude wouldn’t stay after with his coach, Jude was worried about the other players instead of himself. Examples of growth mindset: Erica practiced at home, Erica had a positive attitude, Erica stayed late to work on her skills, Erica didn’t give up when she messed up.)
WATCH
You Can Learn Anything
by Khan Academy on YouTube
SAY
In the video, it said that complex things are built on basic ideas that anyone can learn. Let’s take a look at three people we are all familiar with and come up with ideas of things they had to learn first before they became great. (Make a list for each.)
Lebron James
Possible answers: He had to learn to dribble, shoot the ball, walk, run, etc.
Dr. Seuss
Possible answers: He had to learn to write, draw, invent rhymes, etc.
Beyoncé
Possible answers: She had to learn to read music, dance, hit musical notes, etc.
Note: You can substitute any recognizable personalities that may resonate with your students.
ASK
What do you think would have happened if LeBron James didn’t score any points in his first game and quit? Or Beyoncé gave up because she lost a singing contest? Or someone told Dr. Seuss that his books were silly and no one would like them so he stopped writing altogether? (Possible answers: LeBron wouldn’t be one of the greatest players of all time; Beyoncé might not have pursued her dream to sing; Dr. Seuss wouldn’t have published any books!)
All people struggle before they stride, especially people who eventually become great. Growth mindset is believing you can do anything and working hard to get better. Fixed mindset is believing you can’t get better and giving up.
CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING
Determine whether or not students know