Teaching Growth Mindset in the Classroom

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Welcome back to the Not So Wimpy Teacher podcast!

Have you ever heard a student in your classroom say something like this?

“I’m not good at math” or “it’s too hard” or “I can’t.”

Yep. Me too.

Did you know, research shows that students in the US commonly give up quickly on difficult tasks? These limiting mindsets can make it very difficult to teach new and challenging skills in the classroom.

In this episode, I want to talk about how you can change their mindset so that your students aren’t afraid to take on challenging tasks or problems. 

The secret? You have to teach your students how to have a growth mindset. We’ll talk all about what growth mindset is vs. fixed mindset and how you can teach it in your classroom. 

Episode 73 Takeaways: 

• Recent studies show that the brain grows when we practice new things and give it challenges. 
• A growth mindset is the opposite of a fixed mindset.  Someone with a fixed mindset avoids challenges.
• Change your feedback on tasks so students understand that their success is a result of their willingness to work hard on challenging tasks.
• It’s important to challenge all of your students, not just the high achievers. 
• Let your students see you try new things and be open about what you are trying and the challenges you are taking.  Modeling is the easiest way to teach new things. 
• Share growth mindset, books, and activities with your students.
• It’s important to help our students know what growth mindset is and have conversations about it so it becomes part of our classroom.

By focusing so heavily on right and wrong answers, sometimes we forget to teach our students that getting the right answer might not be the most important thing. By teaching them growth mindset, we teach them to be more resilient, and better equipped to take on new challenges. 

Don’t forget to check out our google slides resource that is packed with interactive growth mindset activities. You can use it in your virtual or in-person classroom. 

I’d love to know what other ideas you come up with, so head over to our Instagram @notsowimpyteacher to share those with me! 

Resources Mentioned: 

After the Fall

Rosie Revere Engineer

Jabari Jumps

Interactive Growth Mindset Google Slides

Want more Not So Wimpy Teacher tips and tricks? Find tons of resources on our website at www.notsowimpyteacher.com and follow me on Instagram @notsowimpyteacher where I share daily!