Growth mindset is a mindset believing that your abilities can be developed through learning and practice. (Carol Dweck) 

The opposite of growth mindset is fixed mindset and the fixed mindset is a mindset believing that your basic abilities and intelligence are fixed things and you can’t improve them.  (Carol Dweck)

We humans have both fixed mindset and growth mindset in us (Carol Dweck) but they operate in different extent in different areas. 

It’s obvious that we want to live with more of growth mindset and it’s even more obvious that we want to help our young children cultivate more of it.

If you think that they are only meaningful to talk about from the school age, think about it again. 

What’s your dominant mindset? 

Fixed mindset or growth mindset?

Did you choose and study that particular mindset so that it can be your dominant mindset?

Probably no.

I think mindset is established over time through personal experiences and influences from environment. And although I believe that mindset is something that can be changed, I want to say that developing a healthy mindset from the beginning – in the early childhood – is very important, because it will be the base for children to accumulate new knowledges in the future and to further develop their sense of self in the world. 

So today I want to introduce some ways to make an environment that could encourage growth mindset in your child.

There are 5 important factors that I believe in growth mindset.

𝟏. Self-esteem

I introduced this sign in my past activity post with a clapping game.

From this sign, children can get the message that it’s either yes or not yet. Yeah, there are definitely things that are hard no, for the questions like “Can I jump off the tree and fly like a bird if I practice?” or “Can I be a princess of the world if I try hard?”. 

But the message that we want to give here is that there is “not yet”, It’s not only yes or no.

✦ Make this sign with constructions papers and a paper straw or any stick, and leave it near your child’s desk.

𝟮. Self-love

When you make a mistake and feel small or not very lovable, awww that’s a hard feeling. It’s hard to manage at the moment and it also makes moving forward hard. 

What do you do when you get this kind of feeling? Umm…… I think I try to remember the times that I was big and lovable. And the unconditional love from family is always the biggest thing I can hold on to.

✦ Find a family photo that is capturing a moment that your child is very happy, surrounded by family, and post it on the wall near your child’s desk.

It’s giving a reminder of the unconditional love from family.

𝟯. Independence

Let your child know that s/he is capable of doing many things, including having a good time. 

If there is nothing planned for the day, it’s okay to leave the day like that sometimes. Children need some time to be bored because that’s the time they can use their brain and creativity. 

Whether we have a great life or not (mainly) depends on us. Whether you have a fun time or not depends on you. 

“Child, you can fill your time with things that you like.” 

✦ Leave the toys and play materials at your child’s level so that s/he can access to them anytime, and don’t be afraid to leave your child bored.

𝟰. Mindfulness

Mindfulness is important because it helps us know ourselves better. 

I believe we are all still in the process of finding ourselves in the world. When you become mindful and look at your thoughts and behaviours with conscious eyes and conscious mind, you can understand yourself better and it helps you in the journey of finding yourself.

It’s the same for children. They are just at the very beginning of the process and with the same kind of mindfulness practice, children can understand themselves better and it will help them develop their sense of self.

Having a strong sense of self is an important factor in developing growth mindset because when you know yourself, you feel more in control. 

Whenever you feel like you don’t know how the day is going, use that time as an opportunity.

✦ Just invest about 10 minutes and sit down with your child.

Close your eyes and throw a question.

Questions can be anything.

What’s the first thing that I did in the morning?

When did I feel happy today?

What was the funny thing happened today?

What do I want to eat for dinner? Why?

Throw a question and ask your child to think about that question together.

This small practice can help your child become more mindful and confident in life. 

𝟱. Creativity

When you are creative, you can bring more ideas to the table. 

You can bring more options than just yes or no. 

When your child faces a challenge, you want your child to be creative with growth mindset and try many possible options to solve the challenge, right? So we want to create an environment where the ideas are welcomed and creativity is loved. 

✦ Choose one of your child’s art work that has your child’s great idea. Put that in a frame and hang it in your child’s room. You want to show your child that her/his idea is so great that it needs to be framed and hung so everybody can see it! 

Environment has an amazing power. Think about your childhood and how much you were affected by it. 

If you are new to the concept of growth mindset and not sure what to do and how to do about it, making an environment that is infused with these growth mindset factors can be a good start. 

I hope you try these and love them!😄

Happy learning and quality time!

Teacher Gela👩🏻🎀