Helping Your Child to Develop a Growth Mindset - A Guide for Parents
In summary, people with a fixed mindset believe that intelligence and ability are fixed – something that we are born with and that we can’t really do anything about. People with a growth mindset believe that intelligence and ability can be developed through persistence, effort, learning from our mistakes and trying different strategies.
In St Richard’s we are embracing Growth Mindset approach - you may well have heard about it from your child. What is Growth Mindset theory, what are its benefits, and how can you encourage your child to develop a growth mindset?
Growth Mindset Theory
In a nutshell, it is all about what individuals believe about their ability to learn new things. Many people have a ‘fixed’ mindset, which leads them to believe that intelligence and abilities are fixed, and that a person cannot improve upon their ability to do something. People with a fixed mindset will often say things like, ‘There’s no point in trying, because I won’t be able to do it,’ or ‘I’ve never been any good at...’ They will give up on challenging tasks easily, or avoid activities they have found difficult in the past. They tend to focus heavily on the result of a task, rather than the effort required to achieve it.
Research shows that humans’ brains have a quality known as ‘neuroplasticity’ – in other words, it is actually possible to learn new things and make new connections between the neurons in our brains, even as we progress through into adulthood. People who innately recognise this fact tend to bounce back quickly from failures and setbacks and are more likely to explore how they can get better at doing something. They are described as having a ‘growth’ mindset; they do not define themselves by the outcomes of tasks but by the effort put in.
Why Develop a Growth Mindset?
It makes sense that having a growth mindset is likely to lead to greater emotional well-being. People with a fixed mindset tend to feel that they fail at things because they are ‘just not good enough’. They feel they have no control over their abilities and are helpless in the face of difficulties, and this can lead to self-esteem issues. Ironically, it is often the ‘more able’ pupils in a school who have a fixed mindset as they are used to finding many things relatively easy; so when faced with something more challenging they will often avoid it completely or suffer damage to their self-esteem. Pupils who find learning more challenging, however, will often have more of a growth mindset, as they are used to setbacks; they are more able to celebrate small gains and improvements rather than focussing on results.
Growth Mindset in St Richard’s
In St Richard’s, we are using growth mindset theory in our everyday interactions with pupils. We encourage them to use setbacks and difficulties to motivate them; we celebrate effort rather than results and encourage pupils to accept challenges with a sense of achievement for trying.
Examples of some things we are doing are:
Helping Your Child Develop a Growth Mindset
Clearly, it will be beneficial for children if these messages are also being reinforced at home. Try these simple strategies:
Don’t say |
Instead say |
‘You’re a natural!’ |
‘You’re getting better because you’re working so hard!’ |
‘Is that too hard for you?’ |
‘It’s challenging you, so you must be growing your brain.’ |
‘You’re so clever!’ |
‘You always try so hard to do your best.’ |
‘Not everyone is good at that, just do your best.’ |
‘If it’s hard, it’s because you are learning something new.’ |
‘Why did you get these ones wrong?’ |
‘Let’s look at the ones you got wrong and find out why.’ |
Similarly, encourage your child to use growth mindset language. Try these:
Don’t say |
Instead say |
‘I’m no good at this.’ |
‘What am I missing?’ |
‘I’m really good at this.’ |
‘I’m working hard at this.’ |
‘I give up.’ |
‘What strategies have I learnt to help me with this?’ |
‘This is too hard.’ |
‘This may take some time and effort.’ |
‘I’ll never be as clever as her.’ |
‘I’m going to work out how she does it so I can do it too.’ |
‘I can’t do Maths.’ |
‘How can I train my brain to be better at Maths?’ |
Finally, don’t be concerned if this language and way of thinking is very new to you, in your own life and in your interactions with your child. It is never too late to change the way you think, and even a small change will have a positive outcome. Try it out and see what happens. Remember – it’s not about the end result, it’s about the effort you put in to get there!