Training your children to learn about the growth mindset is essential to their development and eventual success in life. The key is to slowly teach them early on in life so they don’t have a hard time adjusting in the future. This means that you can train your children even when they’re still very young.
As a parent, your role in your children’s lives is vital in determining whether they can be successful or not. You have to be encouraging, patient, and supportive of them. Words of affirmation are also essential in cultivating a growth mindset. While your kids may not excel in everything that they do, you need to explain to them that this setback is a learning curve and they can do better next time.
There are a lot of ways to teach or foster a growth mindset for children. There are different kinds of activities you can let them do, like identifying which behavior is good for them and would help them in the long run. There are also practical activities or ways in which you can teach your children about having a growth mindset and how to cultivate it.
When your kids are younger, like toddlers or even before they become toddlers, they are already capable of simple problem-solving. Take standing as an example. It is normal for children below one-year-old to try and stand on their own. Without a doubt, they will fall several times before they can stand up straight unassisted. As a parent, you should encourage your child to try again and not give up. This will imbibe perseverance and patience to their young minds. By doing so, you are already slowly inculcating in their minds that they can push themselves further through constant practice and with determination.
Puzzles
Having educational tools or toys at home is also helpful. One of the things you can try with your toddlers is wooden puzzles. There are different kinds of wooden puzzles or even puzzles in general. For toddlers, you can let them try putting the correct animal on to the wooden puzzle. It’s not that hard for their age and this will test their hand to eye coordination and problem-solving skills. Make sure it is also fun while your toddler tries to find the correct outline or shape so he or she doesn’t get bored and does not give up in the process.
Dance Interpretation
Another activity you can try with toddlers is a simple dance interpretation. There are many action songs that you can teach your toddlers. There are now dedicated YouTube channels just for that alone. To make it even better, you can both try to create your simple steps for a song your toddler likes.
Arts and Crafts
When your child has grown from toddler to preschooler, arts and crafts is one activity to teach a growth mindset. You can have them put cut up colored paper onto a drawing of a bare pizza slice or fruits. You can also let them make a simple house made of ice cream sticks. You can also use clay and form flowers, fruits and vegetables and even people.
Books and Worksheets
Another activity you can try is to use a coloring book, tracing worksheets, and drawing books. Painting is also one activity you can try. Use water-based painting and let your child interpret a simple painting. You can have him or she gives still life painting a try. Tell your child that he or she can make it as close as possible to the painting but encourage creativity and out of the box thinking. The objective is to teach your child patience and to unlock his or her critical thinking and creative potential.
While doing the aforementioned activities, you can have a conversation or discussion with your child and take it as a chance you can talk about having a growth mindset. You can start by asking your child if she commits mistakes at school and what he or she does when that happens. Make sure to let your child know that while they make mistakes, there are different ways they can improve themselves. Do not use open-ended questions so they are somehow forced to think and contribute to an action plan you are trying to set for them.
Allow Them to Play
Another fun and practical activity in which you can introduce or teach your children the growth mindset is to allow them to play. Whether you choose to let them play a logic game or a more physical one, it is up to you as a parent. You can let them try Boggle, Sudoku, or have them play Jenga, you have a lot of options to choose from. Teach them to find beauty in the process rather than just the outcome.
When they’re much older and can understand a bit more, say they reached their teens already, try to teach them to celebrate others’ success. While it is good to teach them a little competitiveness, they must learn that losing is temporary and to be happy for others’ wins even if at their expense. They must realize that they can’t win all the time. By teaching them this, they do not grow up bitter about their circumstances and they will see it as an opportunity to grow and better themselves. Through this, they will be able to adjust to any situation that is presented to them and can digest it and choose the best approach to solve the circumstances.
Allow them to be responsible
Another activity or skill that fosters the growth mindset is to teach them how to be accountable for their actions and decisions. They have to learn to accept that in every action there are consequences and they have to see it constructively.
Final Words
In closing, it is important that as parents, you know how your role will impact your child’s life positively or negatively. Training your child to develop a growth mindset early on his or her life will not only help him or her with what’s at hand but will also prepare for his or her future, as a whole.
