Design Document Worksheet- Growth Mindset
Course Overview
The purpose of this course is to help students understand the value of self-love and confidence. Persistence and grit is necessary for student success. Due to the fact that students lack confidence in their abilities, they often rush through assignments and give up easily. They are demonstrating behaviors that they are not valuing themselves and what they can do. Motivation is lacking because they do not believe that they can accomplish the task. This course will help students to develop their growth mindset and confidence in themselves. The needs analysis allowed me to see that many students believe they are “dumb” or “can't do it” and they vocalize this to others. As a result, they dread doing classwork and spend less time trying to understand, but rather, rushing to get through it and not producing quality work. I believe that this course will help students see their own value, as well as how the skills they already possess will contribute to their success if they truly believe and apply them.
Target Audience
The target audience for this course is a 4th grade class at a HI DOE public elementary school. The learner analysis was based on classroom observations and a discussion on the topic. The learner analysis resulted in this course being centered around attitudinal characteristics. Through observations, I often hear students tell others they are “dumb” or “stupid” or “it’s too hard for me”. The course will also target the behaviors related to personal benefit to learning. Students will see how assignments and activities provide them personal benefits and develop their individual learning without needing something in return. Attitude and understanding of the personal benefits of learning will be addressed in this course by developing the learners’ growth mindset and positive self-image.
Course Content Summary
Lesson 1: What is Growth Mindset? | ||
Expected Results | This lesson was designed to provide background information about growth mindset for students to begin to reflect on their current mindset. | |
Terminal Learning Objective (TLO) | Students will be able to recognize language related to growth mindset. | |
Enabling Learning Objectives (ELO) | I can define growth mindset. | I can create phrases that reflect growth mindset. |
Lesson Topics |
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Instructional Strategies | Group Reading: Attached below. Students will work in small groups to complete a T-Chart to compare Growth and Fixed Mindset phrases. Students will be given a fixed mindset phrase, and they will need to come up with a phrase that reflects growth mindset. (30 minutes) | Read Aloud: After the Fall Group brainstorm: How did Humpty Dumpty demonstrate growth mindset? (anchor chart and post-it notes) (15 minutes) |
Lesson 2: Open to Continuous Learning | ||
Expected Results | This lesson was designed to encourage students to reflect on their own experiences and how they may be affecting their mindset. They will apply the language learned in the last lesson and apply them to the new experiences they may encounter. | |
Terminal Learning Objective (TLO) | Students will explore their own mindset and how they will practice growth mindset in their daily lives. | |
Enabling Learning Objectives (ELO) | I can respond to situations and reflect on how the people involved might demonstrate growth mindset. | I can reflect on my own mindset. |
Lesson Topics |
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Instructional Strategies | Students will individually examine a variety of different situations and reflect on how initial feelings/emotions can affect how people react. (15 minutes) | Students will create a two-part art piece that is split down the middle: one side will show them in a situation when they demonstrated a fixed mindset in the past, the other side will show them practicing growth mindset during a “hard thing”. On the back of the art piece, they will explain and reflect on their piece with these questions:
(Art will be created outside of the allotted time for this course. The art along with the reflective piece on the back will be used to assess the students’ understanding of growth mindset.) |
A growth mindset views intelligence and talent as qualities that can be developed over time.
This doesn’t mean that people with a growth mindset assume that they could be the next Einstein—there are still variables in what we can all achieve. A growth mindset simply means that people believe their intelligence and talents can be improved through effort and actions.
A growth mindset also recognizes that setbacks are a necessary part of the learning process and allows people to ‘bounce back’ by increasing motivational effort.
This kind of mindset sees ‘failings’ as temporary and changeable, and as such, a growth mindset is crucial for learning, resilience, motivation, and performance.
Those who adopt a growth mindset are more likely to:
In a fixed mindset, people believe attributes, such as talent and intelligence, are fixed—that's to say, they believe they’re born with the level of intelligence and natural talents they’ll reach in adulthood.
A fixed-minded person usually avoids challenges in life, gives up easily, and becomes intimidated or threatened by the success of other people. This is in part because a fixed mindset doesn't see intelligence and talent as something you develop—it's something you "are".
Fixed mindsets can lead to negative thinking. For instance, a person with a fixed mindset might fail at a task and believe it's because they aren't smart enough to do it. Whereas a growth mindset person might fail at the same task and believe it's because they need to spend more time practicing.
People with a fixed mindset believe individual traits cannot change, no matter how much effort you put in, and are more likely to: