Johanna Busch
Habits and Mindsets
Students reference their teacher’s guidance in organization, study habits, character traits and values (like persistence, striving for accuracy, etc.). They have internalized these traits beyond just talking about them which has led to personal growth on the part of the student.
Introduction
My role as a teacher extends far beyond teaching content knowledge. It is my job to help students grow as people and gain the skills and mindsets that they need to be successful in their academic and professional careers. In my first year of teaching, I was unsure of how to do this and did not provide adequate or consistent instruction around habits and mindsets. In my second year, I have made the explicit instruction and reinforcement of habits and mindsets a much more central part of my classroom. I start reinforcing habits of mind through daily morning meeting activities and continue throughout the day. Habits and mindsets are both integrated into content and taught on their own.
In this section, I will specifically discuss how I have taught and reinforced the habits of mind or listening with understanding and empathy and persisting.
Conclusion
Teaching the whole child is central to my teaching philosophy. I consistently reinforce habits of mind in the classroom to ensure that students are growing personally, socially, and emotionally, not just academically. Furthermore, implementing these habits and mindsets has helped my students come together and build community cohesion. I have chosen to focus on these habits of mind because I have found that they are the ones that my young students struggle the most with. Furthermore, I think that persisting and listening with understanding and empathy connect with many other habits of mind. Practicing these will help my students grow as students and as people.