It’s Move to Learn, Monday! Today, I am sharing one of my favourite books, How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers. Why is it a favourite you ask? It is a favourite as it allows me to do two great things with kids – 1) move and 2) foster a growth mindset. The term growth mindset was coined by Carol Dueck approximately 30 years ago. Dr. Dueck was fascinated by children’s diverse attitudes surrounding learning, success, and failure. She noticed that children differed in how they responded to failure. Some children quickly rebounded in the face of failure while other children seemed devastated by even the smallest setbacks. After studying the behaviours of literally thousands of children, Dr. Dweck described children as having a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. Children with a growth mindset believe that effort enables them to learn, get stronger and smarter. Therefore they put in extra time and effort, which leads to higher achievement. Given such results, who doesn’t want ideas, activities and literature that support the development of a growth mindset in our children?
When introducing How to Catch a Star to children, I start by talking about growth mindset and how our brains grow when we encounter something new and challenging. To emphasize this point, I have all of the children squat down and hug their knees (like a ball or seed). I then encourage the kids to grow every time they see or hear about the boy trying a different way to catch a star. With every example and every attempt the boy uses to catch a star, we grow and stretch until we all end up standing on our tip toes reaching for the sky. It is an awesome activity and reinforces problem solving and perseverance.
f you would like to access the book, you can find it here http://amzn.to/2FN1vi4 It is a lovely read and a wonderful way to sneak a movement break into the day. Enjoy!