It’s Good to Struggle
Adults know the most rewarding experiences in life often involve significant struggle and sacrifice at some stage. Without the ability to struggle opportunities become very limited. A fear of struggling will stop students from trying something they are not 100% certain they will succeed at with ease. Mindset is the most important element to success, both in the short and long term.
Students across the Year 3-6 world have been learning about the importance of a positive mindset in Maths. Student in a Year 5 class were challenged to make the shape pictured using one piece of paper. They found this demanding, and they struggled, declaring the task was ‘impossible’. This kind of struggle is so important for children. Synapses in the brain are fired when they are challenged in this way and this is when the brain develops and learning occurs. It can be tempting to rescue students in these situations and tell them the answer, but this won’t help them in the long term. Students then watched a video clip of themselves doing this task and identified fixed and growth mindset behaviours that they had demonstrated. Their sense of achievement on completing the task was much greater than if they’d been given the answer at the first sign of struggle during the lesson.
If we can help a student feel more comfortable with struggling, we can break them free from the fear of ‘having a go’
Lorem Ipsum