Naomi Meredith  00:00

How do you teach growth mindset activities in STEM? A growth mindset is one of those big buzzwords in the education space. But in my opinion, a growth mindset is one of those soft skills that you should definitely be teaching and STEM. In this episode, we'll be going over strategies of ways to teach a growth mindset in your STEM space and how it can also be a natural fit into what you are already teaching. 

Naomi Meredith  00:59

Before we get started, here are a couple of fun announcements for you. We are really close to launching the first virtual workshop for 2023. This is going to be a great time to learn and connect with other STEM teachers and meet with me, and I definitely don't want you to miss out on this opportunity. So make sure to join the waitlist so you can be the first one to know when it's open. You can grab that at Naomimeredith.com/workshopwaitlist. Also, we have been on the air with this podcast for almost six months now. I appreciate all of the reviews that have been shared. But I know it's been a little bit of time, and you've been a longtime listener, maybe you haven't said anything yet. So I would love for you to take a few moments to write a review, I would love to start reading those on the podcast and setting up a fun giveaway for those of you who write a review. So if you wouldn't mind going into Apple podcasts, let me know how this podcast has been helpful for you. Then I'm going to think of something fun that you can earn in return if I read yours on an episode, so I definitely would appreciate it. Thank you so much. Let's jump into this episode. 

Naomi Meredith  02:21

If you're a classroom teacher before jumping into your K through five STEM room like me, a growth mindset is probably not a new concept. I know I have been talking about this for years, especially when I was teaching third grade. We really focused on it, especially during the back-to-school time. Now you and your STEM room are probably really thinking about a growth mindset and how important it is to teach in your lessons. What I have found really interesting in the STEM space is that the growth mindset is really tested in different ways compared to the regular classroom, especially when kids are doing things that are hands-on and creative. I feel like it can be such a vulnerable situation when you're being creative. Because you just really hope that your ideas work. When they don't, it's really hard to really persevere through them. This is a life skill for a lot of adults as well. So how do you teach this concept of a growth mindset in your STEM space when you typically only see kids for a short amount of time? Well, I have some different strategies for you, where we're really going to talk about how you can isolate these lessons, but also how you can embed them in your practice because, most likely, the classroom teachers are talking about it as well. You might need to attack the growth mindset in a different way. But also make it actionable and meaningful for the short amount of time you have with kids. So let's jump in. 

Naomi Meredith  03:56

When teaching a growth mindset, you can really focus on having isolated lessons. What I mean by this is you are teaching a growth mindset skill, and you are isolating it. That is what your whole lesson is about. These are really great to sprinkle in throughout the school year during back-to-school after long breaks. Because, of course, a growth mindset is going to change as kids are getting older. Also, it depends on the type of project that they are going to be doing. So having isolated lessons can be very helpful. This can also help build that community in your classroom. Since you don't see them typically every day, this is a great chance to get to know the kids in a different way and really set up those expectations and processes when they're in your classroom. One way you can have an isolated lesson is to have a STEM and stories lesson. There are a variety of books out there. You can do this in a couple of ways. Maybe we start off with a book where the character is demonstrating or not demonstrating a growth mindset and a variety of situations. Or maybe you have a story that is one of your favorites, but the related activity is demonstrating a growth mindset. For example, one book that I absolutely love where a character is demonstrating a growth mindset is After the Fall by Dan Santat. This book is so cute where the main character Humpty Dumpty, well, it's after he fell off the wall, and he's really trying to decide if he should get back up on that wall again. So I'm not going to give away the ending. But this is a great book to use in your classroom. Now maybe you have a fun STEM story, maybe it's about building things that you would like to read to your students. But then the related activity is where students have to practice a growth mindset skill, I recommend listening to my first guest interview that I actually had on this podcast with my friend Jen Sevy, where she talked about engineering design sprints, which not only are you practicing the Engineering Design Process, but all of these challenges tested kids' ways of how to demonstrate a growth mindset. So this can be a great opportunity as well. 

Naomi Meredith  06:17

Another way that you can have an isolated growth mindset activity in your classroom is to have a specific growth mindset skill that students are going to be focusing on, and the lesson is directly related to it. So very similar to the STEM and stories, but this time, you might not have a book. One of the ways that I do this is a growth mindset I have in my classroom is that we are creators with technology, not just consumers. So we will talk about what that means to be a creator, maybe if we are working on something with 3D printing, we're not just going to be looking in the library of 3D prints and printing off random things. But we are really practicing creating something out of nothing and being proud of the work that we are doing. So this is really helping students understand what that growth mindset means and how it's going to be used in our lesson. Another growth mindset that I like to use in my classroom is that we are problem solvers, not problem makers. A way that I could connect this lesson with my students is by teaching them various specific ways of how they can troubleshoot most types of technology. I have some fun posters that are visual that you can hang up in your classroom, where it lists out these typical troubleshooting steps or have them individualized as well. Some of those things might be turning the device on and off, exiting out of tabs, restarting the device, those types of things that we really want students to be problem-solving with, this is a great opportunity to connect it with a growth mindset. 

Naomi Meredith  07:58

Now that you have those core lessons in place, those are things that I do mainly at the beginning of the year or when I am starting something brand new with students. But most of the time I do this second method, and it is embedding the growth mindset strategies, really when you're embedding them and that they are naturally taking place in your classroom. This is where I feel like it's the most authentic, and students really are understanding what it means to have a growth mindset in various situations. Think about how you can have a growth mindset as a core system in your classroom. For example, I use the system to ask three before me, you might have this happen, especially when it's something new. And it even depends on the class that you have. Some are needier than others. But I really try to push students to ask three before me, I am more of the guide in the classroom. And I'm there to really handle the tough situations and facilitate the learning. But the kids in STEM are really quick learners, and more than likely, they're very excited to help. This not only helps the students who are needing the help, but it's also helping them advocate for themselves and use their words to learn how to speak with their peers and how to communicate the problems that they are having. But it's also a great experience for the students who are helping with the troubleshooting. Because you've probably seen this, it's oftentimes the kids who surprise you who have the knowledge and who are happy to help where they might not always have that role back in their regular classroom. Ask three before me is such a simple strategy, but it is so effective and still helpful in the STEM space and connecting it to a growth mindset. 

Naomi Meredith  09:44

Along with that, when I have students help each other, I tell them that they need to be the YouTube tutorial. So we talked about when I am helping other teachers with things, I typically am not the one who is typing in all of this stuff or plugging all of it in all of the time. But I really tried to have the teacher do it with me with my guidance because I'm not always going to be there in their classroom. It's also a great experience for the teacher to learn how to do that. Likewise, we want our students to be able to problem solve and be able to do things. So when I have kids help each other, especially when it comes to technical issues, I have them talk through that issue and help the student who's having problems instead of going in and typing it in and fixing it all by themselves. This is helping again with that problem-solving. And again, having that growth mindset when it comes to problems with their project or technology. Another way that you can embed a growth mindset in your classroom is you can have a specific growth mindset theme for your unit, I have various specific growth mindset sayings that I use in my classroom, I'll link a blog post that I wrote about this in detail in the show notes, I definitely recommend for you to check that out, because I have examples of how I teach every single one in my classroom. You can even print these up and hang them in your room. So when you are planning out your lessons, think about the type of growth mindset that you want students to demonstrate in their learning. I shared with you the example of 3D printing and how they are creators with technology and not just consumers. But think about the growth mindset you want them to demonstrate. And you can refer to this every single day throughout the week, or however long you have the kids, and really talk about what that means to demonstrate that growth mindset skill, you can go even further and have matching notes to send home and send a positive note home with the child where they could share with their family and how they demonstrated growth mindset. This is also really great, too, if you read this out loud in the class and talk about what that strategy was. Because this can also encourage students to really try that growth mindset skill. 

Naomi Meredith  12:00

Just like anything, a growth mindset can be really challenging, especially for a lot of kids and especially when they are trying new things in your classroom. It's not all going to come naturally. And that's okay. I will tell my students I wasn't born knowing all of these STEM things. I wasn't born knowing every single lesson I've had, I've had a growth mindset planning them. So when it comes to learning these things, in turn, we need to have a growth mindset. So these little notes home can really be encouraging for the kids. And also think about the growth mindset in a different way. From there, students also need role models in their lives. And that is a great opportunity for you to be modeling a growth mindset. So the third way to demonstrate and teach a growth mindset in your classroom I gave the example where I didn't know what I was teaching. And I'm always constantly learning. But I tell my students that all the time, when we were doing podcasting with the fifth grade, they were creating a podcast about light pollution, again, a topic I also didn't know about. And that's a lesson in my shop as well. But we were talking about podcasting. And I was actually sharing with my students' parts of my podcast as one of the examples. And how I've had a growth mindset to learn all the things to get this launched and to continue to have it going. So it was really cool for the students to see that they're doing something that I do in my real life and how I'm able to connect with other teachers and people who are supportive of STEM education. So it was really neat for them to see that they were doing something that was real and that I have been through the process. And I am helping them through that. It's it was very hard for them. But I was helping them through that based on the experiences that I had. So any way that you can tie in your own experiences and how you demonstrate a growth mindset. People love stories, kids love stories. So this is also a great way to connect with each other and be that model for them. Also, continue your learning as an educator, it's so easy to be overwhelmed by just school in general, I completely get it. But if you're able to read or listen to different professional development books, there are so many great ones out there that tie in with a growth mindset. This is going to keep opening up your mind and develop new ideas and not get stuck in your way. I read a lot, and I listened to a lot because I always want to make sure that I am up to date and really doing the best for my students, for your students, and for you as a teacher. 

Naomi Meredith  14:41

Some of my favorites when it comes to a growth mindset is, of course, Growth Mindset by Carol Dweck. Highly recommend starting there. Joe Boeler has a couple of books, and she has a new one. She has a new one called Limitless Mind and then also not too old but another one of my favorites, Mathematically Calm Mindset. Also, if you're a business owner, if you just need a change with your books, I love the book, Everything is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo. It's not necessarily a STEM education book. But if you want to change it up, she has some good tidbits in there. So continue your professional development, if you can join a type of book club, that's a great way where you can discuss with other teachers and connect. You can just continue to be encouraged and energized by each other. In turn, that will really apply to what you're doing in your own classroom when talking about your professional development. Another way you can continue that is maybe even considering getting a STEM certificate or even a Master's in STEM Education. I did not have either of these things when I got into my role. I teach in Colorado, and that wasn't something that was required. You just have to have your degree in elementary education, which I do. But during COVID, I really thought this would be a great time for me to get a STEM certificate in conjunction with my STEM Masters. I learned so much, and I was really thinking about different topics I had never heard about before. That's actually where the light pollution podcast lesson came from. Because that was something I had to research in one of my classes. So this is also, again, it's a lot of work. But also you really open up your mind, gives you a growth mindset of new things. It's just always great to be learning new things. If you're interested in me doing a podcast episode more about my STEM certificate and Master's, I am happy to do that. Just let me know. You can send me a DM or email me and let me know if that's something that you would be interested in. Or you can even write a comment below if you're watching the video version. If starting your master's isn't something that you have the time for yet, or the funds, or you're still deciding if you want to stay in STEM, I have a course, STEM teacher 101, that you can do at your own pace. There are professional development credits that you can earn through that if you need something for recertification. So I am here to support you and all the ways of course with this podcast, we are here listening. But really, being that role model for your students and demonstrating a growth mindset is super important. We can tell kids one thing growth mindset, blah, blah, blah, but you really understand it even more if you are demonstrating a growth mindset and you are willing to try new things. Kids can tell if you have a growth mindset or not. And they're gonna feed off that energy either way. So if you're not showing it or you're not doing it in your own life, then why are you even teaching it?

Naomi Meredith  17:40

It's just kind of a little hypocritical, in my opinion. So just a lot of different ways for you to continue to learn and grow. There are so many cool things happening in STEM education and things coming up. So definitely look into at least one of those ways. As a recap, here are some ways to teach growth mindset activities in your STEM classroom. First, you can have isolated lessons, and then it really moves into those embedded lessons. And finally, figure out how you can model a growth mindset and really be the change and example for your students. Growth Mindset. Well, it's always a work in progress, but it's super important for our kids and how they can demonstrate this not only in our STEM classrooms but beyond our classroom walls.