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a lesson from ms. frizzle

A Lesson from Ms. Frizzle [ep.100]

A Lesson from Ms. Frizzle [ep.100]

a lesson from ms. frizzle

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Episode Summary

Oh my goodness! We have officially hit 100 episodes on The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast! To celebrate this incredible milestone, the audio for today’s episode is the keynote speech I gave at Wonder Workshop’s spring 2023 International STEAM Summit. During this episode, I share a lesson from Ms. Frizzle and the many lessons I have learned as a STEM teacher. It is my hope that this episode will inspire you this summer and as you gear up for the new school year. Also, to celebrate hitting 100 episodes, I am hosting a giveaway! One lucky winner will win a FREE 30-minute coaching session with me. Check out the resources mentioned section to learn more.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Lessons from Ms. Frizzle and how I have applied them as a STEM teacher
  • The importance of modeling a growth mindset for our students
  • Why your students need to see you make mistakes 
  • Stories of mistakes I made as a STEM teacher and how I handled them

Resources Mentioned:

  • 100th Episode Giveaway Details: 
    • Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, take a screenshot before you submit your review, share your review to your Instagram stories, and tag me @naomimeredith_. If you don’t have Instagram, email me the screenshot of your review at contactnaomimeredith@gmail.com
    • The giveaway ends Saturday, July 8, 2023
    • Prize: A FREE 30-minute coaching session

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith [00:00:00]:

Oh my goodness. I cannot believe I am saying this, but today's episode is Bonu mental. We have made it to 100 episodes here on the elementary STEM Coach podcast. I wish I could say that this lined up perfectly with the release of my first episode of the show, but not quite. The first episode was released on July 18, 2022. However, this 100th episode is actually more closely aligned with when I release my trailer. Back before this podcast actually was introduced, I was actually preparing to go to the InEDCO conference in June 2022. My goal was to get my podcast trailer set up and published so that it would hold me accountable when I was talking to people at the conference that I had a podcast coming out, and I didn't want to lie. And, actually, funny enough, I even made business cards with the name of my podcast on it, so then I definitely had to get this show published and make it happen. And funny enough, this is totally a testament to this podcast needed to happen. I had bought all of the materials for the podcast. You don't need a whole lot to get started, but I did get all the tools and the microphone purchased, went up to the conference, and then I actually put my name into a drawing, and I'm not kidding you. I won a podcast microphone, and it is the same microphone that I am using right now, and I absolutely love it. So It was definitely meant to be to have this podcast, and here we are a 100 episodes later. I wasn't even planning on staying with 2 episodes a week. However, you are all listening and chatting with me about how much you love the show and what kind of content you want to hear. So I'm continuing to pump out the episodes. I'm definitely not at a loss for episode ideas. The most random things will pop up and I will put them into my online organization. So I have a whole list of things and things to come all ready to go for you guys. To celebrate the 100th episode, I'm also doing a special giveaway for you. One lucky person will win a free 30-minute coaching session with me. Absolutely free. Again, to enter, it's pretty easy. All you have to do is write a 5-star review of the podcast. Take a screenshot before you hit submit. It can take a while for it to process. So take a screenshot before you click submit. Post a screenshot on Instagram stories and tag me at NaomiMeredith_. If you don't use Instagram, you can also send me an email with that screenshot so you can send me the email at contactnaomimeredith@gmail.com. This will not only let me know what you are loving about this show but also help other teachers know if this show is the perfect fit for them. This giveaway will end on Saturday, July 8, 2023, and I will let the winner know shortly after if they won the session with me. To honor this podcast achievement of the 100th episode, this episode is a special one. I was asked by Brian Miller from Wonder Workshop to be their closing keynote speaker for their spring 2023 International STEAM Summit. Side note, Brian was an awesome guest on the show, and you can go and listen to his interview on episode 32 and another collaboration I had with him in Wonder Workshop where I interviewed a NASA engineer in episode 57. I have never been a keynote speaker before, and this is something that has been on my vision board for the way off future. But we don't always get to decide when things come to us, and this happened to be the right time. So it's not always our timing. I actually presented virtually, and I wasn't able to see anyone's faces. So before you're gonna hear the recording. But before I actually make a joke with everybody to take a selfie with them, which was funny because I actually couldn't see their faces. So I said, get in closer. Let me get a picture of you. Oh my gosh. Your smile's so nice. I couldn't see their faces at all. And, by the way, this was live. So if I mess up, I mess up. I was also navigating the slides and the technology at the same time, and you'll also hear me mention saying things about adding comments in the chat. I was able to interact with the participants live and talked with them throughout. So that's what I am referencing throughout if you hear me say put something in the chat, add something blah blah blah. Enjoy this keynote speech for the 100th episode from me to you to help inspire you for summer and kick off your brand new school year!

Naomi Meredith [00:05:39]:

The moment right after I got my job interview for a K through Five STEM position and coach, I started to cry. I called my teacher honey, and I told him that I messed up the interview and there is no way that I got the job. I had extra time before I needed to go back to school to my classroom teaching position for 6 years, so I went and got a pedicure to calm down and then went back to teach for the rest of the day. I had no clue what the outcome of my interview would be and figured I'd be teaching 3rd grade for another year. which was totally fine. I loved my school and the lessons I was teaching and could definitely stick to teaching what I knew. Growing up, I knew that I wanted to be a teacher ever since I was a little girl and that I would go to school, then I would come home, and then I would teach my not-so-willing siblings when I got home. Teaching was my goal in life, and, boy, did I achieve it. But my dreams also took another turn that I had never imagined. Shout out to all my millennials out there, so put some things in the emojis or in the chats that shout out to you. If you watched countless hours of Bill Nye, the science guy, and the Magic School Bus growing up, I would put all of the like buttons on that one, or maybe you still watch them for fun or show them to your classroom. I know there's a new Magic School Bus, but it just doesn't hit the same, just not the same as the old version. And when you think about it from a teacher's perspective, Miss Frizzle was definitely innovative for her time with all of the crazy antics and experiences she provided for her students. She constantly spouted out those words of wisdom, and you might even say it out loud with me. Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy. Also, when you are watching, feel free to take pictures or screenshots of me talking if there's anything that you wanna remember. Side note, I totally dressed up as Miss Frizzle for Halloween a couple of years ago with my little dog, Frederick, and he was Liz the lizard. And this was totally worth our time because we won the Halloween costume contest at doggy take care that year. So a fun fact about me. As educators, we can take heart this message as well. How are you taking chances? how are you making mistakes? Are you having moments where things can get a bit messy? It's so easy to stick to what we know, what's comfortable, what works, and what we like. It's safe, and it feels good. But those times, we jump out of our comfort zones and try some of those new things even if we don't always know the outcome. It can be even better than what you think. So feel free to type it out in the chat. So think about something that you definitely wanna step out of your comfort zone and stir up your inner Miss Frizzle. You can feel free to type that in, or maybe you write it for yourself. Something that I tried this past week actually was having my students build their own robots. So that was very exciting. Something I had no idea how to do, and we were cheering each other on today when one of the students was able to light up a light. So there are always lots of things that we can step out of our comfort zones. Lana wants to explore AI. That would definitely be a really great topic to explore with your kids, especially how AI is changing our world. And there are a lot of different avenues with AI as well, so that would be a really interesting lesson. Take chances. The next day, I got a phone call from the job interview committee. I got the job. Not only did I get the K through 5 STEM teaching and coaching position, but I was going to be teaching at a new to me district and school. I didn't know a single teacher or student in the building, and I would be teaching over 500 kids with limited supplies and 0 curriculum. Sounds like the ideal position. Right? Could explore some more of that AI that Lana was talking about. I clutched onto my 6 years of teaching experience. In all the trainings, where I talk about innovative practices, the books I had read, the conferences that I attended, like this International STEAM Summit, and I used these experiences to help me build a foundation and create a program that I dreamed of having. While overwhelmed at first, over the course of the next 5 years, I planned cross-curricular lessons that were rooted in grade-level standards. I took inventory of the supplies I had, found creative ways to get things and plan long-term for future purchases that would enhance my curriculum. Lessons were taught, retaught, and some were thrown out the window, but there were others that got to come back for a second round. And my students and I were loving STEM together and found passions that we never knew existed. Another big thing when stepping out of my comfort zone, and you probably can relate, is teaching during COVID, and that was definitely an interesting time. But it allowed me to get my Master's in STEM leadership to further my teaching practice. And I always like to tell my students when they were learning, I would learn. So a lot of learning was happening during that time. So you can definitely like or add an emoji if you can relate. If you remember those COVID teaching days, It was an interesting time, for sure. That was a weird day. I actually did a balloon launch that day, the day we found out we worked coming back to school. And it was a whole school-wide event. All the kids were lined up outside and then had to go chase a balloon, and then I never saw my students again till the fall, so that was a very weird time. In turn, I've been able to help support teachers and students all over the world in their stem spaces with my resources, podcasts, and online courses. So when it comes to change, change can be a good thing. and it doesn't always have to be a life-altering job switch or getting another degree, which totally can be those things too. Start small. Just like that little seed, start small. You've learned a lot of great ideas from educators this week, and let's put them to good use. Think about a routine you might already have in your class. How can you spice things up and implement an innovative tool to make the routine more engaging? Are there teachers in your building or district that you can collaborate with and bounce ideas off to get a bit of a refresh in your content area? What about a lesson you always teach each year? Can you modernize it a bit? For example, when I was helping my 4th-grade teachers with a unit about ecosystems, they were having their kids make brochures all about ecosystems for years. The content and the way that the teachers were teaching were amazing, but the final product was a bit outdated. I don't know about you, but I'm not typically sitting around reading brochures to get my information. Maybe when you go to one of those hotels on the side of the road, you might get a brochure, but that's not typically my go to resource. Instead, I help the teachers teach their students how to create a website to share their work with a bigger audience while also refining their word processing skills, creating engaging text features, and also capturing what they had been learning throughout the year. Take a moment to write down at least 3 new things. You don't have to overwhelm yourself, but write 3 new things that you want to take a chance on and that you'll commit to trying this next school year. Even the end of the school year is also a great opportunity to try those new things, even though it might not feel like it. You can definitely put that in the chat. It could be one of those things too that you talked about before. Some people wanna start an after school club, like Cheryl said; Kristen wants to do more with games, but think about those lessons that you learned throughout the week and what is something that you could try out in your classroom. So thinking about those things, this definitely ties into Miss Frizzle's next lesson, and is all about making mistakes. I'm the kind of teacher that loves to host after school clubs, so Cheryl, this one's for you. And as a kid, I always involve was always involved in sports and extracurriculars and saw the benefit in my own life. And as a teacher, that's something I've always implemented for my students to help them explore the world in new ways and find new passions. Clubs are also a great way to test out new lessons with less pressure. And this can help you with that thing that we just talked about. So if you're a little bit scared, just try it within your own classroom. Think about an after school club, and you can explore in a less scary setting. This past school year, I hosted a robotics club at my school for 2nd through 5th graders, and we were coding with our fave, our guy Dash the robot. And there was such high interest for this club over 60 students signed up, so I had to get a bit creative with my scheduling so all the kids could participate, and it was so exciting. I was able to figure out how they could all participate. My district has given us had given us challenges that they wrote, and we would work on those with our teams. Then we brought our completed challenges to our district event. There are a ton of steps in each challenge. Technically not too hard, but just it was a lot to get through. I also highly recommend what Brian was talking about it. But if you're looking for any ideas for after school clubs, the Wonder League Robotics competition challenges are awesome. So when that comes out again, definitely sign your kids up. I've done these before in the past, and they are a lot of fun. So with these challenges, the kids were so excited to attend our district event and see kids from other schools and how they tackled the challenges through creativity and coding. I rolled in my trusty wagon. If you follow me on Instagram, you know I love my wagon. Full of their built designs and our class set of Dash robots and organized our parent volunteers and the groups for the day. When it was finally our schools trying to compete, the kids were so ready. Or so I thought. The kids showed their coats that they had been working on for the past couple of months, their loops, their functions, and their variables, but it was wrong. Wrong; the judges kept saying that their codes weren't right. The challenge wasn't correct. I was so confused, and then I read through the directions again. Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. I could not believe it. I told my students sorry. My students were amazing listeners and listened to me correctly and how I explained it, but I explained it wrong. Yep. You heard it right. This is even recorded. I explained the challenge wrong. I missed one crucial step, and thus the amazing codes that the kids had collaborated on and worked hard to complete were a bit off. And at that moment, the parents could see how horrible of a teacher I was and how I taught all of their kids wrong. The kids were a bit bummed out, but they were okay. And luckily, there was a day of challenge that they would be able to complete as a team and show off what they knew, and they knew a whole bunch about coding. I had just happened to teach them a little bit wrong. I totally unowned up to it, and I used this as a learning experience, the inner teacher of me did, and modeled how this could work for them. I said something like this that mistakes can help us grow and learn. It's quite alright, everybody. Look how much you have learned with your coding, and collaborating with your whole team, this is a terrible fail, and feeling can be a good thing. In fact, it shows me Miss Meredith that I needed to slow down, and I just got too excited about teaching this challenge to all of you. It's quite alright, and we have a new challenge that we are going to try and show what we know. And, of course, I like we know kids, they did great. The parents were impressed with their coding skills, and the challenges of the day were a success. Miss Frizzle says make mistakes while and we often tell that to our students as well. growth mindset and persistence is something that we're constantly trying to instill in our students, and we should be. However, Are you afraid of making mistakes as an educator? Are you trying to be picture perfect for your students at all times? That is so stressful. Spoiler alert, I make mistakes all the time when I teach, and I let my students see that. We talk through it. We learn about it together, and it all works out. Especially in my k through 5 stem space, I came into my room not really knowing how to use any of the tools that were in there. Robotics, coding, 3 d printing, but I learned right beside my students, I even told them that I wasn't born knowing to use all of these tools. And Neither were they. You can like if you agree with that. We weren't born learning to know all of these things, but it's so exciting because We get to learn all of these amazing things. Making mistakes is so powerful and how often when you really think about it, how often do kids get to see that in their lives where mistakes can actually be a positive experience. Think about some mistakes, and you probably when I was talking, think of these already that you have made in teaching or even lessons that you have taught. If you feel brave enough, you are welcome to share those in the chat. And there are many times that making mistakes are okay and you probably are so embarrassed in the moment, and then then it's all okay in the end. And even collaborating with others is a great way to talk through those mistakes. Like Lana is saying in the chat, how the Wonder Workshop Facebook group is a great way to collaborate indefinitely. Having those opportunities to share your mistakes with your students, but also with each other with educators can be a great way to learn from each other. Definitely. And Miss Frizzle also says, well, get messy. I was so excited about a new I get excited about projects all the time, but so excited about a project that I was going to do with my 5th graders. and we were talking about GIS data or geographical information systems data and how we can use this information from the land to help us built a cohesive city. Students were given fictional data about an area and used the coordinates to color a grid. The colors represented different areas of land, grassy fields, a muddy patch, a lake, and a river, And then they were given another set of data to build up land on this grid to with using clay. Once the clay was dry, the students would have a landscape that they could visually see where they could plan their city and build their design as a team. So you could see some of the student examples up on the screen. Buying supplies for your classroom is definitely tricky on our teacher budget, and I know we're all millionaires out there. You can like if you agree. Yep. We are all teacher millionaires, and we have a ton of extra cash lying around, but Sometimes we do need to get a little creative on how we gather supplies. I am a d o DIY kind of girl and remembered when I was younger, my mom would make us Play-Doh that smelled like Kool-Aid, and I figured, hey. I have a kitchenette mixer. I can channel my inner mom and make this. It's so cheap, and I'll have Plano for everyone. like or put an emoji if you are one of those DIY types of teachers and think that you can make everything. because that is definitely me. The next day in STEM, I brought in my homemade dough, and the kids were so excited for the next part of their challenge. They were going to build their landscape, and They did. Let me show you what ended up happening.

Naomi Meredith [00:23:11]:

And nothing can go wrong.

Naomi Meredith [00:23:14]:

Oh, no. No. It ro — Yep. That's exactly what happens. Not only, was dough all over the grids. It was all over everywhere. The floor, their computers, their hair, my hair. Apparently, the dough didn't dry out enough, and it was extremely sticky. Kids were screaming. Someone had gloves. This was during COVID time, so kids knew I had gloves. somewhere over by the trash can, scraping the dough off of their hands into the trash can, and it was an absolute disaster. I have a video of this somewhere. I will search for it, and I will repost this because it was an absolute mess. And I started to laugh. The kids started to laugh. It was so funny how disastrous my room was and how one turn of events could change the whole project. Once we cleaned up, I let them know that I probably won't be bringing any more dough for the next day, but we will problem-solve and figure it out for the rest of the project. I really could have gotten mad in this instance, super mad, but I didn't. You have to remember. We are working with kids. These are kids that we are dealing with. and these experiences are good for them. Sometimes things in our classroom can be a bit too clean and precise. And this also goes back to that make mistakes part. We, as humans, learn by doing. And in fact, There is some actual science on this, and you probably already know this, but this is really great to keep in mind. So according to the hands on approaches to science teaching questions and answers by David, Harry, and Peter Real Realo. I'm sorry. They say that students in a hands on science program will remember the material better, feel a sense of accomplishment when the task is completed, and be able to transfer that experience easier to other learning situations. And you can even substitute where it says hands on science program. You could substitute that for hands on reading, hands on math. So think about those subjects that they teach. It doesn't just have to be STEM. It doesn't just have to be science. That hands on is really, really helpful. And I see a lot of people already in the emojis liking that because we know that. We know that they're kids. They like these hands on things. Well, I don't recommend making your own Play-Doh. I do think that you should add an element of mess to your lessons. Take the kids outside and explore nature. Connect it with your math lesson. Have students build the setting of the read aloud book that you're reading. as a class. Maybe you could even do that science experiment that you have been putting off that has a lot of materials and takes a lot of your time. Maybe actually do that science experiment. The kids would absolutely love it. The messy experiences are the ones that kids are going to remember. not that cute worksheet that you printed out in Color Inc that day. Think about those hands on things. Just ask my teacher, honey. The one thing that drives him nuts about me is how I can be messy. And I don't think he just understands that Miss Frizzle has been telling me to be messy all of these years.

Naomi Meredith [00:26:55]:

Thumbs up to my messy people out there.

Naomi Meredith [00:26:58]:

Teaching is hard. It's really hard. No matter what subject or grade you teach, it can be easy to stick with the stuff that you know and just get through the day. Do you really wanna just get through the day every day? You are here at the summit to get ideas. Whether you are watching this live or you are watching back the recordings, you want to get some ideas to try something new. So actually do it. Instead of closing your notebook full of ideas and never opening them again, use this as a jumping off point to feel energized for the rest of this school year and also the new school year coming up. And don't take it from me. Miss Priscilla said it best. Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy. Thank you so much again for being here and listening to all the episodes so far and also for my first keynote speech. And, also, don't forget to enter my giveaway in honor of this 100th episode. So before you listen to the next one, Make sure to go and write that 5-star review on Apple Podcast. Take a screenshot before you hit submit. Post that screenshot and then Instagram stories and tag me at Naomi Meredith_. Or if you don't have Instagram, you can send me an email at contact Naomi Meredith@gmail.com. Thank you again for being here, and I will talk to you all soon.

a lesson from ms. frizzle

 

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Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

5th graders aren't motivated

Why Your 5th Graders Aren’t Motivated in STEM and How to Fix It [ep. 66]

Why Your 5th Graders Aren't Motivated in STEM and How to Fix It [ep.66]

5th graders aren't motivated

Check out the full episode on Why Your 5th Graders Aren't Motivated in STEM and How to Fix It:  

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Episode Summary

So you've planned this STEM lesson. You've gathered the supplies, and you've made sure that the lesson is exciting. But your fifth graders just aren't having it. In fact, they don't even seem interested in the STEM project that you planned. In those moments, you’re probably wondering what’s going on. In today's episode, I’m sharing why your fifth graders aren't motivated in STEM and how to fix it.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • 4 reasons why your 5th graders aren’t motivated in their STEM projects
  • Strategies for fixing their lack of motivation
  • Tips for implementing these strategies in your STEM classroom

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

You've planned this STEM lesson, you've gathered the supplies, and you've made sure that the lesson is exciting. But your fifth graders just aren't having it. In fact, they don't even seem interested in the STEM project that you planned. What is happening? In today's episode, I'll be sharing why your fifth graders aren't motivated in STEM and how to fix it. 


Naomi Meredith  00:27

The other day, I hosted a quick poll on my Instagram @NaomiMeredith_. Thank you so much for filling this out. By the way, it was very, very insightful. So the question that I asked was, how are your fifth graders' attitudes about STEM: 22% of you said they are obsessed, 18% of you said that they struggled to stay motivated, and the majority of you said, at 60%, you said that sometimes they like it and sometimes they don't. So what gives with these fifth graders? Maybe you even have upper elementary students and sixth graders. What is going on? STEM is supposed to be fun, right? Okay, so here is my take on this. Based on my experience being a K through five STEM teacher, where I came from the classroom for six years and then went into a brand new to me school and district, and really, the kids didn't have STEM. And let me tell you all the things that I have seen and how you can combat this problem in your classroom. It isn't an overnight fix. But there are some small changes that you can make so that everybody is having an awesome experience, just like you have planned in your head and like the younger students are having. 


Naomi Meredith  02:27

The first reason why your fifth graders aren't motivated in STEM is that your projects are missing multimedia research. Think about the ways that you are building background on the projects that you're doing in your class. Are you building background on the projects? Because students need to have some knowledge about the topic so that their work actually makes sense. Yes, we have all of the awesome building but when you're really being thoughtful about your planning through the Engineering Design Process or another model, building isn't the only step. Sure, you can have one-day challenges which I have definitely done. Especially when I had a Monday, one year when I taught eight classes in a row, I did still build some background knowledge. So think about how you're doing this in your classroom. How are you having students build this knowledge while also having them research in different ways? So think about the tools that you're using. Are you just giving them books to research? Are they just printed out articles? Is it a random Google search? I know that sounds super helpful, but that is a lesson in itself on how to teach with Google and how to search the proper way. If you're doing that, awesome. But are you just saying Google it? Are you really showing them how to Google it? So think about the tools that you are having students use to gain information so that it can inform the projects that they're building. Can you add video clips? There are a lot of great video clips that students can access that are not connected to YouTube on Epic books. Could you even play video clips that are on YouTube as a whole class to help spark the conversation? Maybe add in podcast episodes or clips from podcast episodes to hear another viewpoint. Maybe even adding infographics that you find or create your own, which I do all the time. That can be a way to gather information. Also, pre-researching and tailoring links can really focus students on what they are gathering at the time, and it doesn't feel so overwhelming. Maybe you do have to write an article but can you add an audio component so it can meet the needs of all learners? It is so nice to have that audio option because then if there's a word you're not familiar with, you can listen to that piece. So really mixing this in your projects and helping students feel confident about the topic that they are going to build in is super important in STEM jobs today. In the future reading and gathering nonfiction information is happening, and it's going to continue to happen. Even if you're not in a STEM job, you need to know how to access information to inform your decisions. So are you adding in all of these different tools within your STEM classroom? Yes, in STEM, and helping students interact with the world in those ways. 


Naomi Meredith  05:23

The next reason why your fifth graders might not be motivated with your STEM projects is that they might not actually be ready yet. This was really hard for me to realize. As I said, I was new to the position new to the district and new to the school. I was given a brand new classroom with zero curriculum. I had all of these big ideas of what I wanted my students to do. I knew back as a classroom teacher, what I was able to have my third-grade students do and do amazing things in their classrooms. So why not? Can these students do it? Well, I had some lofty dreams, and I'm so glad I kept those dreams. But we were not ready yet. My fifth graders did not like my class. My fourth graders had a better time. I realized pretty quickly that my projects were honestly way too hard for them at this time. There were so many skills that they did not know, like typing in a website link or where their username and password were that I had all of these plans for these super advanced projects. But we actually had to get to the basics. And that's okay. What I'm doing now, five years from when I started in STEM, is completely different. Because the way that I have planned my lessons has built students up with their skills to help them be successful. So by the time they are in fifth grade, there is more of that motivation, and they have the skills to attack those projects that I had in my head five years ago. Yes, I had to build up those basic skills, and it can be frustrating. The students might be a little bit frustrated, too, that they don't know these things yet. But even paring down your lessons to make them more simple than you thought might just be where your students are at this year. And that's okay. Let me tell you why this is okay. I recently had an online chat with our middle school tech teacher who most of our students feed into. She wanted to talk about how she can support us in the transition into middle school. So part of my role, I'm also the tech person. I don't get paid extra for that. But I also manage our school-wide technology and all of that process. I've also co-taught in the past with the teachers. So I'm very familiar with what is happening in the building because I'm in charge of it. So we had a really good conversation. And this is actually really sad too. But it is extremely clear to her and the science teachers that these students have gone to school for elementary. The schools that don't have STEM it is completely clear that they did not have STEM and that those skills are things that they haven't been able to work on over the years. When they get to middle school, they're really struggling. On the flip side, the kids from my school, it's super clear that they're from my school because they've had those opportunities to collaborate and be creative and try those skills. So when it comes down to it, they weren't ready. In my fifth grade, my poor fifth graders who left me that first year were working on the basics, and I know I helped them. But really, thinking through your plans and how you can have a progression of learning over the years, you're definitely going to have to adjust on the skills and getting to know your students. That's what good teaching is, even as a specialist teacher, but thinking about the way that you are planning and giving them opportunities to practice these skills in a variety of contexts. With a variety of standards, they are standard space, that they are carrying those skills into future years, and that they can be successful and be excited about those future projects. You definitely do have to start somewhere. But hey, this is a great way for you to advocate why kids need STEM because sometimes it is those little things that can help you do those really big things. 


Naomi Meredith  09:16

Along with them not being ready is that I noticed my fifth graders were actually really scared of being creative. And again, this goes along with the relationship that I had with them and the culture of a growth mindset. I've of course been building this up over the years. But it is so different when you're in this unique role, especially as a specialist teacher, because you don't have them all day every day. The time it takes to build relationships can take longer, especially if you only see each class once a week. So it does take time. Being creative is a vulnerable thing. We've talked about that in other episodes. It's scary for me to be creative here on this podcast and even have this conversation with you right now. And the same with kids, it's not natural to want to be creative in a new space, even though we think our lessons are very exciting, which they probably are. But it is a lot to be creative and put your ideas out there and have them be different, especially when they're at that age where opinions from their peers are starting to become very important. It's not as much for the teachers as it is for everybody else and what they're gonna think about their work. So really creating that culture where it can be safe to be creative and to have a growth mindset, it is going to take some time. But really having those smaller challenges and paring things down will really help as well. 


Naomi Meredith  10:39

Along with that, your students might not be motivated in your STEM projects is that they actually might need more structure than you think. Being creative within constraints is okay. It provides that safety net, that it isn't a free for all. That is overwhelming for kids, especially when they have to be taught to be creative, that it's okay to make mistakes, and it's okay that it doesn't work the first time. This is going to take some time, but they definitely need some more structure. So maybe that's the way that you have materials in your classroom. Back in episode four, when I talk about STEM survival camp, which is my first unit of the school year, this unit is actually really learning about the Engineering Design Process in how you can be creative within constraints. I don't give them a free for all with the materials in my classroom. And I don't think that's a good thing. They actually have only a few things from me on their project. And then the rest is from items outside the classroom, which also creates constraints because it might not be what they found. But then it also gives them the opportunity to talk to each other and for me to talk to them and build that relationship. So building up to that, maybe so and so free for all, it can be helpful. When you do a Makerspace project, do you have a money system? We talked about this back in episode six where you have that structure, and they have a certain budget of things that they can spend, where yes, you have all of the supplies, but you have to be really thoughtful about what you're using. Also what that structure can be when it comes to working in groups. There's a huge difference between saying to kids oh, you get to work in a group, and comparing that to, oh, you're gonna work in a group, but you have very specific roles. And here's what you're going to do in these roles. And here's how you are in charge of these roles. Because it gives them an explanation of the importance of what they're doing. And they can't slack off because the role is important to the job. And if they don't do it, it's not going to get done. Again, it goes back to that peer thing. They want to impress their peers, so they're much more likely to be motivated. In the book Limitless Mind by Jo Boaler that I just listened to and highly recommend, hint hint will be in the future book club coming up in the spring. But she also has a part in there where it talks about kids don't really enjoy working in groups because it is overwhelming and they don't know what they're supposed to do and somebody slacks off. And so all of those things that we hear about, definitely recommend that book and also reframing the way you have structure in those groups, but really the structure within projects overall, because that can help build that motivation. 


Naomi Meredith  13:16

And finally, the last reason why your fifth graders aren't motivated to do the projects in your STEM classroom is that the projects don't have enough empathy. Students, especially as they get older, they need to see why this project matters. I feel like a lot of times the younger students can actually really see why this is important. And it's easier to convince them. But as they get older, there's more like, I don't really care. Why do I need to do this? Why is this important? And that's a great challenge for you as a STEM teacher as to, “Well, yeah. Why are we doing this project?” I'm currently working on a 3D printing project with my fifth graders, and they are designing an invention that will help people to protect, prevent, or correct Earth's resources and why that is a problem. And we've really been talking about why this is a problem. What are nonrenewable resources? Who cares? Why is this going to affect you in the future? Why should we be solving these problems and really thinking bigger than ourselves? This is the world that you live in, and we need to create solutions even better than the solutions out there because it's not working. So really having them think about that empathy piece, and thinking about others and not always themselves. It could even be a school-based project. How can we help others in there? But thinking beyond themselves and giving them a purpose for their work can be really impactful and help again, with that motivation. They're doing this project for a reason and not for Oh, my teacher is just going to see this project. Awesome way to go. Along with that, give students the opportunity to reflect and to see each other's work. When we did podcasting, which I talked about that in a past episode, I do have students post their podcasts so that others can listen to their work and even comment on each other's podcasts. They are super motivated by this, they could care less if I hear their podcasts. A couple of them, my little STEM buddies, really want me to listen to their podcast, but they really are more concerned about what other people think about their podcast, and what they did well, and what they can work on. With that giving students the opportunity to reflect on their work will really help them think through the process of that project. What can they do better and what can they work on? And how did it go? Well, and if they did a project like this in the future, what could they do again, so really giving those opportunities where it's not just the building, but that their project has a bigger purpose, whether it's for people in their school building, whether it is for people outside of the school, or even thinking beyond that what their futures might hold, will really help them connect what you're doing in your classroom actually has a greater purpose. 


Naomi Meredith  16:06

As a recap, here are the four reasons why your fifth graders aren't motivated with your STEM projects and how you can fix it. First, your projects are missing multimedia research opportunities. Second, your fifth graders might not be ready yet for this type of project. And the keyword in that sentence is yet. Third, they need more structure, especially when it comes to those creative opportunities. And fourth, your projects don't have enough empathy. These are all things that you can continuously work on as a teacher and reflect on and get your students to that point where you are in that part where they are excited about projects all the time and that you're not dragging their feet to finish them. Now, I know that it's a lot without planning. And I am actually here to help. And I'm so excited about this. But I am hosting a live third through fifth-grade virtual workshop where you can join me and other STEM teachers to help with your planning in the upper grades, where we will look at standards where you can integrate naturally STEM projects. And really think through that process of the multimedia research that you're giving them. The creative opportunities and opportunities for them to reflect and share their work. The info will be in the show notes. So if you're not able to make it live, then it will be recorded. But the live piece is really awesome because you can ask me questions, and we can tailor a lesson that will fit your needs. So jump in on that third through five STEM virtual workshop. I would love to see you there. And how two hours of your time can definitely change the way that you plan for the rest of the year. And also set up a foundation where you can be the one talking in this podcast where your students are motivated and that they are excited, and that your lessons are really fitting what they need. So can't wait to see you and that workshop.

5th graders aren't motivated

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

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Mindfulness & Self Care Techniques for Teachers in STEM with Jen Rafferty [ep.61]

Mindfulness & Self Care Techniques for Teachers in STEM with Jen Rafferty [ep.61]

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Check out the full episode on Mindfulness & Self Care Techniques for Teachers in STEM with Jen Rafferty:  

 

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Episode Summary

You may have read the title of today’s episode and thought, how does this relate to STEM? Friend, keep listening because this is a wonderful episode that every teacher needs to hear. Stepping into a new role like elementary STEM can be completely overwhelming. Many of you are like me and have transitioned from a classroom of your own with 25-plus students to teaching all the students in the school with little to no curriculum and lots of fancy tools.

Well, today’s guest completely understands that. Today I am speaking with Jen Rafferty from the Empowered educator. Jen shares about mindset as a teacher, different types of stress, setting boundaries, and self care techniques for teachers. You definitely want to listen to the end and also take notes because she has wonderful explanations of all the topics that we discuss today.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The importance of a growth mindset as a teacher
  • Good vs. bad stress
  • Setting boundaries as a STEM teacher
  • Self care techniques for teachers

Meet Jen Rafferty:

Educator, author, and international public speaker, Jen Rafferty started as a middle school music teacher for 15 years in Central New York. She is known for bringing her energy, humor and expertise in her presentations while inspiring educators to stay connected to their “why.” Jen is a certified Emotional Intelligence Practitioner and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology.

Since its inception, the Empowered Educator has reached teachers and school leaders all over the world. Jen has been featured in Authority Magazine, Medium, Thrive Global, Voyage MIA, and was on the TEDx stage with her talk, Generational Change begins with Empowered Teachers. She is also the host of the podcast, Take Notes with Jen Rafferty, which is rated in the top 3% of podcasts globally.

Jen's insatiable curiosity continues to make the Empowered Educator programs relevant and reflective of the most up-to-date research in mindset, leadership, and cognitive neuroscience. She is committed to inspiring teachers and school leaders to discover their voice and maintain a healthy longevity throughout their careers.

Connect with Jen:

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Episode Transcript: 

Naomi Meredith  00:00

You might have heard the title of this episode and thought, how does this all connect to STEM? Friend, keep listening because this is a wonderful episode that every teacher needs to hear. Stepping into a new role like elementary STEM can be completely overwhelming. A lot of you, like me, come from a classroom of your own with 25-plus students, and then you're in a role where you are teaching all the students in the school with little to no curriculum, all of these fancy tools, and you're just go go go all day. Well, the guest on my episode today completely understands that. Today I am speaking with Jen Rafferty from the Empowered Educator. The way that she talks about mindset as a teacher, different types of stress, and setting up boundaries is so beautiful and encouraging. You definitely want to listen to the end and also take notes because she has wonderful explanations of all the topics that we are going to be talking about today. Today's interview is really going to help with your overall well being as a STEM teacher, a teacher in general and really in life. Educator, author and international public speaker Jen Rafferty started as a middle school music teacher for 15 years in central New York. She is known for bringing her energy, humor, and expertise in her presentations, while inspiring educators to stay connected to their why. Jen is a certified emotional intelligence practitioner and is currently pursuing her PhD in educational psychology. Since its inception, the Empowered Educator has reached teachers and school leaders all over the world. Jen has been featured on a variety of platforms and is also the host of the podcast Take Notes with Jen Rafferty, which is rated in the top 3% of podcast globally. Jen's insatiable curiosity continues to make the Empowered Educator programs relevant and reflective of the most up to date research and mindset leadership in cognitive neuroscience. She is committed to inspiring teachers and school leaders to discover their voice and maintain a healthy longevity throughout their careers. 


Naomi Meredith  02:16

Well, thank you, Jen, so much for being here today. I'm so glad that we connected. I feel like your background and education, I know you're going to explain this a bit more, but what your background is in education and teaching and what you're doing now really have a great pairing for our STEM teacher audience. And so if you wouldn't mind introducing yourself and how your teaching experience led to where you are today. I'm really excited to hear more of your story.


Jen Rafferty  03:15

Yes, great. Thank you so much for having me, I'd love to share it. So I began my career as a music teacher in central New York. And that was really the only thing that I thought I wanted to do my whole entire life, I felt it was really more like a calling than a choice for me to be in the classroom and specifically teach music and a lot of that had to do with my experiences in the classroom. And what I was really taught by my music teachers, and I wanted to share that with other people. And so I loved what I did, I was mostly a middle school choir teacher, seventh grade general music, I taught a little bit of high school modern bands and created a whole modern band program. And we can get into how and why of that if you'd like to in a little bit. And then I wrote a book that was published in December of 2019 about being a music teacher. And you know, a lot of teachers have read it who are not music teachers, it kind of just, you know, exchange the word STEM or art or, you know, science in there. And it's relevant for you too. And it was awesome, because I was excited to share my work with new teachers. I was planning on doing some book talks. And then of course, in 2020, none of that happened. And we were all you know, kind of forced to pivot in a really big way. And part of that transition for me personally was also I had decided to get a divorce from my husband. And that same weekend the world shutdown. It was the same weekend that I had moved out of my house with my two kids who were five and seven at the time. So it was an incredibly big weekend. For all of us. And there was some extra special sauce that we were kind of dealing with in my house as well. And singing in of itself became really dangerous, right? I mean, remember, we didn't know anything about COVID and singing killed people. That's what we were told. And so the whole being of what I, the whole identity, I guess, is a different way to say this, the whole identity I had created for myself around, not just being a teacher, but being a musician, being a wife, the way I was mothering, my children, all of that changed that very same weekend. And so while there was a lot of crying and releasing and processing, it was also an incredible opportunity for for me to really think about, Well, what did I want to do in this world? What kind of impact do I want to make? And how can I do that maybe in a slightly different way. So lots of things happen in the next few months after that. But the highlights were, you know, I decided to take a semester off, or what I thought would be a semester off from school to homeschool my own two children. I started my PhD in educational psychology, I became certified as emotional intelligence practitioner, and really dove into the work of mindset myself, because I was on my own healing journey and figuring out how I wanted to kind of proceed with my life. And I decided that I wanted to do something a little bit different, while still very much being involved in education. So I resigned from my teaching job in 2021. And started my business which is Empowered Educator, which now I work with teachers and school leaders, and focus on the social and emotional well being of all of the adults in schools. And it's been wonderful to pivot in this way I talk with teachers who are not just in the Encore classes that I used to perform. I do that also, especially those people who know that I've worked with encore classes kind of happy work with with them also. But now I really get to highlight and underscore the needs of the adults in these spaces. So we can better show up for our kids and really make the impact that we say that we want to make.


Naomi Meredith  07:10

Oh, totally. I mean, that's a huge transition. I mean, you had a very, very big transition big monumental, I mean, even leaving teaching alone is huge COVID. And then all the things just happen at once for you. But I mean, even for us, as the audience, listening, coming in from the classroom into a STEM role is a big transition. So just transitions in general are a big deal. Even for adults, we always think about for the students that a transition is hard for them. But then as adults, it's a lot of work as well. So that's really awesome that through your experiences, and you obviously love teaching, you still love education. But that's just brought you to where you are today. And it is important for all the adults in the building, we just give giving, giving give so much and it's just so hands on with teaching. And so we just have to remember how we need to take a step back as well as adults and take care of ourselves, like you said, to make sure that we make can make a greater impact on our students. So I love that. It all linked together. And for high school and middle school. That's a lot. There's some teachers here who actually teach K-8. Can you imagine K-8? All the children? That's a big transition.


Jen Rafferty  08:26

Yes, yes, it is for sure.


Naomi Meredith  08:28

So with the middle school, just a little side question, out of your middle school experience, what is your favorite grade when it comes to sixth, seventh, and eigth? 


Jen Rafferty  08:37

I just love Middle School, sixth, seventh or eighth to me, that whole age group is my jam. I mean, I, I will tell you, when I first got into the classroom, that was my first job, middle school, general music seventh grade general music was the gig and acquire also but I had more sections of general music. And that class is not something that you were very well prepared for coming out of college. And the thing is, you know, I went through my undergrad, and everyone was like, You're doing great, Jen, you're natural. You're you know, you're so good at this, you got this and I had all of this beautiful confidence about what I was going to be able to do in my classroom. And when I got there, I ended up I was really mad. I was so mad because I felt so unprepared. And I didn't understand why. And a lot of it had to do with the fact that I actually didn't know who my kids were because especially in middle school, these kids are going through profound changes. And I didn't know anything about their development. So that was actually the catalyst for me getting really interested in cognitive neuroscience and in development of of adolescent brains, because I thought that if I understood where they were developmentally, I could be more responsive as their teacher and create probe ramming that reflected where they were at, instead of me coming at this new job, just like sharing the things that I thought that they needed to know, it was so backwards. And I think those conversations are happening now more and more. But you know, back then it just wasn't what we were taught or told. So I've been really interested in brains and cognitive development my whole career. So when I started my PhD, it was kind of a natural progression. And now my research is a little bit more official. But I just love that age group, it is like the last best chance for these kids to really get on board with something that they're really excited about. They're creating their own identities, they are moving through physical changes, emotional changes, social changes, psychological changes, and it's silly, you know, and I just, I just loved everything about it. And if you can be a catalyst in your own schools for change, to make sure that we can be responsive to these kids, you know, the better everyone experiences going to be.


Naomi Meredith  11:05

Oh man, if you can teach middle school, and you obviously loved it, you can teach anything. Middle school is not my thing. Oh, my gosh, I taught in the classroom for six years before getting into STEM. So I taught second grade for two years, third grade for four. And fifth grade to me was a big jump, I'm oh my gosh, these this is, this is pretty hard. And fifth graders in the spring, I'm all Whoa, they're a whole other animal. But I felt the same way like you. I mean, I didn't go originally go to college to be a STEM teacher. And most of us have it. So like, oh, this is what we're going to do. And then coming into it, it's super overwhelming. It's not what you think. And then on top of that, you have the the lesson plans, getting to know your students, like you said, I mean, you had a ton of students, and then getting to know cognitively and developmentally, a whole range of students. So Middle School is its own beast, and like you said it for me their identities, but then even thinking about a little kindergartener, it's their first experience in school. And so how can you meet their needs? Like we don't pee our pants, but we do we do in Kindergarten, and then you have fifth graders who are growing and changing as well. So it's a huge jump, and it's super overwhelming. So when you're stepping into a new role like this, what are some ways that you think that we could prevent overwhelm? Especially, it's just so much during the day. It's just a lot. Do you have any strategies for that?


Jen Rafferty  12:37

Yeah, it is a lot. There's a lot and I think there's a couple of things here, I think the the first piece is, you know, the expectations that you are putting on yourself is something that we just need to take a look at. Because oftentimes, when we step into a new role, we want to be able to put our best foot forward, we want to be able to show that, you know, we can do this, we're capable, we are worthy of filling this role, we're intelligent enough. And what happens is, when you get caught up in all of that, we are actually living in constant judgments of perceived expectations from other people. And it never feels good. It just doesn't. Because when we come at our work in that lens, or through that lens, we are setting ourselves up for a consistent feeling of just not being enough. And so one of the biggest pieces in moving into a new role. And really just kind of putting on a new label of you know, your identity for a little while, is giving yourself grace. And coming from a place of curiosity, instead of judgment. Because as soon as you start hearing yourself, say things like, oh, like I shouldn't be doing this, or I'm supposed to be this or I shouldn't really be doing this. That is that is a judgmental place where you're not going to be able to really grow into your full potential and have the impact that you said that you wanted to make in the community that you're serving in this really cool STEM role that you have. So really getting honest with yourself of what do I want? How do I want to feel? How do I want my kids to feel when they come into my classroom and let that lead? It's so easy to get caught up in the weeds of all of the how and like the stuff. And that's what really bogs us down and really moves us further further away from our initial dreams and intentions as to why we even wanted to be in this role in the first place.


Naomi Meredith  14:44

Oh my gosh, I love that view. You guys need to go back and rewind that. I wrote that down because that is so powerful. Yes. And it's really it's the growth mindset of you as a teacher and we've talked about that on this podcast, but if you want to model this too for your students. You need to also have that grace and that growth mindset in yourself. Because you're not going to know everything coming into it. It's really impossible. It's a journey, it's a whole thing you and like you said, you have to give yourself grace. Because there's a lot to learn: robotics, 3D printing, all the things, all the students, all the procedures. I did not know everything coming into this role at all. And I still don't know everything. It's definitely a journey. I love how you phrase that and having that curiosity, I think that's super, super powerful. So on top of that, so thinking about just mindset in general, how does that why is that super important as a teacher? So we know we have to have that curiosity, but just how you said how it feeds into our classrooms. So how does that just all connect together? When it comes to that mindset?


Jen Rafferty  15:52

Well, your mindset is everything, because it's literally the lenses in which you see the worlds, if you're coming in feeling frustrated, and overwhelmed and totally stressed out, that is going to be not just your experience for the day, but your kids experience in being in your classroom and in your space and in your energy. Because the truth is, you know, the kids come in, and they feel your energy before you even open up your mouth. And so that all comes from your mindset as to you know, how do I want to? How do I want to showcase myself today. And here's the thing where I think people get tripped up with mindset work. There's two, two things here that I want to just address. The first thing is this toxic positivity of like, I'm feeling like crap, but I'm just gonna, like, sprinkle some rainbows and butterflies on it, and it's gonna be fine, because it was think positive, and it's all gonna be okay, that's ridiculous. That doesn't work. And it's actually building up the stress and overwhelm, it's getting, it's getting louder, because we're just trying to judge it down, and it doesn't have any place to go. So doing that is not actually helpful that the fake it till you make it thing is only going to get you so far. And if you're being really honest with yourself, your kids see right through that. So that's the first thing. And then the second thing is the way to to navigate that is actually tapping into your body. Because a lot of times the mindset work falls short, because we're not talking about your body. And that's where the feelings are, you know, your mind that your mind's only job, or your most important job is to keep you alive. That's it right? It doesn't care. If you're happy, your mind doesn't care if you're thriving. Or if you're learning or if you're making strong connections with your kids. All it cares about is that you are alive. And if you're listening to this podcast right now, my job like write anything. But what happens is, is that when we start to get into these lower frequency emotions of, you know, stress and frustration and overwhelm, or sometimes anger and sadness, and we just kind of stay there for a long time, your feelings happen in your body. And your thoughts happen in your mind, which means that you actually need to process some of these feelings, physically, and do things with your body. So this could be like going for a walk or going for a run, it could be shaking it out, it could be doing some deep breathing to get you back into a place of nervous system regulation. Because again, if your mind and your nervous system kind of going to use them interchangeably, thinks that you are unsafe and going to die, you actually can't perform the way you want to. So we need to create that safety for your nervous system be like, hey, brain, I know you're looking out for me, and I really appreciate this. But all I'm doing right now is teaching a new lesson. So I see you, I love you. But I got this and regulate physically in your body. And then that's how you can continue to move forward. So why is mindset important? You are the coat regulator in your classroom, and you are the one that your kids are going to be looking to and actually feeling to know that it's safe for them to learn.


Naomi Meredith  19:09

Yeah, I totally agree with that. It's super high stress. We actually had a staff meeting at my school and it was kind of similar to what you're talking about, but just taking care of yourself very pared down like 20-30 minutes thing. But just really for myself really recognizing and this STEM role, it is super high stress and its own way because kids are feeding through five minute transitions if that and you're just always on that top stress level all day and I can physically feel it in my body. And it's like running a birthday party six times I talked about that on here. It's like being the cool and you just have to like, get it all hyped up. You have a new group of kids so definitely taking that step back like lunch, decompress all of that going on walks I walk my little dog Fred raglan. Listen to other podcasts, sometimes my own before the episode airs, but you're so right, because it's just like high energy all the time. And then if you just don't have a way to release it, it's gonna pick back up again, and you're gonna burn out for sure. And I know you talk about burnout, with all of the things you talk about. So we don't want to burn out.


Jen Rafferty  20:21

No, and the thing is, you want to maintain a healthy longevity in this career. And you don't want to get to the point. And we all know teachers like this, who are counting the days till Friday and counting the years until retirement, because we just, you know, we're so burnout. And that's not a narrative that's sustainable. And that's not how we maintain a high standard of education for our kids, either. They deserve better, and you deserve better. But I do want that say something too, because of what you said about being on and like the cool and the birthday party, because there's something here that's really important. Not all stress is bad stress. Yeah, right. That's true. Or when you are on right when you are when you are, like turned on right, even right now. Like, I'm not chillin, right now I'm having this beautiful conversation with you to, you know, really get some juicy nuggets from the two of us about really important things in education, like that requires a certain amount of cortisol, which is a stress hormone, to run through my body. So I can actually show up and do the thing. And being that role, which you were just talking about. And showing up does require a certain amount of adrenaline, it requires a certain amount of stress. However, it's the context, and the consistency, and the levels, and being really aware of how it feels in your body. Because good stress that gets you up and does things makes you feel good, right? I'm a singer, every time I get on stage and perform, that's good stress, I show up. But I definitely need to release afterwards, either, you know, I'm not, I'm not actually a runner. But I will, I will dance it out, right, I will, I will shake, I will do some breathing if I need to, you know, sometimes just punch a punching bag sometimes. So just get out some energy, you know, that also has to happen. Stress doesn't always have to be bad or negative. The difference is really being cognizant of what it feels like in your body. Because if it's feeling constricted, then that's the stuff that we really want to work through in a different way or if it's feeling expansive, and that's the good stuff. And we still need to release it. But there's just a little bit of a different experience with that kind of stress.


Naomi Meredith  22:40

I love that explanation. I think that's really good to point that out for people and what they're feeling. So when you're in your classroom, what kind of stress are you feeling? And really recognizing that and take a step back if and then reassess. So you had great strategies of releasing it. Are there other just in this type of role and teaching in general? Just do you have any productivity tips? I can't say that word didn't have enough coffee today. Productivity, tips, boundaries, or even just strategies, just keeping that mindset regulating the stress, any other things that you would recommend?


Jen Rafferty  23:17

Sure, I think we can talk about boundaries a little bit, I think, especially as an Encore teacher, it can be really easy to be very agreeable to everybody all the time, right? It's like, oh, can I just like borrow the 3d printer for this one little thing that I'm doing? And you're like, Yeah, okay, sure. I don't want to say no, because I want to, like maintain a good relationship with this teacher, right? Or like, oh, you know, can I just get those markers that, you know, mine ran out? Can I have them? And so the thing is, when that happens, and it doesn't feel like a full body, yes, that's actually another source of stress. And so a lot of the pushback that people get about boundaries is like, we don't want to make anyone feel bad. We don't want to make anyone feel uncomfortable. We don't want to make waves. And a lot of these also come from teachers, if you identify as a woman like that, that is another layer to all of this too. You don't wanna rock the boat, we want to be agreeable and nice and you know, make sure everyone's okay, but the thing is when you are consistently putting other people's comfort before your own, that is actually something that's going to continue to perpetuate the feelings of depletion until one day you're going to be like that's it I've had enough and then we're done you know and then game over. So you know if you're really focusing on again, who you want to be the kind of feelings you want to feel the kind of feelings you want to foster for your kids. That gets to be the place where the boundaries come in. Right? Because boundaries are love. Yeah, boundaries are love for you itself. Love boundaries are also love and an honoring of a relationship. Because when you give Someone access to the 3d printer even though you don't really want to, and you give it to them with resentment, that doesn't feel good either. And that is actually betraying not just yourself, but also that relationship. And so are people going to push back when you put boundaries in place? Absolutely. Because the people who will do that benefited from you not having them in the first place. But you know, it takes practice. And even something as simple as you know, I hear you that you need this thing for me, and I really wish I could help. However, I'm just not available to do that, at this time. And if things change, I will let you know. Or thank you for asking me to be a part of that committee. I appreciate that. You think I'm such a valuable member of our school community. But I'm no longer doing any after school activities without monetary compensation. Thank you. Done, yes, there isn't anything else. And because that's coming from a place of love. Because if you want to continue to feel the way you want to feel, then you have to be able to navigate the world in which you live to live within those guideposts which you set up for yourself and, and boundaries, I don't think of as walls I think of as doors, you know, if you can abide by the boundary, like come on in, like, Let's hang like it's a party. But if you can't, then there's the door. And like, that's cool. But we don't always have to make everyone feel good all the time at the expense of ourselves.


Naomi Meredith  26:32

I love that so, so much. And for me, setting boundaries has been like a lifelong journey. And it still is, but I even had a past episode about this. And I think sometimes as teachers, we're scared to set boundaries and this role, especially in teaching all we're teaching all the students in the school, we're interacting with all the teachers, even my role is also like technology management. So on top of that, and then yes, the after school clubs and everything committees. So I think that is so important. Because if you're saying yes to all the things, you're saying no to other things, I can't do it all like I wish I could and we all can't do it all. And I love that so much. You just said boundaries are love. And that's just a great, great explanation for that. It's okay to have boundaries. Absolutely. It's not a bad word. It's a good word. It's a hard word. It's hard to say have boundaries. But I will pride myself and my team actually says I'm really good at boundaries. And they watch me so yeah, it's good. It's good. Wouldn't that be great? If


Jen Rafferty  27:39

the conversation changed? Then I'm like, Oh, wow. You know, Naomi makes really amazing boundaries. You know, let's talk about that here in this safe space with our team, right? Like, how do you make boundaries? How do you you know, what kind of boundaries are you feeling? Because part of the reason why we perceive it as being hard, it's not hard, we perceive it as being hard. Yeah, is because we don't talk about it. So we don't have the skill set to actually articulate our needs, let alone and this is like a whole nother episode of podcast. But let alone even come to terms with being able to want something and desire something and use our voice to express the things that we need. Because we're givers, right? And givers are selfless and shouldn't need anything. So you know, that is a whole nother layer to all of this too. But one of the things that perpetuates it is the silence around it. And by continuing to tell the story of like boundaries are hard. They're not, we perceive them as being hard. Yeah. Which is a whole nother way of looking at them. Because now we provide an opportunity for growth.


Naomi Meredith  28:47

But that's why I think this whole conversation is so important because like it isn't talked about, and I think some people probably even saw the title of this wrong. Hmm, that doesn't seem like it's STEM related. But it is it's all the cohesive thing just as a teacher, you have yourself to take care of the of the lesson, it all goes together. And so this does fit in it does have a place for what we have in this role. 100%. And if you don't think you have boundaries, we'll maybe set some up. So it's a good, it's good. It's like you have permission to set this up listening to that. Listen to Jen, listen to her podcast, she even gives even more. I know you go more into detail about all of this on your podcast as well. But I know that we could definitely talk all night we'll have to do another episode.


Jen Rafferty  29:35

There's so much to talk about. And you know, you're right. Like this isn't just about any specific role as a teacher but you know, the thing is for for those of you who are stepping into this role as a STEM teacher as a STEM educator, in order for you to do that, well, you have to do this. Well. You can't show up the way that you want to and I know I've alluded to this this whole time, but what you're doing in your school communities is huge. You're providing them with a gift of a beautiful opportunity for them to see a world that doesn't yet exist. That is tremendous. And in order to really, again, make that impact, you have to take a look in the mirror and take care of yourself first.


Naomi Meredith  30:24

Yep. You gave me chills. You gave me chills, like, yes, this lot. This is why we're here. I love that I my hairs, I shaved my arms, but the hair that I have is standing up right now. Like, appreciate your time so much, Jen. And if you wouldn't mind sharing where teachers can find you also the name of your book, I don't think I caught the name of your book, but I'm sure they might want to go by that as well, but where they can find you and all the things?


Jen Rafferty  30:51

Sure, well, the easiest way is to go to my website at empowerededucator.com. If you head over to the Resources page, there are tons of free resources there for you hop on my mailing list, because you'll be able to find all of the new content that's available. I show up a lot in my Facebook group. And that's empowered educator faculty room. And the other place like you mentioned is my podcast, which is called Take notes with Jen Rafferty, which is really about how to human as a teacher, right, and, and then as you asked, the title of the book is a place in the staff finding your way as a music teacher, and you can find that on Amazon.


Naomi Meredith  31:29

Awesome, but I think you guys could all read it based on how the way you talk about things. I bet we would definitely benefit from that as well. 


Jen Rafferty  31:36

Oh, absolutely. Yeah, you really just replaced the word music with STEM and you're good to go.


Naomi Meredith  31:42

Well, thank you so much. Again, I appreciate your time. And I know that a lot of our listeners are gonna go out and find you. Thank you so much again.


Jen Rafferty  31:51

Thank you so much for having me was a real pleasure talking with you today.

self-care-techniques-for-teachers

 

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

5 STEM Growth Mindset Books for Kids

5 STEM Growth Mindset Books for Kids [STEM Spotlight #1]

growth-mindset-books-for-kids

Check out the full episode on Growth Mindset Books for Kids:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

Looking for books to promote growth mindset in your STEM classroom. These 5 picks are perfect for all ages of elementary students that should be added to your classroom library. These books are great for teaching specific growth mindset topics throughout the school year. 

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Episode Transcript: 

Looking for books to promote growth mindset and your STEM classroom. These five picks are perfect for elementary students of all ages, and should be added into your classroom library. The books that I'm going to be sharing are perfect for teaching specific growth mindset skills that you can read at any time of the year. These are all going to be linked down below or in the show notes. So if you don't feel like writing them down now you can grab those when you're ready. So let's jump in.

The first book is “Builder, Brother, Big Plans” by Jonathan and Drew Scott, who are the HGTV Property Brothers. This is a great book that not only teaches the Engineering Design Process, but these two brothers are working on a project and they plan, they build, they fail, they plan some more. And well… you're going to have to read the rest to figure out what happens. I love this one. It's a new one. I found it recently at a Scholastic Book Fair. So definitely keep your eye out for this one.

The next book is “After the Fall” by Dan Santat. It tells a story of Humpty Dumpty, and what he did well, after he fell. It's a great one about growth mindset to figure out if you are really going to keep working towards what you want, or are you just going to give up i love this story. I have a whole STEM and Stories lesson about this one. I love teaching this one at the beginning of the year, or even leaving it for a sub plan. So great pick.

The next book is “Emma Ren, Robot Engineer” by Jenny Lu. This is a great one to help students work through the growth when working with others that aren't always their best friend. Even work through the biases that they may have towards others and who can and can't do STEM. In this story, the main character, she is partnered with another boy in her class. The boy has a lot of biases that girls can't do STEM. So this is a great story to really tackle those subjects that might be tricky to talk about in your classroom. Not only that the students have to work together to create a project and it doesn't always go right the first time again, something that definitely happens in our STEM classrooms. Oh, this is a book definitely you need to add to your bookshelf.

The fourth book is, “The World Needs You Who You Are Made To Be” by Joanna Gaines. I saw this book peeking out on the shelves when I went to Costco one day. Not only are the illustrations beautiful, but it's a great book to highlight the strengths that you have inside of you, but also develop new ones to contribute to the greater good. This is also a great book to tackle where you are discovering talents that you never knew that you had. And that happens all the time in the STEM classroom. What's also really cool about the illustrations is that the characters are all building a hot air balloon together and all their different hot air balloons. So the illustrations again are very beautiful, but highlights a very important message that we need in our classrooms.

And the final pick is “Mae Among the Stars” by Roda Ahmed. I love this story because it connects to the real Mae Jemison, who is an astronaut at NASA. And it tells a story of when she's a little girl and she was dreaming big and really wanting to do something big in her life. There were times when other people didn't believe in her along the way, but she kept pushing towards her dreams. This is a great lifelong skill when it comes to growth mindset there has that great connection to space, but there are kids who are have those dreams and then and there might be people along the way who tell them they can't or can't do that. So this is a great lifelong skill and definitely recommend this book.

growth-mindset-books-for-kids

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

 

Connect with Naomi Meredith:

 

More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!

teach growth mindset activities

How Do You Teach Growth Mindset Activities? [ep.51]

How Do You Teach Growth Mindset Activities? [ep.51]

teach growth mindset activities

Check out the full episode on How Do You Teach Growth Mindset Activities?:  

 

Subscribe to the podcast HERE on your favorite podcasting platform.

Have a STEM question? Leave a voice message for the podcast!

Episode Summary

How do you teach growth mindset activities in STEM? In my opinion, a growth mindset is one of those soft skills that you should definitely be teaching in your STEM classroom.

In this episode, we'll be going over strategies on how to teach growth mindset activities in your STEM space and how it can also be a natural fit into what you are already teaching.

 

In this episode, you’ll learn  3 ways to teach growth mindset activities in your STEM classroom:

  • Isolated lessons 
  • Embedded lessons
  • Model a growth mindset for your students

Resources Mentioned:

Some items are linked to my Amazon Affiliate account. When you purchase through my link, there is no added cost to you, but I receive a small commission in return.

Episode Transcript: 

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.

teach growth mindset activities

 

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More About your host, Naomi Meredith

Naomi Meredith is a former classroom teacher turned current K-5 STEM teacher and coach. Her role not only includes teaching over 500 students in her school, but also leading professional development and co-teaching with teachers to help them integrate STEM & Technology.

With over a decade of experience along with a M.Ed. in STEM Leadership and STEM certificate, she helps teachers navigate the best practices, strategies and tools out there.

She truly believes that any teacher out there can learn how to use STEM & Technology in their classrooms effectively. She can’t wait to connect with you and be your guide!

More About The Elementary STEM Coach Podcast

Are you tired of scrolling online for your next great STEM lesson? Do you feel like there is no time to plan, research and test meaningful STEM lessons, so you throw together a hands-on activity and hope that it works? What systems and routines should you set in place to help students be creative, critically think, and collaborate? 

The Elementary STEM Coach is a podcast for K-5 STEM teachers, classroom teachers, GT specialists, and homeschool parents looking for actionable STEM solutions. Each week, Naomi Meredith will share tools, resources and lesson ideas that are actionable in your classroom and create highly engaging experiences with your students. You’ll learn systems and routines that will create control in the chaos and that will keep you organized all year long. 

Your mindless scrolling days are over! Your new STEM-best friend is now here in your ear buds!