Taking all that we have learned from our inquiry around social and emotional learning evolving into our Currie CARES Model these past school years, we found ourselves once again in the scanning phase of the Spirals of Inquiry (see image).  We knew that, whatever we recognize as our next focus and inquiry for our School Story, 'Care for Self, Care for Others and Care for Place', had to come along for the ride.  Currie CARES has become an integral part of who we are and will always be part of our Story moving forward. 

Our School Story committee met periodically throughout this past school year.  Our topics of discussion would steer to the Pandemic and the enormous influence it has had upon all of us: students, staff, parents.  We as a community have been through a lot together.  At times our reserves were tested, our levels of resiliency seemed low. Yet onward we pressed.  As we thought about a new focus at this time in our school story, our thoughts became trained on Growth Mindset.  We recognize that in difficult times, it is easy for our mindset to shift towards a more fixed way of thinking.  Phrases such as, 'this is as good as it gets', 'I can't do more at this time' and, 'I'm overwhelmed', easily creep in. It can be easy to see how a growth mindset, where the sky can be the limit in our learning, might be affected in times like these.

So, we thought it might be helpful to ask the staff about growth mindset.  Questions were asked regarding: what they know about it, what they might like to learn about it at this time, whether or not they think their students have a growth mindset, and what kind of language they might hear in the classroom that indicates students having a fixed or, the opposite, a growth mindset.  Our 'hunch' was that some already knew about the concept and that many were already teaching and highlighting this with their students.  Another hunch is that a focus on growth mindset during these times can only serve to help our learners persevere and support their mindset around what they believe they can accomplish in their learning.  

As we continue into next school year, we plan to explore Growth Mindset more fully.  We want to scan our students and find out more about what they know about have a fixed, versus a growth mindset.  With this information, we want to explore ways in which we can support our learners more fully.  From our scans and data collection over time, we are curious about what we might discover regarding specific areas of learning in which students may need additional support and encouragement.  

Please click on the link to develop a deeper understanding of what developing a Growth Mindset can mean for our learners:

https://youtu.be/hiiEeMN7vbQ

Using Growth Mindset prompts at home, asking questions that help your child develop a belief that they can learn anything they set their mind to, deepens our partnership in learning between home and school! Together, we can accomplish anything we set our minds to...with our CARES model as an integral part of who we are, we are already taking great strides!