Practicing skills and concepts is an important part of the learning process; however, just repeating a skill does not lead to improvement. Deliberate practice is the idea that the work being done is challenging enough to stretch the student, but not so challenging as to be frustrating. Deliberate Practice Improves Skills without Dread …
Many in the education field are familiar with Stanford Professor Carol Dweck’s notion of instilling in children a growth mindset, that is a belief that their intellectual abilities can be developed through effort and practice. Recently, some researchers have challenged her work claiming that further analysis indicates that growth mindset interventions are not particularly effective.…
In the fall of 1969, I was three years old and my young adult cousin came to live with my family for awhile. Although there was at least a twenty year difference between us, his laughter and his gentle way with our pet hamster made a profound impression on me and I became his fan…
Montessori schools attract staff that are committed to respectful interactions with children and yet sometimes those same skills fail to translate into effective communication between adults. School staff climates can be mercurial and depend on several conditions to become healthy and effective, of which communication is at the top of the list! Yet many…