We believe that focusing on developing a  'Growth Mindset' in our children will help them to build resilience, independence and confidence; embrace challenge; foster a love of learning; and increase their level of happiness. We believe it is vital that our children are taught that their abilities are not fixed and that they have the power and capability to improve at anything. Over the last year we have spent a lot of time fostering a ‘Growth Mindset’ in our children, showing them that they can achieve their best by focusing and putting in sustained effort. They are learning that making mistakes is part of the process of learning and that they have the capability to attempt more challenging work. They respond positively to different strategies and using different tools around the classroom to help them improve the way they learn and the way they feel about learning. These included the growth mindset 'steps', the 5 B's, 'Be Like the Bear Cub' and the 'Secrets to Success'. They also use the Growth Mindset language themselves and are very good at saying "I can't do it YET!".

 

We also carry out 'Mindfulness' as part of the development of children's Growth Mindsets. In order for children to learn effectively and flourish, their minds need to be calm. Research has shown that Mindfulness reduces levels of stress and anxiety. We use it to help children focus on the 'now' rather than on things  that have happened or are to come, to ensure that they are calm and focused on learning.