Mindset

Here is a thought-provoking video for teachers and parents that can help us remember to praise children for their efforts and not their innate abilities.  The book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success written by Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D. provides many examples of how we can always substantially change our intelligence.  I learned quite a bit from this short book and found that there were many inspiring stories, including those about Babe Ruth and Wilma Rudolph.

What did you do at school today?

What did you do at school today?                                                                   

"Nothin'," is frequently the answer to this question. And "nothin" frustrates a parent more than not hearing details about a child's day at school. One good strategy is to talk about your own day to your kids almost every day.  Share a story about something challenging that you worked hard to accomplish or tell them about something funny, interesting, or surprising.  Always try to keep it positive.  After a while, talking about your day instead of asking about your child's day at school sometimes leads some kids to say, "Don't you want to hear about my day?" or "Let me tell you about what happened to me today."

Another strategy to get your child to talk might be to ask a different question:

What happened that surprised you today?
What did you create today that was meaningful? 
What was the best thing about today?
What made you laugh today?
What did you learn about the world today?
What was the toughest challenge you had today?
Who did you help today?
Who did you work with today?
What do you want to know more about?
What did you love about today?

Give these ideas a try.  For those of you who have "talkers"...you are so lucky!