The big idea
What is growth mindset? π§
Being a tired parent (and aren't we all?) can feel like running a marathon in a heatwave while juggling flaming batons. Do you throw in the towel, or keep at it, aware you don't have all the answers yet, but willing to try your best? If it's the second one, you're already using your growth mindset.
Growth mindset is the idea that abilities and intelligence can be developed through effort, perseverance and learning from mistakes. In practice, it means teaching children to embrace challenges, see failures as opportunities, and understand that with practice their abilities improve over time. It builds resilience, a love of learning, and the confidence to take on new challenges.
It comes from years of research by Dr Carol Dweck, who noticed some pupils bounced back from setbacks while others felt defeated, and traced it to their beliefs about intelligence. The opposite, fixed mindset, is the belief that talents are set in stone, and it's far more likely to lead to tears and homework battles as children feel hopeless and avoid what makes them feel bad.
Growth vs fixed mindset: what it sounds like
Nobody has one or the other. We all slide between them, and the same child can be all growth on the football pitch and all fixed in front of a times-tables sheet. Listen for these:
βI'm just not good at drawing.β
βI'm not good at drawing yet. What could I practise?β
βThis is too hard, I give up.β
βThis is hard. Hard means my brain is growing.β
βI made a mistake, it's ruined.β
βMistakes show me what to try next.β
βShe's so clever, it's easy for her.β
βShe's practised a lot. I could try what she does.β
βI'll only do it if I know I'll be good at it.β
βI'll have a go and see what I learn.β
Brilliant for SEN children
- β’ Values effort and progress over βnatural abilityβ
- β’ Reduces fear of failure: mistakes become learning
- β’ Encourages self-advocacy and persistence
- β’ Strengthens resilience and a positive outlook
Just as vital for high-achievers
- β’ Encourages striving for higher goals
- β’ Builds a hunger for learning and challenge
- β’ Teaches resilience through setbacks
- β’ Grows a lifelong love of self-improvement
What to say (and what to avoid)
The biggest lever you have is what you praise. Praising a child for being clever teaches them that being clever is the goal, so anything that might make them look less clever (a hard puzzle, a new sport, a mistake) becomes a threat. Praise the process instead: the effort, the strategy, the trying again.
βYou're so clever!β
βYou worked that out by trying a different way.β
βYou're a natural.β
βAll that practice is really showing.β
βDon't worry, maths isn't everyone's thing.β
βMaths is tricky for you right now. Let's find a way in.β
βLet me do it.β
βWhat could you try next?β
βIt's perfect!β
βTell me about the part you're proudest of.β
One caution: praising effort on its own can backfire if your child is trying hard but getting nowhere. Then the useful thing to say is βwhat else could we try?β, not βwell done for tryingβ.
Growth mindset activities for kids
No worksheets needed. These take a few minutes and fit around the day you're already having.
The power of "yet"
Whenever someone in the house says "I can't do it", anyone can add "β¦yet". It sounds tiny, and it changes the sentence from a verdict into a work in progress.
Mistake of the day
At dinner, everyone (grown-ups first) shares one mistake from their day and what it taught them. It makes getting things wrong ordinary, and even a bit funny.
Beautiful oops art
Splodge some paint or scribble on a page on purpose, then turn the "mistake" into something: a monster, a planet, a hairdo. Brilliant for children who rip up drawings.
Draw your brain growing
Explain that practising something makes new paths in your brain, like walking the same way across a field until there's a track. Draw the brain and add a path for every new thing they've learned.
Then and now
Keep a first attempt (handwriting, a drawing, a Lego build) and put it next to one from a few weeks later. Proof, in their own hand, that practice works.
Swap the sentence
Write fixed-mindset sentences on cards ("I'm rubbish at spelling") and take turns rewriting them in a growth-mindset way. Great in the car or a cafΓ© queue.
Growth mindset by age
Early years (EYFS) Β· Ages 3β5
Keep it in play. Narrate effort as it happens ("you kept trying to balance that block!"), read stories where characters try again, and let them struggle a little before you step in.
KS1 Β· Ages 5β7
This is when "I'm not good atβ¦" starts, often after comparing with classmates. Introduce "yet", talk about the brain growing with practice, and celebrate the trying, not the gold star.
KS2 Β· Ages 7β11
Older children can talk about it directly: strategies to try when stuck, how feedback helps, and how people they admire got good. Watch for perfectionism in high-achievers, who often have the most to lose from a mistake.
Ten years ago growth mindset was everywhere in schools, but with teachers stretched ever thinner, it's mostly dropped off the agenda. As the pressure on children grows, it matters more than ever. So I want to teach you the simple tools to help your child build it at home.
Growth mindset books for kids
A story does a lot of the heavy lifting: it's much easier for a child to watch a character mess up and try again than to hear it from you. Start with the shelf that matches what you're seeing:
Questions parents ask
What is growth mindset in simple terms for a child?οΌ
Growth mindset is believing your brain can get better at things when you practise, try different ways and learn from mistakes. A child with a growth mindset says "I can't do it yet" instead of "I can't do it".
What is the difference between a growth and a fixed mindset?οΌ
A fixed mindset is the belief that abilities are set: you're either good at something or you're not. A growth mindset is the belief that abilities develop with effort, good strategies and help. Most of us have a mix, and it can change from subject to subject.
Who came up with growth mindset?οΌ
The idea comes from the research of Carol Dweck, a psychologist at Stanford University, who studied why some pupils bounced back from setbacks while others gave up. Her book Mindset, published in 2006, brought it to parents and schools.
Does growth mindset actually work?οΌ
Large studies have found that teaching growth mindset helps, but the effect is modest on average and biggest for children who are struggling. It works best as a way of talking and praising at home and at school every day, not as a one-off lesson or a poster.
Is praising effort always good?οΌ
Praising effort on its own can backfire if the child isn't making progress. Carol Dweck calls this "false growth mindset". Praise the process instead: the effort, the strategies they tried, the help they asked for, and what they'll try next.
At what age can you start teaching growth mindset?οΌ
From toddlerhood. Young children don't need the words "growth mindset": they learn it from how adults react to their mistakes, what we praise, and the stories we read with them.
In Walthamstow? See it in action at our holiday clubs and after-school clubs.
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