May The Force Be With You!

Growth Mindset is always a topic worth reminding ourselves about!  Darth Vader and Yoda have a very empowering way of reminding us what a growth mindset is all about!  (This is in honor of Ty Guillaume!)

This summer, we attended the American School Counselor Association Annual Conference in Denver, CO.  At the conference, we had the awesome opportunity to hear Carol Dweck speak about her research on the Growth Mindset.  The research is remarkable!  Did you know they studied 10th grade students in Chile and the students who leaned towards a growth mindset were out performing students with a fixed mindset?  They found that a growth mindset was the biggest predictor of success for students - more important than economic status!  Sometimes the idea of growth mindset is so simple, I think we forget it's power!

Teaching our students to change the way they approach rigorous work can change their lives! Reminding them our brains have plasticity and we can transform and grow is so empowering!!  I loved the way Abbie Brockman presented this to her students about reading: Reading is like lifting weights - the heavier the lexile and the more we practice (repetition) the stronger our brains become - BUT, it is okay that we are all not lifting the same amount!  It is all about working to make ourselves stronger!   What a great analogy!

May the force be with all of you as you continue to embrace a growth mindset culture in your classroom!

Language stems you can use with your students to promote Growth Mindset: 
* You may have missed the question, but look at what you learned!!
* I know this is a struggle for you, but I can see you are making some improvements in ____!
* I admire your persistence and hard work!  It will pay off!  
*Of course it is tough!  It gives us the opportunity to learn! 

You can find other great research/ideas at: http://www.growthmindsetmaths.com/


School Notes: 

* Parent-Teacher Conferences: September 19th from 1:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. (Students will be released at 1:00 p.m.)   We will be providing you with Subway for  supper.   Please look over your class list and try to reach out to 8-10 families that you would love to meet and invite them to schedule a time with you.   

* Faculty Meeting - Tuesday, September 19th 7:20 a.m. High School Library

* Family Fun Night-   Has Been Cancelled!  :-)  

* Reminder:  Students can stay in 8th period on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday afternoons.  Mr. Barnett also offers a morning session at 7:15 a.m. on Wednesdays  (This are great resources to share with your families!)  

* SLO Due Date - Remember your SLOs are due Friday, October 20th  If you need help with this process, please see Jody or Phil. The data wall is up-to-date if you are looking for specific data.  

Important Dates: 

Monday, September 18 - Varsity Volleyball @ Home vs. Lanesville  5:30 p.m.

Tuesday, September 19 - Faculty Meeting  7:20 a.m./Early Release (1:00 p.m.) for Parent Teacher Conferences

Wednesday, September 20 - Walk to School Day!

Thursday, September 21 - Varsity Volleyball @ Heritage Hills  6:00 p.m.

Saturday, September 23 - Varsity Football @ Home vs. Eastern Green  1:00 p.m./ Marching Commodores Participate in IU Band Days - Kick-off at 2:30 p.m.  (Yes, I do attend this game to watch our band - NO, I do not wear an IU shirt!  Lol!!!)  

September 19 - Parent Teacher Conferences
October 6 - 8th Grade Tour of Opportunity (all 8th graders will be out this day on field trip)/ Pep Session
October 9-13 - Fall Break
October 20  - SLO's Due