What if I don’t get it right?

When a child begins school for the very first time, they fearlessly take on challenges in the classroom, they are excited about their learning, and they learn very quickly that making mistakes is an important part of the learning process.

I am constantly reminded of this by my own children (Prep and Year 2). From spelling to maths, they bite off big chunks of learning and attempt to put it into practice completely free of any fear associated with getting it wrong. In early primary school, students quickly accept that we cannot get it right first time, every time, but by having a go we can get better at a particular skill. It very much is about the learning journey and not just a sole focus on the destination.

What happens to the fearlessness?

As their brain continues to mature, mainly through the Middle Years age bracket of 12 - 14, we see a shift in that fearless thinking. Up to the age of about 12, students think in very concrete ways. That is to say that thinking is very much based on what you can see, hear, feel, and experience in the here and now. It is very literal. Their reasoning focuses on the physical objects, immediate experiences, and exact interpretations of situations right before them.

In the early teenage years though, children begin to complete more complex thinking operations. Their thoughts shift to more abstract ponderings about possibilities. The great What if? starts to creep into their thinking. With this change, children begin forming their own opinions and ideas, and as many of you may have noticed, they more freely debate their thoughts and opinions. Frustratingly, it is often in direct opposition of their closest adults – parents and teachers. As hard as it is, this is not a new phenomenon – check out this quotation below:  

Check out this quote:

Apparently, this quote is attributed to Socrates (469-399 B.C.). It would seem that somethings may not have changed in quite some time. While it can be a challenge, we must always remember that this is a natural process of brain development. It is important that students go through this phase, and that they are adequately supported to that they come out the other side better for the experience, and with relationships intact.   

While it is important to remember that each child will develop at their own rate, they all go through similar processes of brain development. For some it takes longer to transition through this phase and others subconsciously cling to the more concrete thinking a little longer than some of their peers.

As student move in and through the Middle Years, it is natural for them to experience their fearlessness in the face of making mistakes shifting towards a somewhat paralysing fear of failure or ridicule. As they become more aware of possibilities and the world around them, they too become more likely to not even try just in case they fail. In reality, we often learn more from our mistakes than we do from our easy wins. As such, we should be encouraging our students and children to have a go and to embrace feedback as a great learning opportunity. 

Here are some tips for teachers and parents in supporting our young people while they transition through this challenging phase of their development:

• Talk it through
  Whenever your child shows a reluctance to begin or to try something, ask them what they are worried about. Give them a chance to share their thoughts. Talk about what is the worst thing that could happen – often they will catastrophise and will build things up in their minds and need someone to reassure them that it isn’t going to be as bad as that. Make the scary thing seem smaller, and reassure them that you will support them through it.
  
  
• Share your experiences
  Young people benefit from hearing how their trusted adults also struggled at times. They often think that we always have our ducks in a line because that is what we try to show them and the world. It is important that they hear about how we also have found things difficult and how through perseverance we can get through it. Help lighten their load by diffusing their worry.
  
  
• Resilience
  People often try to build resilience as if it is a a simple skill. In reality, resilience is only built through experience, through things not going to plan and having the resolve to try again. Making mistakes and learning from them helps build resilience. This will better prepare our young people for the challenges of later life. We have to let our kids try, we sometimes have to let them fail (in a safe way) so that they can learn from the mistake. Understanding that failure is not the worst thing in the world and that you can survive it gives children the confidence to tackle bigger things. Failure is not the enemy but failing to try is the enemy.

Student Awards – Learning Dispositions 

At our last Middle Years Assembly, we acknowledged the efforts of students who consistently have demonstrated the College’s Learning Dispositions – Optimism, Motivation, Persistence, Resilience, Curiosity, Independence, and Creativity. Well done to the following students:

Well done students.

Middle Years Classes

This week I was fortunately enough to visit some of the technology classes. Check out what the students have been up to:

Leadership Passport

If you child is looking for an Above and Beyond task for their leadership passport then there are some opportunities on offer in the coming weeks. Under 8s Day is one that provides students with the chance to help out where there is a need. We are also exploring some options with the PCYC that occur on weekends. If your child is needing to fulfil this part of their passport, please encourage them to touch base with a teacher at school. Some other opportunities have been emailed directly to their College account.