Growth Mindset – 5 Great Ways To Teach It in Your Homeschool

Growth mindset is a huge buzzword in education these days – here’s what you can do to start teaching growth mindset in your homeschool ASAP!

Growth mindset is a concept that’s been around for decades, but it really came to prominence with the 2006 publication of Carol Dweck’s book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.

Since that time, public school teachers all over the nation have started teaching children the growth mindset theory. In fact, 98% of teachers who were surveyed stated that they believed teaching a growth mindset in the classroom would lead to improved student learning!

With numbers like that, it’s important that homeschool moms pay attention to the growth mindset movement too!

Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about how to teach a growth mindset in your homeschool. (And grab some free growth mindset printables too!)

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What is a growth mindset?

First, what is a growth mindset?

According to Carol Dweck, writing for the Harvard Business Review, having a growth mindset can be described this way:

Individuals who believe their talents can be developed (through hard work, good strategies, and input from others) have a growth mindset. They tend to achieve more than those with a more fixed mindset (those who believe their talents are innate gifts). This is because they worry less about looking smart and they put more energy into learning.

Basically, individuals with a growth mindset believe that their abilities can be developed with hard work over time.

Growth mindset-oriented people know that talent and intelligence are only starting points on the path towards achievement.

Those with a growth mindset tend to be more resilient because they do not see failure as a reason to give up, but rather as an opportunity to learn and try again.

What is a fixed mindset?

On the flip side of the growth mindset coin is the fixed mindset.

People who have a fixed mindset tend to believe that their talents and strengths are static throughout life. For example, people with fixed mindsets often believe or make the statements like these:

I’m naturally intelligent, athletic, etc.
You are so talented – that’s why you don’t need to practice
I am just not made with a brain for math
You’re a natural-born swimmer, dancer, math whiz, etc.
I’m no good at reading

Individuals with a fixed mindset have a much harder time handling failure because they tend to view it as a reflection of their character.

Fixed mindset-oriented people are much less resilient and have a tendency to give up when faced with obstacles.

5 Ways to Teach a Growth Mindset in Your Homeschool

Once you have a good handle on what a growth mindset is, it’s time to start teaching a growth mindset in homeschool!

Here are five great ways to get started:

1.Be an example of a growth mindset

First, it’s important that you do your best to model a growth mindset.

Like so many things with homeschooling and parenting, we believe in the truth of the old adage:

“More is caught than taught.”

While you absolutely do NOT have to be perfect about having a growth mindset for your kids to catch on, your example does matter.

Here are 7 signs that you have a growth mindset from the Association for Talent Development:

You’re willing to embrace challenges.
You believe intelligence can be developed.
You’re able to learn from criticism.
You persist in the face of setbacks.
Making an effort matters to you.
You view setbacks as an opportunity to learn.
You’re able to see other’s success as an inspiration.

Remember that developing a growth mindset takes time and practice, so don’t expect yourself to be perfect.

In fact, letting your kids see you try and fail and try again is the perfect way to model a growth mindset!

2. Use the right language

The words that we use when speaking to and with our kids can really help them develop a growth mindset.

One of the most important things to do is to praise effort over outcomes.

For example, you can emphasize a growth mindset in your homeschool by saying things like:

“I really noticed how much effort you put into that assignment!
“You’ve really worked hard to improve your math grade.”
“I see how dedicated you are to mastering this skill.”
“You’re making a lot of progress – don’t give up!”
“You’ve learned so much about that topic, and it shows!”

One of the most powerful words you can use to foster a growth mindset in your home is the word “yet.”

When your kids are struggling to master a new skill, they may be tempted to say “I can’t do it” – which is a common fixed mindset belief.

But when they add the word “yet,” and say “I can’t do it … yet” – all of the sudden, they’ve moved into a growth mindset outlook.

3. Display growth mindset reminders in your homeschool room

You can easily put a few growth mindset posters up around your homeschool room to give your kids a visual reminder!

Or you can have your kids make their own flyers or posters with their favorite growth mindset sayings.

Some of our favorites are:

“All things are difficult before they are easy.”
“I can do hard things.”
“Challenges are an opportunity to grow.”
“Never forget the power of yet.”
“I can learn from my mistakes.”
“I don’t just go through life, I GROW through life.”
“Mistakes are evidence that I’m trying.”

Free growth mindset printable bookmarks

To help infuse more growth mindset in your homeschool, be sure to download and print the free growth mindset printable bookmarks from The Reluctant Homeschool Mama’s Resource Library!

4. Resources to help teach a growth mindset

Since growth mindset theory is extremely popular, there are lots of great resources available to help you teach a growth mindset to your kids.

We have loved using The Growth Mindset Workbook for Kids in our homeschool!

It’s a super simple workbook full of 55 activities to help kids develop a growth mindset. Available on Amazon, this workbook is perfect for elementary school-aged kids.

Another great resource that we highly recommend is The Girls’ Guide to Growth Mindset.

This chapter book is ideal for preteen girls who need and want to build their confidence, courage, and grit. (It did a world of good for my gymnast daughter who was struggling on the balance beam!)

5. Schedule growth mindset learning

Another great idea for teaching a growth mindset in your homeschool is to schedule time each week to focus on it.

In our homeschool, we’ve been spending thirty minutes every Friday reading together from The Growth Mindset Workbook for Kids and doing the activities.

My kids have really enjoyed the different quizzes, the blindfolded drawing experiment that taught them not to be afraid of making mistakes, and the focus on choosing their own positive affirmations.

Additionally, we spent one Friday making growth mindset posters and another coloring our new bookmarks!

Final thoughts about teaching growth mindset in your homeschool

Teaching your kids how to have a growth mindset in your homeschool doesn’t have to be a major undertaking!

But it is definitely a skill that is well-worth the effort to teach and model over time.

What are your thoughts about teaching a growth mindset in homeschool?

how to teach a growth mindset in homeschool

Growth Mindset - 5 Great Ways To Teach It in Your Homeschool

Hi there! I’m so glad you’re here! I’m Jen, a former reluctant homeschool mom who is ready to help you actually enjoy homeschooling too. Read more here…