Sunday, October 26, 2014

Grit and Report Cards

Report cards went home last week and there might be some not so happy children and parents. This is alright and I expect you to be mad, but how you handle that feeling will either help you or hurt you. It is time for both adults and children to stop saying the "I cant's" and start saying the "I cans".
Before you get even more upset let me explain what I mean. I too use to feel sorry for myself and would give up when things didn't go my way. I was lucky to have some role models in my life that wouldn't let me settle for giving up. These people pushed me into trying and working harder. These people explained that life isn't fair and that life can be frustrating and hard. They taught me that if I wanted something I would have to work for it and push myself harder than I had been pushing.
We have been teaching our students about Grit at school and some of our students have embraced what Grit means, while some have not. These students don't see the value in hard work and don't see how hard work will get you where you want to go. It is our job as educators and your job as parents to help them see where hard work will get a person. We as educators and you as parents have to want our students to be better than what we are.
How can Grit help? Grit has nothing to do with how smart you are. Grit has everything to do with how bad you want something. There have been studies on predictors of success. IQ and social intelligence weren't what emerged as the predictors. It was Grit!
I have read articles on people born without arms and legs that do not let their physical limitations stop them. These people have competed in triathlons,  graduated college and have gone on to have success in businesses. If these people can do these things, I know our students can work harder on solving math problems and learning how to read. Our teachers are changing their mindsets and our working on being Grittier. If we want to change the future for our students and children we all need to roll up our sleeves and get gritty.
Here is a video on Grit:

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