I was at a holiday party last night when a friend shared a recent {saddened} realization she had about schooling in our country today after learning about the film and writing of Most Likely to Succeed . She asked: “what do we, as a parent, do to foster this type of learning for our children if it’s not happening in my their school?” I think this is such an important question that is worth further reflection. Using the framework of The Deeper Learning Competencies, here are some ideas to explore with your children at home. Warning: this is a long one!
- Master core academic content
Your children are going to get the content in school, what they likely will miss is the application, extension, non routine, and perhaps real-world connection to the content. As a parent you can supplement their learning by doing any of the following
- Educate yourself on what your child is learning about in school and take them to places where that type of content exists in the real world-create your own field work for them. This could be a trip to a museum or home depot, a nature hike, a picnic lunch in a new urban setting, visit a family-friend at work, or simply dialogue with them while you drive about places you pass that relate to what’s happening in their classroom.
2. Think critically and solve complex problems
Teaching children to be critical thinkers can happen as early as they are able to talk and understand speech, in my opinion. And I think this can happen in a few ways…
- Constantly ask your child questions about their thinking so that metacognition becomes second nature. This will teach them how to talk about what they are thinking, and more importantly provides a window for you into how they are learning and processing.
- Talk to your child about how things work-even if it feels complex. And if possible, give them a chance to explore how things work with their own hands. In my experience this helps children to see the layers and understand that there is much more “beneath the surface” that is worth further questioning.
- Don’t solve your child’s problems for them (social or academic) -talk them through how to problem-solve and give them the tools to be their own advocates. As a parent I know this one can be especially difficult at times :/.
3. Work collaboratively
Get your child involved in some sort of an extra curricular activity that requires them to work with their peers toward a shared objective. This could be anything from an athletic team to an after school club-just something that gives them the chance to interact with peers and work toward a common goal.
4. Communicate effectively
This one is tough, it’s not like you can sign your child up to give a presentation to a panel of experts for fun. BUT you can begin by talking to your child about the importance of communicating effectively with others during basic interactions-having a good handshake, making eye contact, speaking with clarity, adjusting your posture and tone depending on who you are speaking to, etc.
5. Learn how to learn.
Sadly, there is ample opportunity for us to discuss this with our children as early as Kindergarden when they first have homework assigned (sore subject for me). Nevertheless, you can use these moments as leverage points with your child to begin helping them analyze themselves as a learner.
- Set up a homework routine-including a specific time and place. As your child is completing their homework stay close by and talk to them as they do it-what are they working on, why are they doing that assignment, what is their strategy and more importantly is it working, provide an alternate strategy for them. In our tiny and bustling home we have a homework basket filled with materials my daughter needs to complete her homework. she gets the basket out and completes her homework at the breakfast bar while I often work in the kitchen and chat with her simultaneously.
- Talk to your children about their learning every day, even if it feels like pulling teeth. I do my best to ask my kids open-ended questions about their day-what is something you are proud of about today? what was something that was hard? THeir response usually gives us the springboard to discuss persistence and trying your best-which is very important to learning how to learn.
- Set mini-goals for your children-either related to school or home. The “mini” part of that is crucial. Give them something bite size that they can concretely “check off” benchmarks and see their progress. All the while be sure to talk to them about how they are feeling and what steps they are taking toward this goal. In my house it’s a “check mark” chart with basic chores and learning time-it works great for one child and periodically works for the other 😉
6. Develop academic mindsets
This one is likely not on the radar of traditional teachers and many things they say or do, while not intentionally, undermine this new approach to learners in school; which makes it even more important for us as parents to foster at home.
- First and foremost, educate yourself on the work of Carol Dweck and Eduardo Briceño. In particular, Dweck’s work around fixed and growth mindsets.
- Our words have so much power with our children-use them wisely. You will catch yourself saying things like “you are so smart” or “wow! you are awesome at math”. Phrases like these are dangerous in that they lead our children toward a fixed mindset. Do your best to reflect upon your language and how you speak to your kids about themselves and their learning.
- Help your children to feel confident in their work by talking to them about the value of grit and persistence. And when they say things like “I’m not good at xxxx”, respond with “you just aren’t good at xxxx YET, but you will be with more practice”.
- Help build your child’s agency by teaching them to advocate for their needs with adults and peers, rather than doing it for them (hard I know). This will help them analyze what they need and teach them to articulate it in a way that will build their confidence, as well.
I acknowledge that doing all of the above can take a great deal of time and resources. You don’t have to do ALL of them, just try a few. I also recognize that by doing the above you are not replacing what a child will likely experience in a school committed to deeper learning. However, for many parents, sending their child to one of these schools is not possible, so I hope that I have at least provided some things you can explore with your child to feel as though you are doing your part to foster deeper learning experiences for them in school.
Onward!