Growth Mindset in the Gifted Classroom

Course Description

Gifted and Talented (GT) students often face demanding academic challenges that require significant determination and persistence, which can lead to stress. While these students typically receive support in overcoming difficult academic tasks, it is essential to equip them with effective coping strategies. One effective approach is fostering a growth mindset, which can help students navigate obstacles more effectively. This professional development course is designed to provide you with the tools and resources necessary to cultivate a growth mindset within your classroom. By the conclusion of this course, you will have developed a comprehensive Growth Mindset action plan and acquired a variety of resources to support your students in their journey toward personal and academic growth.

Learning Objectives

What You Will Learn

• Understand what a growth mindset is and how it can be applied to the gifted classroom
• Analyze how to align your classroom communication specific to three target areas of strategies
• Evaluate assignments, projects, and assessments for opportunities to teach a growth mindset

Course Syllabus

Details

I. Introduction to Growth Mindset

Learn what Growth Mindset (GM) is, how it can be applied to the Gifted and Talented Classroom, and then reflect on the four components of GM and consider how you could apply them to an upcoming objective or lesson for your grade level and content area.

II. Growth Mindset Snapshot

Review GM in action in a Gifted classroom to analyze how the course's components work together to support student learning. Then, reflect on what strategies in this section might work well for your teaching style or for students you teach or are planning to teach in the future.

III. Teacher- Student Communication

Learn how to best support GM through the methods you communicate to students within your classroom then reflect on which strategies presented might fit well into your own classroom.

IV. Student- Student Communication

Learn how to best support GM through the ways you plan for your students to interact with each other, then reflect on which strategies presented might fit well into your own classroom.

V. Student- Self Communication

Learn how to teach students growth mindset strategies as a reflective component of learning, then reflect on which strategies presented might fit well into your own classroom.

VI. Assignment Modifications in Growth Mindset

Learn what it means to modify assignments to fit GM principles, and plan for methods to enhance assessment using GM strategies. Then, reflect on what concepts you can apply to your own or figure classroom.

VII. Putting it All Together

Using the sample provided, build your own growth mindset plan for your classroom.

VIII. Applying What you Have Learned

Get ideas on how to implement the concepts into your classroom, find a list of online resources that feature growth mindset, and read the research behind teaching growth mindset in the classroom.

Measure of Performance

• Your students will be more likely to welcome increasingly challenging classroom tasks
• Your students will tackle tough activities in a more positive and productive way, leaning on the growth mindset skills they are developing
• Your classroom environment and culture will improve as all students work at encountering life through a growth mindset lens

• PC: Windows 10 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Course Requirements

Prerequisites:

There are no prerequisites to take this course.

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

Software Requirements:

Other:

Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Editing of a Microsoft Word document is required in this course. You may use a free version of Microsoft Word Online, or Google Docs if you do not have Microsoft Office installed on your computer. Model Teaching can provide support for this.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, please fill out the self-disclosure form. The Office of Disability Services coordinates services for students with disabilities. Documentation of a disability needs to be on file in that office before any accommodations can be provided.