It Might Not be What You Think…
This week I spoke to several people about the most important things to cover when educating children.
What do you think is most important?
Do you think of the standards that the government has given us? Or maybe the lists you can find on a website or in a book?
Most of those center on certain types of knowledge.
I don’t think knowledge even makes the top 10.
Knowledge is important, don’t get me wrong! There is so much information our kids need to learn. But there are many other things that are more important. In fact, some of these things, if kids learn them first, will make learning everything else easier!
The love of learning for example.
If your student loves learning, they don’t need to be taught subjects. They will search for knowledge for themselves for the rest of their lives!
A growth mindset is another example.
Carol Dweck’s TED talk on the “Power of Yet” covers how important this is to kids. They need to know that it is OK to not know everything… yet!
Mistakes are another important lesson.
How we handle both big and little mistakes can totally change our lives!
I recently was talking to a parent who was very concerned about their child’s future and asked me if they should allow their child to do something, even if they felt it would be a mistake. YES! They need to make mistakes now when you are still there to help them through them. If they aren’t allowed to fail, as adults it may crush them and you may not be there to help them. Or you may not be in a position where they will hear you.
Edutopia’s article on the “Mistake Imperative” is worth a read. It talks about the science behind how mistakes HELP us learn. We need to embrace mistakes and the learning that comes from them.
I haven’t even touched on things like kindness, integrity, a good work ethic, etc.
A great way of teaching what is really important is to use knowledge as the vehicle. As a history teacher, I love using people in history to learn about resilience, leadership, making good decisions, diplomacy, and more. We just need to make sure we don’t let the “car” tell us where to go. We need to stay on course.
As educators and parents, it is our duty to realize the genius in our kids.
It isn’t always easy. It is one of those things that is more important than knowledge. But we can use the knowledge we’d like to expose our kids to, to help us find and nurture our students’ genius.
If you’d like help, let me know. I offer parent and educator coaching. I can help you individualize your student’s education to help them realize their genius. I can also work with you to help you realize your own!
For more information and to sign up email me at info@realizinggenius.com.