If Life is a Bowl of Cherries,
Why is My Child’s Learning in the Pits?
First of all, what is a “learning pit”? Secondly, why is it a good place for children to be? What’s the buzz about “fixed vs. growth mindsets,” and what can parents do with this phenomenon? Why is “smart” a negative descriptor? Why is “talent” overrated? What is the factor that has, by far, the greatest impact on student achievement, be it positive or negative? Come to St. John’s Eagle Talks to learn why a “skinned knee” is good for your child. This Eagle “Talk” is not a presentation where the experts do all the talking, but an interactive, hands-on session during which educators and parents actively engage to make some discoveries about how the home, academic, and athletic environments in which we place our children can foster their resilience to setbacks and maximize their potentials for success.
If you aren’t able to attend this session, but would like to be notified of future Eagle Talks, please contact Margaret Curry at margaret.curry@stjes.org.
Valerie Bryce Barlous, B.A.Ed, M.A.S. Resource Director, St. John’s Episcopal School
Thomas Stevens, M.A. Head of School, St. John’s Episcopal School
Mrs. Barlous has devoted her professional career at St. John’s Episcopal School to learning how diverse learners can maximize their individual potentials within the group setting of a classroom. While excellent teaching is key how children perceive themselves as learners has the greatest impact on their achievement. Mrs. Barlous has investigated the research and attended numerous conventions focused on Learning and the Brain and conferences dedicated to children who are “Wired Differently.” Building a strong sense of self-efficacy is the key to motivating the very bright to risk error and the reluctant learner to persist and persevere to out perform their own expectations.
With over four decades in schools and over two decades leading schools, Mr. Stevens has seen students succeed starting from many different “rungs on the ladder.” Being able to persevere through and develop motivation from challenges is often the best indicator of later success. Being “saved” from the struggles and thereby the challenges can be the greatest impediment to that success. How schools, parents, and students can work together to surmount challenges to earn hard-fought victories is a key to building persistence and resilience.
