Womanthismonth.com 62 October 2024 OPINION | parenting During the back-to-school season, many of us are busy scheduling kids’ haircuts, buying sized-up trainers, and procuring mechanical pencils and spiral notebooks. But the true key to setting kids up for success in school isn’t found at a stationery store. Children will thrive in school (and in life) if they carry with them the ability to be courageous, determined and reflective. As parents, our job is to nurture our children’s self-awareness and practice of a number of skill sets so a courageous, determined and reflective disposition becomes part of their identity at school and beyond. Parenting columnist Ouiam El Hassani shares her thoughts on the three skills your child needs to thrive and have a successful school year. 3 SKILLS FOR A SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL YEAR! For a better understanding of the three skills needed for a successful school year: 1.Being Courageous When we think about being courageous, images of strength and bravery may come to mind. But being a courageous learner is not so much about traditional bravery. For success in school, children must embrace challenges and stretch themselves to try new things. Science shows that we learn best when we are in our zone of proximal development, operating at the edge of our abilities. Courage is the fuel that propels us beyond our comfort zones, enabling us to engage with difficult content, explore unconventional ideas and grow. 2.Being Determined The traditional meaning of being determined by persevering until you reach your goal works for learning. When we are in our zone of proximal development, chances are, we’re going to make mistakes. Being a determined learner means viewing those setbacks as opportunities to learn. Because mistakes show us exactly where we can improve, they can be powerful learning tools that help move us toward our goals… often even faster than if we’d gotten things right the first time. Understanding that mastery requires effort can fuel our determination and enable us to lean into learning. 3. Being Reflective Kids’ tendency in school is often to rush to completion and quickly move on to the next thing. Being a reflective learner means taking time to think about our educational experiences: a project, a performance, an athletic event and consider what did and didn’t go well in order to better prepare for the next opportunity. Stopping to reflect helps us get to know ourselves as learners, cement new skills and find something meaningful to try next. As kids get older, learning to seek and apply feedback can amplify their ability to improve themselves and their work.
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