Nobody likes to fail. No one starts off with the desire to fail. But, unfortunately, failure is, indeed, an option and one that happens more often than we'd like. Failure affects kids, as well as adults. So how do we bounce bance from these inevitable setbacks, and to teach kids that it's okay to fail?
For many, there seems to be no way to recover. We let our failures determine our future. Yet, for many others, failure is seen as part of the learning process. We learn from our mistakes and move foreward, confident in our new direction. A new study has shown that young people will be better equipped to bounce back from their academic challenges, if they learn the skill of mindfulness and practice it in their daily lives. So what do I mean by mindful? "Mindfulness means being non-judgemental, with moment-to-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, and sensations." so say the the experts the University of California at Berkeley. When students practice mindfulness, they learn to shrug of these negative events, instead of allowing the failure to define them.
Humans and, unfortunately, frog, too, these days are confronted with all kinds of adversities. Finding a way to overcome them and to learn from them, rather than let them consume us, is a skill that benefits everyone. Not just students. So how does mindfulness allow us to see stressful events as harmless and, maybe, even as being even positive or beneficial? People who practice mindfulness on a daily basis, are far greater to stop and evaluate these events,seeing them for what they are, rather than immediately jumping to the conclusion that they, not the event alone, is the failure. Mindful students, as well as adults, are far more likely to find benefit from these adverse events than non-mindful students. Mindlessness allows students to see these failures as an opportunity to learn from their mistakes. They see a positive take-away from failure.
Teaching kids about failure, and the best way to adress their fears of failing, is by being mindful as teachers and as parents. Kids, and frogs, learn from experience and by observing the adults in their world. Those kids who grow up with mindul caregivers will learn that it is truly okay to fail; that a failure doesn't define them. It merely defines that one activity, situation, or test.
Personally, I think mindfulness should be taught in school. It's never too early, or too late, to learn that failure happens to everyone; that failure won't hurt you, unless you let it. I am lucky that I grew up in a home where my parents talked to me about the true meaning of success, and the true meaning of failure. Neither one define us. Failure is often the ONLY option we have. It's how we see it. and deal with it, that's important. Let's show kids that not everyone wins all the time, despite what they see on TV and in social media. That's not real life. Competitiveness is a great thing; it drives us to excel. But we can't let the fear of losing hinder our desire to try something new. So, on that note, I think iI will try writing something new today. I'll give it my "best shot" but if it turns out badly, I know I'll be fine. And that gives me the courage to try.
For many, there seems to be no way to recover. We let our failures determine our future. Yet, for many others, failure is seen as part of the learning process. We learn from our mistakes and move foreward, confident in our new direction. A new study has shown that young people will be better equipped to bounce back from their academic challenges, if they learn the skill of mindfulness and practice it in their daily lives. So what do I mean by mindful? "Mindfulness means being non-judgemental, with moment-to-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, and sensations." so say the the experts the University of California at Berkeley. When students practice mindfulness, they learn to shrug of these negative events, instead of allowing the failure to define them.
Humans and, unfortunately, frog, too, these days are confronted with all kinds of adversities. Finding a way to overcome them and to learn from them, rather than let them consume us, is a skill that benefits everyone. Not just students. So how does mindfulness allow us to see stressful events as harmless and, maybe, even as being even positive or beneficial? People who practice mindfulness on a daily basis, are far greater to stop and evaluate these events,seeing them for what they are, rather than immediately jumping to the conclusion that they, not the event alone, is the failure. Mindful students, as well as adults, are far more likely to find benefit from these adverse events than non-mindful students. Mindlessness allows students to see these failures as an opportunity to learn from their mistakes. They see a positive take-away from failure.
Teaching kids about failure, and the best way to adress their fears of failing, is by being mindful as teachers and as parents. Kids, and frogs, learn from experience and by observing the adults in their world. Those kids who grow up with mindul caregivers will learn that it is truly okay to fail; that a failure doesn't define them. It merely defines that one activity, situation, or test.
Personally, I think mindfulness should be taught in school. It's never too early, or too late, to learn that failure happens to everyone; that failure won't hurt you, unless you let it. I am lucky that I grew up in a home where my parents talked to me about the true meaning of success, and the true meaning of failure. Neither one define us. Failure is often the ONLY option we have. It's how we see it. and deal with it, that's important. Let's show kids that not everyone wins all the time, despite what they see on TV and in social media. That's not real life. Competitiveness is a great thing; it drives us to excel. But we can't let the fear of losing hinder our desire to try something new. So, on that note, I think iI will try writing something new today. I'll give it my "best shot" but if it turns out badly, I know I'll be fine. And that gives me the courage to try.
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