What is a Growth Mindset & How to Teach It?

Average Read Time: 10 minutes

What's inside: What is a Growth Mindset? | Why it matters for kids? | The science behind it | How to teach growth mindset to kids (10 detailed points) | Common myths about Growth Mindset | Growth Mindset Activities for kids (4 activities) | Integrating Growth Mindset in Schools | Long-Term Benefits | Helping kids love learning | Key Takeaways | References

There will come a time in your child’s life when they'll face a challenge. We’ve all been there, and how we react ultimately determines how we deal with life. When faced with challenges, and life has plenty, two reactions take place; either you can give up, say it’s hard or you can tackle the challenge head on knowing you can fail, but it’s there to teach you and make you stronger. This is what we call a growth mindset. 

A growth mindset encourages kids to embrace learning, persevere through obstacles, and see mistakes as opportunities to grow. In this article, we’ll explore what a growth mindset really means for children, why it’s so powerful and practical ways to teach it at home or in the classroom. 

What is a Growth Mindset?

The concept of growth mindset was developed by psychologist Dr. Carol Dweck of Stanford University. Her research revealed that people generally hold one of two mindsets about intelligence and abilities:

1. Fixed Mindset: The belief that intelligence and talent are static traits. You’re either smart of you’re not.
2. Growth Mindset: The belief that intelligence, abilities and skills can be developed through handwork, consistent learning and not giving up.

When kids have a growth mindset, they understand that their brains are like muscles that get stronger with practice. Mistakes become part of the learning process rather than signs of inadequacy. 

Why Growth Mindset Matters for Kids

Children with a growth mindset tend to:

• Embrace challenges rather than avoid them.
• Keep trying even when things are difficult.
• Learn from feedback instead of feeling criticized.
• Celebrate effort, not just results.
• Develop resilience-a key trait for long term success.
• Develop a love of learning.

In contrast, a child with a fixed mindset might say things like:

• “I’m just bad at math.”
• “I’ll never be good at sports.”
• “She’s smart, and I’m not.”

These beliefs can limit potential and make children fearful of trying new things. A growth mindset shifts that narrative toward: 

• “I can get better with practice.”
• “Mistakes help me learn.”
• “I’m not there yet, but I can improve.”

The Science Behind a Growth Mindset

Neuroscience supports the idea that the brain is malleable, meaning it can grow and form new connections through effort and learning, a phenomenon called neuroplasticity. When kids understand that their brains can change, they become more motivated to learn.

For instance, studies have shown that when students are taught about how their brains grow stronger through challenges, their academic performance improves, especially among those who previously struggle. Simply learning how learning works empowers children to take charge of their growth.

How to Teach a Growth Mindset to Kids

Teaching a growth mindset requires creating an environment that encourages curiosity, resilience, and self-belief. Below are proven strategies for parents, teachers, and caregivers. 

1. Model a Growth Mindset Yourself

Children learn most effectively by observing adults. If you display a growth mindset, they will too. Instead of saying: 

“I’m terrible at technology,” try saying “This is a bit hard, but I’ll get it with practice.”

Show kids that even adults face obstacles- and that perseverance pays off. When you share your own learning journeys, they see that growth never stops. 

Whenever a puzzle or a challenge arises, in front of the kids at least don’t give up. Out loud say “I got this! It’ll take time but I’ll get,” or “I’m not giving up!” Children mimic everything they see. 

2. Praise Effort, Not Talent

This is one of the most powerful mindset shifts. Instead of focusing on natural ability by complimenting their intelligence, praise the process; the effort, strategies and persistence. 

Examples of growth mindset praise:

• “I love how hard you worked on that project.”
• “You tried different ways until you figured it out.”
• “Your effort really paid off!”

This kind of feedback teaches kids that success comes form what they do, not who they are. 

3. Normalize Mistakes and Failure

Mistakes are a natural part of learning, but many children fear them. People believe this only applies to learning. However, this fear is placed in a child years prior when they are younger. When the child accidentally breaks a decoration or spills a glass of milk, how we as parents react to that situation is detrimental. Whether we yell or deal with the situation with calm determines how your child faces mistakes in the future. 

Parents are playing catch-up with life as it is, we get it, and at times that stress may make us react more than we actually mean too over such accidents. Then at night that guilt creeps in and we feel bad about how we reacted to our child. That’s okay, the guilt is a sign that you’re a good parent who is trying. But how can we improve? And yes, improvement in ourselves is necessary, so our kids are built strong for the future. 

The most obvious, yet difficult task for parents is to manage their emotions and reactions. Try to keep calm, take deep breaths and/or remove yourself from the situation if you think you can’t handle it immediately. And if you do mess up then that’s absolutely fine, we are all humans, just apologize for raising your voice and work with your child to handle the situation. This is a key takeaway, work WITH your child, they need to learn to make amends and that it’s okay to make mistakes. This will carry on into their life as they grow older.

Try saying:

• "What can we learn from that?"
• "Mistakes help your brain grow."
• "It didn't work this time, but what could we do differently next time?"

4. Use the Power of “Yet”

Adding the word yet to a child’s statement can change their entire mindset.

• “I can’t do this,” becomes “I can’t do this yet.”
• “I’m not good at reading,” becomes “I’m not good at reading yet.”

This small word reminds kids that growth is ongoing. It helps them view challenges as temporary setbacks rather than permanent limits. Using real life examples will also help children understand the concept of improvement, for example remind them of a skill they learned and the initial struggles that came with it. This could be learning to ride a bike, write, read or play that boss level in a video game. Make it personal so when challenges arise they can remember how they overcame a previous obstacle. 

5. Encourage Curiosity and Questions

Children with a growth mindset are naturally curious. Encourage them to ask “why” and “how,” and create a safe environment where questions are welcomed. Even if you don’t know the answer write down their question and look it up together. Simply saying “I don’t know” will teach your kids to keep quiet, give up if they don’t know and to stop being curious. Making an effort to find the answer benefits them, they’ll learn to ask more, discover the world around them and learn research skills. Regarding research; be sure to teach kids between authentic and non-authentic sources. 

As an added bonus, spending time with your child to find the answers to their curious questions is a great way to bond. This way they’ll see you as a source of comfort and security and when life’s problems come their way, they’ll come to you first for advice. 

Tips to foster curiosity:

• Let your child explore interests even if they seem unrelated to schoolwork.
• Ask open-ended questions like, “What do you think would happen if…?”
• Reward curiosity with attention and conversation, which extends beyond straightforward answers.

6. Teach About the Brain

Kids love learning how their brains work! Explain that their brains actually form new connections when they practice something difficult.

Example Activity:

Draw a picture of a brain and explain how each time they learn something new, like riding a bike or solving a math problem, their brain “lights up” and grows stronger. Visuals help make the concept real and empowering.

7. Turn Challenges into Games

Gamifying challenges makes persistence fun. Encourage kids to “level up” through practice, like a video game. They can track their progress visually through stickers, charts or points.

Example: 

Create a “growth mindset challenge board” where kids earn badges for sticking with tough tasks, helping other learn or showing resilience. 

8. Use Books and Stories About Growth

Stories are powerful tools for shaping beliefs. Many children’s book beautifully illustrate growth mindset themes.

Popular books include:

• “The Most Magnificent Thing” by Ashley Spires
• “Your Fantastic Elastic Brain” by JoAnn Deak
• “The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes” by Mark Pets and Gary Rubinstein
• “What Do You Do with a Problem?” By Kobi Yamada

After reading, discuss how the characters learned and grew through challenges.

9. Practice Reflective Thinking

Encourage kids to reflect on their learning experiences. Reflection helps them see their progress and understand the value of persistence.

Ask questions like:

• “What was challenging about this task?”
• “What strategy helped you improve?”
• “What would you do differently next time?”

Reflection transforms experiences into learning opportunities, teaching kids that no one starts out as an expert, skills are gained with patience and hard work.

10. Create a Growth Mindset Environment

Your home or classroom can reinforce growth-oriented beliefs daily. 

Here’s how:

• Display growth mindset posters or quotes (“Mistakes are proof you’re trying.”)
• Celebrate progress, not perfection
• Set realistic goals that emphasize improvement.
• Encourage collaboration, so kids can see their peers tackle challenges.

The key is consistency: every message, reward, and conversation should reflect the idea that effort leads to growth.

Common Myths About Growth Mindset

Despite its popularity, there are misconceptions about what a growth mindset really means. Let’s clear them up:

• Myth: A growth mindset means anyone can be anything.
• Truth: Effort helps, but realistic limits and guidance matter. It’s about improvement, not perfection.

"...some educators told their students that they could do anything but did not provide them with strategies, guidance, or information about resources for the accomplishment of this promise. This could lead students to feel increasingly frustrated and inept if they fail to make progress toward their goals." (Dweck & Yeager, 2019)

• Myth: Praising effort is enough.
• Truth: Effort must be effective, kids need strategies, feedback and practice.

In fact, when the growth mindset research was in the process, certain schools were given instructions to teach the mindset within their classrooms. Here is an excerpt from the research on this matter of what went wrong:

"What forms did false growth mindset take? Many educators, it appeared, simply equated a growth mindset with effort—for example, praising effort, even when the student’s effort was not effective. This could have the effect of leaving students feeling incompetent, as the educator simply accepts their lack of progress and tries to make them feel good about it. Moreover, focusing on effort alone (without bringing in the key role of good strategies and the essential role of mentorship, connections, and access to resources in success) could lead people to “blame the victim” if a person is not successful...Yet other educators simply put up posters in the front of the room or gave a lecture on growth mindset and then returned to business as usual, expecting the students to do the rest. They might even reprimand those students who did not adopt the recommended mindset with its attendant practices, despite the fact that nothing else in the classroom changed to support a change in mindset."  (Dweck & Yeager, 2019)

• Myth: Kids either have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset.
• Truth: Everyone moves along a spectrum. The goal is to strengthen growth-oriented thinking over time.

"Some educators thought a growth mindset meant that all children were the same and that differences in current achievement levels could be ignored, often leaving advanced students unchallenged and bereft of meaningful learning."  (Dweck & Yeager, 2019)

Growth Mindset Activities for kids

Here are some fun, hands-on ways to reinforce a growth mindset at home or in school:

1. “My Brain Grows When…” Journal

Have kids write or draw one thing each day/week that challenged them and how they learned from it. Over time, they’ll see their own progress unfold.

2. “Mistakes of the week” Game

Every other day or once a week, share one mistake you made and what it taught you. Invite kids to do the same, this normalizes imperfection.

3. Growth Mindset Art

Create posters that say things like “I can learn anything!” Or “Mistakes help me grow” Hang them in visible spots for daily reminders. What kids watch, read or listen to forms their subconscious thoughts.

4. Problem-Solving Challenges

Give Puzzles or logic problems that require multiple tries. Celebrate persistence rather than speed.

Integrating Growth Mindset in Schools

Teachers can foster a growth mindset by making it part of classroom culture:

• Use growth-oriented language in feedback (“You worked hard to improve your writing!”)
• Highlight Progress charts so students see visual growth. A progress chart can be made for the individual student, the class as a whole or both. Now here is the benefit of this:
  • Individual Student Progress Chart: This puts a student up against themselves rather than other students. And this is important, students shouldn't be sitting there and comparing who got what. If the competition is with yourself you will be driven to improve yourself. Competition with others has a chance of making students feel like they're not good enough and ultimately give up, so avoid this. 
  • Whole Class Progress Chart: This is not to pit one student against another, but to work as a team. Keep a common goal that students need to achieve, like solve long division problems by the end of the month, this should encourage students to help their classmates learn so they can all move forward together. 
    
• Encourage Peer Learning: Students can teach and learn from each other. This will reinforce the topic, because we don't know what we can't teach. And when it's their turn to teach, then they will work hard to understand the material first. Peer learning will also help students see that no one is perfect and knows everything, it's an effort on oneself's part. 
• Provide constructive feedback that emphasizes effort and strategies, not just grades. It's important to be as specific as possible, so instead of telling a child "good work on that story," say "the detailed descriptions used for characters and setting really helped pull a reader into your story."
• Celebrate Resilience: Give shout-outs for persistence, not just achievements. One way you can do this is make it a class motto "Step-by-Step, but never give up!" Or "Yayy for Mistakes!" This may sound cheesy, but kids will pick it up and it will allow them to be more comfortable messing up in front of their peers. 

When growth mindset principles are embedded in everyday routines, students internalize them naturally.

The Long-Term Benefits of a Growth Mindset 

Teaching a growth mindset doesn’t just help kids perform better in school, it builds lifelong resilience. Children who believe they can grow become more confident, creative, and adaptable adults. 

These benefits include:

• Higher motivation and engagement
• Better emotional regulation
• Stronger problem solving skills
• Healthier responses to failure and stress
• A love for lifelong learning

These are qualities that serve children well beyond the classroom; in relationships, careers and personal fulfillment.

Helping Kids Love the Process of Learning

At its core, a growth mindset for kids is about fostering a love of learning and a belief in one’s own potential. When children understand that their abilities aren’t fixed, they become unstoppable learners; eager to explore, make mistakes and grow stronger every day.

As parents and educators, our role isn’t to remove obstacles, but to help kids face them with courage and curiosity. By modeling resilience, praising effort, and creating a safe space for learning, we empower children to say, “I can learn anything if I work at it.”

Key Takeaways

• A growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and abilities can be developed through effort and learning.
• Teach it by modeling, praising effort, and embracing mistakes as learning opportunities. 
• Use tools like books, reflection activities and growth mindset games to make learning fun and meaningful.
• The goal is not perfection-it’s progress.

References:

Dweck, C. S., & Yeager, D. S. (2019). Mindsets: A View From Two Eras. Perspectives on psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 14(3), 481–496. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691618804166