Habits of Mind Workshop Pioneer Park Elementary Staff 2-3-2016

Habits of MindPioneer Park 232016.notebook March 07, 2016

Habits of Mind
Norms of Collaboration
http://www.habitsofmindinstitute.org/
Choose one you might like to focus on today.
Share your reasons why.

Art Costa describes the Habits of Mind
http://www.habitsofmindinstitute.org/aboutus/hearart/

I can consider ways the Habits of Mind might benefit our learning community
and ways I might remain open to continuous learning.
I can build my background knowledge on the Habits of Mind.

Awareness WHAT
Students first develop a basic literacy around the language of Habits of Mind. It turns out that this is easy to develop
and extremely powerful.
Simple activities like Word Splashes, YCharts, the Habits of Mind card game and group discussion can quickly
develop student’s understandings of each of the Habits of Mind to a point where the teacher is able to use the
language of Habits of Mind meaningfully in the classroom.
Students report that simply being made aware of what the Habits of Mind are helps to improve their thinking. The
language alone seems to act as a cognitive anchor or trigger, allowing students to monitor and describe their own
thinking.
“When I’ve seen them, seen them on a piece of paper, I can say yes I can do that and I can do this… they help me
think more… if I hadn't seen them, I would have just had them in my brain but I was never going to use them, now I
can actually use them” – Year 7 Student after simple awarness activities.
Sample Teacher Questions:
“What does ………(H.O.M.)… mean to you?”
“What might be an example of ………(H.O.M.)………?”
“What are some other words or phrases that might mean the same as….(H.O.M)……. for you?”

Video Clip of HoM Wonder and Awe!

Recognition HOW
Once students understand what the Habits of Mind are
they begin to recognize them in others and then in themselves.
Activities that help students through this phase include identifying characters and individuals that
exemplify particular habits. Cartoons and the media provide rich examples for individual Habits of
Mind. For example Wyllie Coyote is often cited as a good example of Persistence.
Graphic organizers can be used to show how a habit was, or might be, applied in a particular
situation.
Once students begin to recognize the application of a habit – the HOW – in others, they begin to
recognize it in themselves as well. They begin to be able to reflect on times when they have (or
should have) used a particular habit. They can list which habits they think they are good at and which
they need to develop.
Use of Habits of Mind as a character analysis tool can be introduced at this early stage. Middle Years
students have enjoyed watching the movie Patch Adams and analyzing Patch’s use of the Habits of
Mind. The Cuban Missile Crisis, as portrayed in the movie 13 Days, has also been used successfully
to analyze the Habits of Mind used by key characters when confronted by this real life problem.
Music, cartoons, movies and text can all been used successfully as a medium for analyzing Habits
of Mind.
Sample teacher Questions:
“What might you see someone doing if they were using …..H.O.M?…”
“In the story, what were some of the H.O.M the character display? How did you recognize
them?”
“What Habit of Mind is …… using when you see them doing ……”
“Which of the H.O.M. is this story about?”
“List the 3 Habits of Mind you feel you are best at. What are some of the things you do that show
your good at this habit?”

Video Clip
Managing Impulsivity

Prediction and Valuing WHEN and WHY
With a developing understanding of what each Habit is, and how it is applied,
students begin to be able to make predictions about when it might be appropriate
to use a particular Habit of Mind. In doing so they also deepen their valuing of the
Habits because they can see why they would be important in these situations.
WHEN, WHY, HOW charts have been used successfully to help students move through this phase. Students
are simply asked to come up with explicit examples where a Habit of Mind would need to be used, why it
would be important to use it, and how they would recognize it being used. Creating summary charts
generalizing these when’s, why’s and how’s provides a powerful tool for students to transfer their learning.
By simply pointing out which habits are required to be successful during particular activities, teachers can
help develop students abilities in being able to predict or recognize situations where it is appropriate to apply
a particular habit and why it is important to do so. Eg “This lesson is going to require us to Think
Interdependently. When we do that it means we will have to share ideas with other members of the table
group, support each other and each take on different roles to help the group complete the task.
Simple assessment strategies like negotiating assessment criteria around Habits of Mind (as described
elsewhere in this handout) can also be a very powerful means of aiding student’s development in through
this stage.
Sample teacher questions:
“In what other situations might it be important to employ this H.O.M.?”
“If you were to ……….., which of the H.O.M. would serve you?”
“What are some of the reasons a …… might want to use the H.O.M of ……………”
“How might a ……….. use the H.O.M. when…………..?”
“What predictions would you make if ……………failed to use the H.O. M. of…..”

Adoption Use
As students become better at recognizing situations where it is appropriate to use a particular habit or set of
habits, and their understanding of how to apply a habit deepens, they begin to choose to apply particular
habits.
In interviews students say things like “I was stopping and thinking about what habits of mind I was using [and
what one I could use]… if we hadn’t of done Habits of Mind then I probably just would of sat there talking”
As teachers it is important that we provide them with learning activities that require them to engage in Habits
of Mind. We must be conscious in our planning of units of work and lesson designs that we are not doing the
thinking for them. (John Edwards refers to this as stealing the student’s opportunities to think for themselves)
“What goes on in your head when you use the H.O.M. of …………….?”
“What are you talking to yourself about when you………(H.O.M.)……….?”
“What will you be aware of in your own thinking as you….”
“What H.O.M did you find yourself using when you were………?”

Reflection – Assessment and Growth
Continuous improvement in student’s use of Habits of Mind doesn’t occur until they become truly reflective.
Movement through the stages above indicates significant improvement, but for many students the improvement
stops after a period of time.
We want students to increase the degree to which applying the habits is actually habitual – meaning without
the need for forethought or prompting. We also want them to improve their skills and strategies (both in
number and quality) that they use in the application of the habits. We need them to become better at
recognizing situations where it is appropriate to apply the Habits of Mind and apply them in an increasingly
broad range of familiar and novel situations.
This improvement seems to require students to actively reflect, to self assess and modify their actions based
on this assessment, and to set goals for future performance. The portfolio development process outlined below
is a useful tool in developing this reflective practice.
The Portfolio Process
Collection – Collection of evidence of learning or performance. A diverse collection of artifacts captured in a
variety of media is most powerful.
Selection – Selection of work to be included in the folio is based on a set of criteria eg that they demonstrate
application of a Habit of Mind
Reflection – Students reflect upon their performance in the light of the selection criteria.
Projection – The most important part of the folio process, the projection phase asks students to address the
following statement:: “To show improvement in this area, my next artifact will have to show that I can….” With
out this important step, the folio simply becomes a static collection of artifacts, rather than a learning process.
“What were some of the effects your use of ………(H.O.M.)… had on……………?”
“The next time you……., how might you employ…(H.O.M.)… differently or more effectively?”
“What commitments or actions plans do you have to improve your use of …(H.O.M.)…..”

Internalizing – Life Long
It is important to remember that Habits of Mind should be habits – performed automatically. It is
equally important to remember that they are never “achieved” as such. It isn’t possible to tick
each one off as complete. The Habits are something that learners should continually grow and
develop through out life. In this respect, as students internalize the habits, we must constantly
reinforce the need to reflect, self assess and engage in a process of on going improvement.
Sample Teacher Questions
“What are some of the ways your use of H.O.M. has changed in the past year?”
“How have the H.O.M. influenced your decisions about………”
“As you envision your future, which of the H.O.M. might you work on in your personal
growth plans?”
“What strategies of selfimprovement will you design in order to …………….”

Additional Resources: http://habitsofmind.org/

Reflection
What might be some new considerations or hopes that you have as a result of this workshop?
What might be some supports you will need as you embark on this learning journey with the Habits of Mind?

Attachments
HOM_Stages_of_Development.doc
habits_of_mind_cards ﴾1﴿.doc

Habits of Mind Workshop Pioneer Park Elementary Staff 2-3-2016

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