Mindful Blog

03/04/2010 - Role Models

I had the opportunity to hear Greg Mortenson speak recently. It was a fascinating opportunity to listen to a man with an amazing passion for learning and an incredible commitment to providing education for all.

11/08/2009 - Envisaging and Defining Mindful Schools

The following definition of a Mindful School was constructed by a group of teachers that are seeking to infuse the Habits of Mind throughout their school. What they have come up with is a powerful picture of what a Mindful School might look like. We would value your feedback and comments.

Envisaging and Defining Mindful Schools
Developed by Teachers at Mindful by Design’s Developing Mindful Schools Workshop, August 2009.

MINDFUL ENVIRONMENT
The mindful environment often starts with visuals such as posters, but should extend to include the other senses.

14/07/2009 - How we implemented the HOM at St Margaret's College

St Margaret’s College is an Independent, Anglican, trinity college in Christchurch, New Zealand who have been working towards embedding and sustaining the Habits of Mind into all three schools for the last 6 years.

10/07/2009 - Getting Better at the Habits of Mind

When we consider the subjects we teach in schools, we can easily describe what improvement looks like. We generally have curriculum guides that we can consult which tell us what we expect students to be doing or understanding as they improve in these subject areas. However the same can not be said for the Habits of Mind.

For most of us, the only description we have of the Habits is one dimensional - it basically comes down to a definition. And we expect students to "do" it, rather than "get better" at it.

21/04/2009 - Where do Habits of Mind fit in the Curriculum

There is a diagram that I often use to help teachers understand where the Habits of Mind "fit" in relation to other parts of the curriculum. This diagram shows the relationship between the content we teach, the thinking skills students need to develop, the Habits of Mind and the values we try to impart to students.

Essentially the relationship is this.