Educating the Whole Child
At KSA, we recognize the importance of educating the whole child - academically, socially, emotionally and spiritually. In our lower grades students learn and share experiences both within their chavurah/homeroom and their larger learning community (their kehillah). These diverse experiences provide our younger students with an opportunity to learn in collaborative environments and our older students, to practice their leadership skills.
This experience continues and deepens with our middle school students. In these grades we use habits of mind and Jewish values to engage our students in multiple experiences that emphasize collaboration, team building, respect and acceptance. These experiences happen in their own learning community, through work with our younger students and via civic engagement projects outside of school.
This experience continues and deepens with our middle school students. In these grades we use habits of mind and Jewish values to engage our students in multiple experiences that emphasize collaboration, team building, respect and acceptance. These experiences happen in their own learning community, through work with our younger students and via civic engagement projects outside of school.
Habits of Mind
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Persisting
Stick to it! Persevering in task through to completion; remaining focused. Looking for ways to reach your goal when stuck. Not giving up. Managing impulsivity Take your time! Thinking before acting; remaining clam, thoughtful and deliberative. Listening with understanding and empathy Understand others! Devoting mental energy to another person’s thoughts and ideas. Make an effort to perceive another’s point of view and emotions. Thinking flexibly Look at it another way! Being able to change perspectives, generate alternatives, consider options. Thinking about your thinking (Metacognition) Know your knowing! Being aware of your own thoughts, strategies, feelings and actions and their effects on others. Striving for accuracy Check it again! Always doing your best. Setting high standards. Checking and finding ways to improve constantly. Questioning and problem posing How do you know? Having a questioning attitude; knowing what data are needed and developing questioning strategies to produce those data. Finding problems to solve. Applying past knowledge to new situations Use what you learn! Accessing prior knowledge; transferring knowledge beyond the situation in which it was learned. Thinking and communicating with clarity and precision Be clear! Striving for accurate communication in both written and oral form; avoiding over generalizations, distortions, deletions and exaggerations. Gather data through all senses Use your natural pathways! Pay attention to the world around you. Gather data through all the senses; taste, touch, smell, hearing and sight. Creating, imagining and innovating Try a different way! Generating new and novel ideas, fluency, originality. Responding with wonderment and awe Have fun figuring it out! Finding the world awesome, mysterious and being intrigued with phenomena and beauty. Taking responsible risks Venture out! Being adventuresome; living on the edge of one’s competence. Try new things constantly. Finding humor Laugh a little! Finding the whimsical, incongruous and unexpected. Being able to laugh at oneself. Thinking interdependently Work together! Being able to work in and learn from others in reciprocal situations. Team work. Remaining open to continuous learning I have so much more to learn! Having humility and pride when admitting we don’t know; resisting complacency. |
The Habits of Mind are defined as the dispositions that are skillfully and mindfully employed by characteristically successful people when confronted with problems, the solutions to which are not immediately apparent.
The Habits of Mind were derived by Art Costa and subsequently expanded upon by himself and his co-author Bena Kallick. (www.habitsofmind.org) |
