of contexts. They also come to recognize that the Habits of Mind are a val-
ued part of the way teachers approach their role.
Purpose. The purpose of this lesson design is to lay the groundwork
for introducing the Habits of Mind at a later time in a more formal way.
The intent is to show that the Habits of Mind are a valued and purpose-
ful part of the teacher’s life and to alert students to new and diverse situ-
ations where the Habits of Mind might be applied.
Strategies.Using the language of the Habits of Mind is a powerful
strategy and helps students learn to recognize opportunities to engage in
the habits. Using the language of the Habits of Mind also reinforces that
they represent an expected and valued way of behaving at the school. Stu-
dents will also learn to associate the application of the habits with success
in the curriculum and thereby further deepen their valuing of them.
Drawing upon standards and typical content appropriate for the
developmental level of the students, the teacher presents students with
cognitively demanding tasks. As the students are working on these tasks,
the teacher recognizes and labels the students’ use of one or more of the
Habits of Mind:
•You really persistedwith this problem. You hung in there until you
were satisfied with your solution.
•You need to go back and check for accuracy.
•Let me tell you what’s going on in my mindas I think about this
problem.
•What questionsare you asking yourself as you solve this problem?
•In what ways might you think flexiblyabout this problem—approach
it in other ways?
•What intriguesyou about this problem? What are you continuing
to wonderabout?
- Thinking interdependentlyallowed you to divide up the task, mak-
ing it easier for each person to succeed.
•What was going on inside your headwhen you came to that
conclusion?
Te a c h e r s m i g h t w i s h t o r e a d t o s t u d e n t s ( a t t h e p r i m a r y g r a d e s ) o r h a v e
students read books that have one or more of the Habits of Mind as a theme
Is Your Instruction Habit Forming? 75