Learning & Leading With Habits of Mind

•examine assumptions on taken-for-granted ideas?

•develop a “plan of action” before they launch into a project?

Some districts hold orientation meetings for parents new to the
school’s learning community. Lisa Davis of West Orchard School in
Chappaqua, New York, gives us a powerful example of how she reaches
parents at the beginning of the school year and how she keeps the
momentum of teaching the Habits of Mind connected to the world
beyond the school walls:

Every September our school holds Open House Night to

introduce parents to the teachers and to the overall curriculum

for the year. I’ve always found it quite difficult to give an overview

of the entire curriculum in the hour allotted. So, a few years ago

I asked myself what I wanted each student to leave my class know-

ing or to be able to do. The bottom line for me was that I didn’t

want a curriculum-driven class. I was going for depth not breadth.

I wanted to work on the child’s being the responsible learner, and

I wanted my students to walk out of my class as “life-long learn-

ers.” My next problem was how to convey the concept of life-long

learner to the parents.

We s t a r t t h e ni g h t b y b r a i n s t o r mi n g a l i s t o f c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s

they thought employers wanted employees to know or be able to

do upon employment. Invariably, almost every skill that the U.S.

Dept. of Labor issued in 1990 is on our brainstormed list and

more. For example, the following were found on both lists:

To b e a b l e t o w o r k c o o p e r a t i v e l y o r a s p a r t o f a t e a m

To b e a b l e t o s o l v e a p r o b l e m i n m o r e t h a n o n e w a y

To b e a b l e t o c o m mu n i c a t e e f f e c t i v e l y

To b e a b l e t o a c c e s s , a n a l y z e , s y n t h e s i z e a n d u t i l i z e

information

I then go on to talk about Signs of Intelligent Life or Habits

of Mind. I then explain that I will teach these Habits of Mind

using the curriculum as my vehicle. The following is how I first

implicitly teach the skills I am looking for so that when they

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