Top Tip: Growth Mindset "Practice Makes Progress"

"Practice makes perfect!" 

Did you grow up in an era with this mantra repeated to you as a child?  

I'm not sure that this drove me to persist or excel in any way as child.  

"Practice makes progress..." is a much better attitude to have.  It is one that we can foster in our children. 

It is one that we can tell ourselves. 

For our children, we want to encourage attempts.  We want to encourage risks being taken and that it is really okay to make mistakes.  We want to encourage persistence when things are difficult and positive self talk.  We want to encourage hard work as rarely is something achieved on the first try. 

The Your Kids OT byline is "make learning fun".  We want to create a "just right challenge" where learning comes from natural fun opportunities. For some children, this comes from rapport built with the therapists or engagement from their caregivers. 

However, I don't always get it right... as a therapist or as a parent (true confessions). Whilst success stories are shared (see this one on IG), I might not so readily share when things have gone wrong. 

For ourselves as parents, educators, therapists.... this is permission that you (we) don't have to get it right all of the time.  Especially in the last 12 months when we have been thrown into new depths of online learning, telehealth services, managing lock downs, it is also really okay to make mistakes.

If I've learnt anything in my 20 plus years as an occupational therapist, it's that we are all life-long learners.  The longer I practice, the more new things I learn.  Even terminology continues to change.  "Postural control" has given way to "core muscle strength".  "Planning and organizational skills" have given way to "executive functioning". "Social skills" have broadened to "social emotional learning".  You will see that I'm slowly making changes on my website to reflect these categories ---> Article categories. 

So whether you are a therapy undergraduate about to embark on your career, a parent who is navigating life with a child with a disability, an experienced educator who has a new class of children or here to pass on this tip to the children in your life.... "practice makes progress".  

Cindy is a registered occupational therapist practising in Sydney, Australia.  She has two growing children who are a constant source of inspiration and learning.  Cindy loves working creatively to help children to reach their potential, finding opportunities in everyday living and making learning fun. She is also addicted to making printables (even when they take a long time to complete).  Cindy is the author of the Occupational Therapy blog Your Kids OT.  Read more articles from Your Kids OT at https://www.yourkidsot.com/blog

Cindy is a member of the Functional Skills for Kids Therapy Team.  They have together published THE HANDWRITING BOOK, THE SCISSORS SKILLS BOOK and THE TOILETING BOOK.

​The information on this site is general in nature. The activities are safe for most children, however, you should consult an Occupational Therapist or health professional to address specific movement, sensory or other medical conditions. Affiliate links are used throughout this website to promote recommended products. Your Kids OT receives a small commission if any purchases are made through these links. Please see my disclosure policy for more details. ​​​
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