Praise vs. Constructive Criticism

While we were learning about Growth Mindset we spent some time discussing the difference between praise and constructive criticism.  

We began with a discussion about what students like to hear more and why? Of course, praise is something that we all like and want to hear. We then discussed which of the two (praise or constructive criticism) is better for the growth of their brain and more connections between neurons. We discussed why constructive criticism can be difficult to hear sometimes, but how important it can be in our continuous growth as learners. We also let them know about a little secret....sometimes it is even hard for adults to hear criticism.

We concluded that praise is something that makes me feel good about myself, and constructive criticism is something that will help my brain grow.

Small groups were formed and we did some sorting activities determining which scenarios were examples of praise and which ones were examples of constructive criticism.  We then charted some phrases that were examples of each.