The momentum of Carol Dweck’s growth mindset has become a tidal wave in the fields of education, parenting, and self-help. While I’m pleased that so many are reconsidering how we help our kids learn, I am not keen on the watered down resources that accompany this momentum. In some cases the catchphrase “growth mindset” has become the newest branding of the self-esteem movement. Some kids need help with self-esteem, sure, but most need something more substantial. Affirmations can be a useful tool, but training kids to say the different “right thing” is unlikely to lead to long-term change in the way they perceive themselves and the learning process.

In this blog series about perfectionism, we’ve covered:

• three myths your perfectionist believes
• three truths your perfectionist can learn
• how we are all designed to grow, just like seeds

Now you’re ready for practical ways to help your children internalize this belief that they are born to learn.

I have just the thing for you.

The Nourishing Healthy Roots set of activity guides was written for anyone who believes that learning happens all the time, that it begins at birth, and that we can grow our entire lives – but you’re having trouble acting on those beliefs. You or your kids crumble in the face of failure and beat yourselves up over mistakes. You feel immobilized, incapable, exhausted.

Nourishing Healthy Roots is just the tool you need to align your practice with what you believe (or want to believe) is true about learning. These activity guides are not intended to be used once and discarded. Instead, I hope they will inspire you to create routines or rituals in your home that honor risk-taking, mistake-making, and lifelong learning.

Who is it for?

Nourishing Healthy Roots is written for people of all ages. My primary audience is multi-age homeschooling families who want activities to do together. But any of these people will benefit from what’s inside:

• Homeschooling newbies who need to deschool
• Seasoned homeschoolers who want to get unstuck from the November/February funk
• Anyone whose child cries a lot doing schoolwork
• Anyone whose child has been designated “behind” in any academic subject
• Public school teachers who want to connect more with their students
• Any adult who wants to work through their own perfectionism (kids or no kids)

What do I get?

After you buy, you’ll be sent an email with a link to download a 22 page PDF e-book. Inside you’ll find an introduction and overview to help you understand the purpose of the activity guides and a variety of ways to use them. There are eight activity guides. Each one features a core principle and activity to help you and your kids understand what it means to be a learner. The guides also include discussion prompts, loads of extra resources, and a wide variety of extension activities to keep your growth mindset growing.

Is this curriculum?

Not in the way most people use the word. A homeschool curriculum is meant to be completed; this e-book is meant to be consulted as you live your real, everyday life.

Here’s what you will love about Nourishing Healthy Roots

• It is brief. The explanations and activities are no more than a paragraph or two. The average duration of the activities and discussions ranges is about 20 minutes so it will be easy to implement in your already busy life.
• It is organized. It pulls together all kinds of resources (books, movies, websites, and more) and sorts them by topic or theme. The layout makes skimming a snap and the ideas are simple to adapt.
• You will find at least one thing that you’re already doing. When you find it, you’ll feel encouraged that this “counts” as learning and see practical suggestions for extensions that nudge you a bit beyond what’s comfortable.

I can’t wait to hear about the ways you use Nourishing Healthy Roots and how you are changed or affirmed because of it.

Fine print: buying the e-book gets you a PDF download you can print or use on your device. It is single-use, so no sharing outside of your home or classroom please. Since this is a digital product, there will be no returns.