Making Mistakes is Part of Learning

I guest teach in a lot of classrooms. One of the most disheartening things I see is the fear of making mistakes. Some students freeze, especially when it comes time to be creative, but also in trying to problem solve. Too many students who don't know the answer right off, are afraid to use trial and error to find an answer. The concept that more than one possible right answer could exist seems to put some in a panic. Do you encourage, or discourage, your child in the are of taking risks/mistakes? Do they have the ability (with your blessing) to make larger decisions for themselves as they get older? Are they afraid to make decisions, or solve problems through trial and error, because they are afraid of what will happen? As a parent myself, I constantly struggle with wanting to save my child the pain of making mistakes and wanting them to learn how to deal with mistakes as a result of having freedom. In this area I want to eat my cake and have it too. I've learned the only real problems are the mistakes not learned from. When one of my children makes the same mistake over and over, that tells me they are not learning. I would encourage you, if you don't already, find a safe way for your child to fail. Let them learn from their mistakes, their own choices. Help them learn that "failure" in one thing can lead to success in something else. This country was built on failure. Or least the success which followed failure. A person is not a failure because they have a failure. The only failure is not learning from setbacks. Ask your child how failure is dealt with in the classroom. If you sense they don't feel safe taking risks or answering questions in class, talk to their teacher about how you can help them encourage your child to take risks in the classroom. Remember to assume that the teacher has all students best interests in mind when approaching them. Wait for them to prove otherwise before taking other measures. Ask them how you can help in the classroom.