The beautiful building that our school is located in was reopened in 2008 to accommodate the growing Low German Mennonite population in the surrounding area. Within the Palliser Regional Schools division, Barons School is a public alternative school that offers a unique schooling experience for Low German Mennonites. While instruction is given in English, students receive German, Bible, and German singing classes throughout the week. Because of the demographic, all students are ELL, with Low German being their first language. The unique demographic of our school helped to inform the nature of our project.
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In encouraging a growth mindset with our students, we wanted to make connections to an initiative the school had already adopted. The school was a FISH school and had incorporated the four pillar if the FISH Philosophy into their daily and weekly routines/schedule. In the first few weeks of our practicum, we were able to see that the philosophy worked to encourage positivity throughout the school and to create a strong and cohesive school community. The FISH philosophy really set a foundation for our work on growth mindset. The four pillars (that the students were quite familiar with) are laced with the idea of resilience, perseverance, and always showing up with our best attitude. Teaching about and encouraging a growth mindset built on the FISH philosophy and the two frameworks reinforced each other.
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