Ellen Galinsky’s Mind in the Making: The Seven Essential Life Skills Every Child Needs

Ellen Galinsky’s Mind in the Making: The Seven Essential Life Skills Every Child Needs

Skill One: Focus and Self-Control

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

The Chapter embraces children in paying attention, remembering the stipulated rules and regulations, thinking compliantly, and exercising on their self-control. By doing all these, they are helped in enduring and function better in the society which is full of endless distractions and overloads of information. This cultivates their ability thereby making them ever-present in mind or heart.

  1. Define Focus and Self-Control.

Focus can be defined as the capability of having a concentration in one thing and ignoring any other item (s).

Self-control is defined as a restraint from oneself acts, for instance, emotional acts.

  1. Why is it important for children to develop skills in focus and self-control?

It will enable them to have a bright future. This is because by having the aspects as mentioned earlier in skill one will grant them an opportunity of surviving in the society of “information overload and continual distractions.”

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned about focus and self-control.

Through focus and control, one can remember stipulated rules by memorizing them in his or her mind. Besides, one can think flexibly without any interference from anywhere. Finally, one is prepared to be ready either in memory together with the heart.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

The skills contained therein will empower me in being present either in heart or mind throughout my teaching practice. Furthermore, through remembrance of rules, I will make sure I am always abided by the institution’s rules and regulation in my course of teaching practice.

Skill Two: Perspective Taking

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

The skill is assumed to be beyond empathy. It entails figuring out the thoughts of others’ and their feelings. Through this, children are in a position of understanding their teachers, parents, together with friend’s intentions in a better way. If the above is taken into consideration, the chances of conflicts occurring are minimal due to thorough socialization.

  1. Define Perspective Taking.

It can be defined as a capability of relating to other people.

  1. Why is it important for children to develop skills relating to taking perspective?

It helps them by not having conflicts with their parents, teachers or anyone. The reason is that they can understand each other’s feelings and emotions.

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned about perspective taking.

First, if one’s feelings are understood, there is no likelihood of conflict to occur. Also, one is in a position to know what is cooking into others mind thereby making a wise step in approaching them. Finally, one can feel composed. This is achieved by learning other’s ways of survival and knowing their next step better.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

During my teaching practice, I will employ this skill in understanding others feelings with the inclusion of emotions and will help me to stay away from conflicting with students and my colleagues that are the teachers.

 

 

 

Skill Three: Communicating

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

This chapter figures out how a child develops communication skills from the age of two. It says that the talk, eye contact without leaving out gestures from the parents are the key fundamentals to child’s development. Through this, the child gains skills of communicating which include the use of gestures which is essential to the minds of the parents.

  1. Define Communication.

This skill can be defined as a procedure in which either individuals or group of people exchange information.

  1. Why is it important for children to develop communication skills?

It enables them to know what others want to express to them. Besides, it raises their level of thinking, thereby, making a positive move towards other people’s actions.

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned communication.

Communication as a skill is accompanied by many aspects which aid in understanding what is conveyed — for instance, writing and reading. Also, it is through the parents that their children recognize words but not by themselves. Besides, I have learned that children begin experiencing emotional cues before dialectal symbols.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

Through the use of the above skill, communication, I will find the best ways of conveying the message to the students and make sure they grasp what am teaching them, for instance, by writing some of the things in the blackboard and explaining them into in-depth details.

 

Skill Four: Making Connections

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

Here, it merely tells how a child’s capabilities surfaces than expected that is an earlier age. In this, cognitive basics such as space and numbers to mention a few are shown. Also, as the child nurtures, ability(ies) with mathematics and identification of objects features start to cultivate. Besides, they grow as they make how to make connections and at the same time learning how to communicate. Through this, they get ready for being schooled and how to make it in their lives.

  1. Define making connections.

It simply means a strategy that is employed in remembering or understanding various aspects that are in reading or writing; one remembers what he or she wrote or read.

  1. Why is it essential to develop skills in making connections?

Making connections if developed helps in making the right choice through the use of illusions and other aspects. In addition, it makes one understand the universe well and its connections. For instance, unusual relations are well understood than they have been used. This is achieved through the development process.

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned about making connections.

In this skill, I have learned that illusions must be made throughout to make the right connections. Also, one needs to use promoting words which are used in describing the space. Lastly, connections are made as one learns to communicate. This means that they are not made at a particular stage, but they are a continuous process.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

I will use words which describes space. This will build connections to the realities. Also, I will talk of the thing they are interested in rather than commanding them, students, what to do.

Skill Five: Critical Thinking

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

In this section, critical thinking is described as “the ongoing search for valid and reliable knowledge to guide beliefs, decisions, and actions.” It expresses then the curiosity of children of finding new things and testing them to satisfy themselves. Besides, it tells that parents together with the caregivers must be behind their children’s’ success by giving them directions on what to do and how it should be done.

  1. Define critical thinking.

This aspect of skill can be defined as a way of making a clear and reasonable verdict.

  1. Why is it important for children to develop critical thinking skills?

First, it will enable them to foster their inquisitiveness. Again, it helps in boosting their, children, creativity which in turn leads to inventions of new things.

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned critical thinking.

Through this piece, I have learned that critical thinking is one of the best ways of fostering curiosity through researching and testing the results. Secondly, parents have a significant impact on how children think and take things; therefore, parents should always be helpful towards improving critical thinking of their children. Lastly, critical thinking gives children aid of asking questions to those aspects they are not understanding.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

Through the use of critical thinking, I will allow students to get exposed to what they want to know provided it has no side effects. By doing so, they will gain confidence and foster their curiosity of what they have been eager to know.

Skill Six: Taking On Challenges

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

This chapter explores new challenges in one’s life which are accompanied by side effects on one’s body such as stress hormones which helps in shifting the resources of the body thus interfering with the build of immunes systems. This slows down the strength required for an action. Conversely, it stresses that not all stresses are bad because some can be transformed into a positive experience. In other cases, if they are prolonged, they can have adverse impacts, for example, loss of self-control and focus. Besides, the parent’s good relationship with their children is paramount in this skill as it aids them in pulling themselves away from the pressure.

  1. Define taking on challenges. It is coming across new things which can be difficult in deciding what to do to be successful or evade from the situation.
  2. Why is it important for children to develop skills to take on challenges?

It hardens them in facing future challenges thus enabling them to survive in this turbulent world full of controversies.

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned about taking on challenges.

In this chapter, I have learned that parents have huge impacts on the challenges their children face. They can help them get away from such problems or leave them stacked. Second, not all challenges result in bad kinds of stresses. Some result in positive results if positively responded while others result in adverse impacts. Lastly, this skill helps in cultivating the child’s mindset thus enabling him or her to have a positive response to any challenge.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

By not fearing to take on some of the duties; teaching specific chapters because in the process I will be equipped with more knowledge and experience. Also, i will have guts of facing any other accruing challenge.

 

Skill Seven: Self-directed, Engaged Learning

  1. Write a synthesis of the chapter.

Here, the author explores how parents together with caregivers are the stimulating tool used in developing a child’s desires to learn more. He, the author, describes seven ethics to be used in guiding their future endeavors. Some of the principles described are extending on learning, establishing a rapport which is truthful, and helping children in synthesizing and generalizing in their course of practice to mention a few. He finalizes by stating that it is only through getting learned that one’s potential is realized.

  1. Define self-directed, engaged learning. It is a situation whereby an instructional strategy is employed in learning by the students, and they are the ones in charge. Also, it can be described as a more informal event.
  2. Why is it important for children to develop skills for self-directed, engaged learning?

It assists them in realizing their potentials by applying the seven stated principles.

  1. Discuss at least three new pieces of information you learned about self-directed, engaged learning.

Upon reading this skill, ‘Self-directed, Engaged Learning,’ I have learned that caregivers and parents play a vital role in enhancing the child’s desires of learning. If the parents are not on their sides during these moments, the desires fade out. Also, I have learned that child’s longings to can be brought by extending their moments of learning thus acquiring new skills on that particular aspect. Lastly, I have learned that honesty among those who relate with is paramount as it aids in knowing more from them and on other fields.

  1. How will you apply this learning in your teaching practice?

I will always be behind the students by giving them back up whenever faced by any challenge. This will make their desire to grow and have a bright future.