Subject: Thinking - Habits of Mind
Event: The book Habits of Mind is published, 2008
Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it each day, and at last we cannot break it. -Horace Mann
What is a characteristic of a person who is thinking and learning well? What kinds of things will this person routinely do that reflect a sound process for thinking, learning, and decision making?
The answers to these questions can be found in a book called Habits of Mind, which was published on this day by Arthur L. Costa and Bena Kallick in 2008. Essentially, the sixteen habits sum up the characteristics of effective thinkers, in other words, the good habits and specific actions that lead to quality thinking and learning:
Persisting
Managing Impulsivity
Listening with Understanding and Empathy
Thinking Flexibly
Thinking about Thinking
Striving for Accuracy
Questioning and Posing Problems
Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations
Thinking and Communicating with Clarity & Precision
Gathering Data Through All Senses
Creating, Imagining, Innovating
Responding with Wonderment and Awe
Taking Responsible Risks
Finding Humor
Thinking Interdependently
Remaining Open to Continuous Learning (1)
To illustrate one of the habits, number 11: Creating, Imagining, Innovating, we might look at the inventive thinking of George de Mestral.
One day, when the Swiss inventor returned with his dog from a walk, he noticed that he and his dog were covered with cockleburrs. Instead of being annoyed, he studied the burrs under a microscope where he noted their hook-like shape. Many people had imagined different varieties of fasteners for clothing, but as Mestral looked under his microscope, he imagined a new one.
Engineering artificial fasteners that replicated the ones he found in nature took a few years, but Mestral eventually succeeded in creating his easy-to-use hook and loop fastener. He registered his invention in 1958. He called it Velcro.
As an inventor, Mestral cultivated and practiced creative and innovative thinking until it became a habit, a habit that allowed him to see something that no one had ever seen before.
Challenge - Bracket the Habits: On a piece of paper create a tournament bracket based on the sixteen Habits of Mind. Randomly assign the numbers to your bracket, then determine using your own judgment who the winners of each matchup would be. When you get to your final four, write out an explanation of which habit won each of the final three matchups and why.
Sources:
1-Costa, Arthur. and Bena Kallick. Habits of Mind Across the Curriculum. Virginia: ASCD, 2008.
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