Grades 3–5
Mistakes That Made Something Great
Match six real inventions, from Play-Doh to penicillin, to the mistake or surprise that led to them.
SEL worksheet · Growth mindset
Growth Mindset Power Words
Fill in the six power words, yet, practice, mistakes, try, help and brain, then pick your favorite.
- Grade level
- Grades 1–3
- Time
- About 15 minutes
- Topic
- Growth mindset
- Answer key
- Yes, page 2 of the PDF
- Kids practice
- Growth mindset, Perseverance, Positive self-talk, Learning from mistakes
What kids do
Printed on the sheet:
- Write the missing power word.
- 1. I can’t ride a bike
- 4. If it doesn’t work, I will
- 5. When I am stuck, I can ask for
- Draw yourself using your favorite power word.
- My favorite power word is ______ because…
Words on this sheet
yettryhelpbrain
Teacher tip
Pick one power word for the week and celebrate whenever someone uses it.
How to use it
- Celebrate a “mistake of the day” where the class learns from an error.
- Connect it to a real hard task, like a tricky math page.
- Keep finished sheets in an SEL folder so kids can look back on their growth.
Watch for
Praise for being “smart”. Try praising the effort or the strategy instead.
Talk about it
- Why are mistakes part of learning?
- How might someone else see it differently?
Take it further
Keep a learning journal where kids note one thing that was hard and how they kept going.
US Letter, prints well in black and white. Free for home and classroom use: print as many copies as you need.
More growth mindset worksheets
Grades 2–5
My Amazing Brain: True or False
Circle true or false for ten facts about how your brain grows when you learn, then fix two of the false ones.
Grades 1–4
Stuck? Try a Strategy
Read six stuck moments and circle the learning strategy that helps most, like rereading or breaking a job into parts.
Grades 3–5
They Never Gave Up
Match six famous people, from Dr. Seuss to Wilma Rudolph, to the setback they kept going through.
Free for teachers
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