Role-models are important to children’s development of self and identity. Creating a sense of self is part of self worth. What you do, what you don’t do, and even how you see new ideas are all part of who we think we are and how we think we should be behaving. The closer we follow our morals and guidelines, the more confident in ourselves we get.
It is important for both boys and girls to see strong role-models, specifically in areas that don’t tend to be the norm. Take for instance, Ms. Frizzle from The Magic School Bus. She is a female science teacher who is excited about all the STEM subjects and promotes learning through experience (even if it is an unrealistic magical bus experience). Here are a few reasons why Ms. Frizzle is an awesome role-model for our generation and generations to come.
- Good Failing.
“Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy!” – Ms. Frizzle
Learning through doing and failing are the two best ways to keep grow from the experience. Ms. Frizzle’s most common saying includes both these concepts. Failing is a fantastic way to learn how to be successful. With every failure you discovery a way to not hit your goal. When you are finally successful, there is often a sense of pride and accomplishment that only comes from failing several times before. If you work hard at something, you appreciate it much more.
- Learning First.
The students experience of learning comes first. You never see Ms. Frizzle saving her students from mistakes or taking over to ‘show the right way’. She gives them a framework and lets them create the rest. The kids make many mistakes in their journey, but with every mistake comes a moment of understanding, until it all comes together. This tactic may take longer, but the lessons are impactful.
- STEM is fun.
Science, technology, engineering, and math are a ton of fun if learned as an experience. Ms. Frizzle is the ultimate example of this. Excitement for these subjects can ignite a passion to try experiments at home or share knowledge with others. Even quick interesting facts can be intriguing and facilitate curiosity. Curiosity creates progress because if we fully investigate and understand something, we can make it even better.
- Be you.
There is no one like Ms. Frizzle. She is uniquely her and does not conform to all social norms. From her teaching style to how she dresses, she is being genuinely her. When we are proud of who we are and let ourselves be us, we are much more confident. With confidence comes the ability to take chances and mistakes- and see them as learning moments. This leads to more knowledge of the issue and more understanding (and ofcourse more solutions).
More Role-models!!!
Sophie Shrand has degrees in Neuroscience and Theatre from Northeastern University, Boston. Her show ‘Science with Sophie’ is a fast-paced silly way to explore a variety of science subjects that keeps kids and adults engaged while learning. It is a fabulous way to see a variety of STEM professions and subjects that oftentimes is not showcased. Each episode has easy experiments, elicits questions that encourage critical thinking, and is extremely entertaining. Check it out here: http://www.sciencewithsophie.com/
My Challenge to you: Check out Science with Sophie and see if you can add some of these experiments or concepts to daily learning. You can also become your kids ‘science role model’ by finding experiments or concepts that are interesting to you- and teaching them all about it. STEM is amazing!!!
Happy critical thinking friends!
– Jessie the Therapist
Photo by:Element5 Digital
