We have been reading articles and picture books as well as viewing various videos that deal with the theme of GRIT. Grit is basically giving it your all and not giving up in the face of obstacles. It is about working hard to achieve your goals. I want students to have a “gritty attitude” so that they meet life’s challenges with courage, determination and perseverance. This also applies to the challenges of learning that they face in the classroom. Grit is a life skill that will serve them well as they continue  their academic journey, all the way through to adulthood. 

My plan is to use this theme as a stepping-stone for an inquiry into citizenship and human rights that will take place in January.

Below is a sampling of some of our frontloading experiences:

Students were given several words and were asked to define them. Together they had to discuss what they all had in common. In the end, students discovered that all of these words are related to one another and deal with GRIT.

Various books with the underlying theme of grit were read aloud to students. Here, they used the strategy “stop and jot” to record thinking on post-its.

We watched several videos or short clips on youtube that dealt with grit. Angela Duckworth's Ted Talk - Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance is excellent.




We recorded our findings about grit (from books and videos) in our notebooks:




Students interviewed a parent to learn about how they used grit in their lives. This experience was very valuable. We included our families on the discussion and students got to hear a variety of stories that added to their understanding of grit.



I wrote about a "grit moment" from my own life:


Students analyzed articles about people who worked through difficult times or worked hard in order to achieve success in their lives. The example below is a response after reading an article about the NHL player, Mark Scheifele, who plays for the Winnipeg Jets.



We generated a list of criteria for students to use in their own written pieces on grit.
While all of these experiences were taking place, we were also focusing on what great writers do. I decided to teach students a "craft move" that we have called Action Clues. This technique slows down your story, builds tension and allows the reader to feel the emotion.

I revised my piece to make it more interesting for the reader. I originally had a bit of this already with the line - "Right near the end, at about mile 12, my legs were blocks of cement and I felt numb." I wanted to extend this feeling and give more clues for the reader. So I added - "My body ached and sweat dripped into my eyes. I felt dizzy with exhaustion. My head was heavy and I wasn't sure if I could do it."

"Terry jumped up and down. His brain was filled with questions. His heart was pumping fast, his eyebrows were raised and his eyes lit up because it was the final game in the hockey tournament."