There are a wide variety of picture books which beautifully illustrate the process of setting and meeting goals with a growth mindset. Read how I use my favorite mentor texts to teach my students how to set personal and academic goals throughout the school year.

• Because is a beautiful book about the process of goal setting and the wonderful outcomes of hard work

• Jabari Jumps is the perfect books for students to model what to do if their goals become challenging

• Make the process personal by using social stories

Understanding Goal Setting with Because

Because by Mo Willems is not another Elephant and Piggie book. Because is a beautifully written story about a girl that went to see a show with her mom. That night, she fell in love with the orchestra, as soon as she heard the music. After that night, she worked diligently towards her goals, until she had her own orchestra.

The girl in the book can inspire students to set their own personal or academic goals.

Students can discuss what the girl did to meet her goal and how she felt when she achieved it.

Teachers can help students understand why setting goals is important and help students to begin to set goals of their own.

Growth Mindset with Jabari Jumps

Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall is an inspiring story about trying something new, and having a growth mindset throughout the process. Jabari went to the pool with his family. He was so excited to go on the diving board, he couldn’t wait to try it. But when he went to the top, he was too afraid to jump off. With some encouragement from his dad, Jabari felt brave enough to jump off by himself.

This mentor text can be used to help students make a connection to a time in their life when they were nervous to try something new.

Jabari can inspire students to fill their minds with encouragement and achieve their goals with a growth mindset.

How to Use Social Stories

You can use social stories to help students take ownership of the goal-setting process.

A social story is a book that shows students what to expect during an activity. The social story explains the process step-by-step, using real photos of the student modeling success with the activity.

The student can read their social story to remind themselves of the process or expectations.

Wrap-Up

Using mentor text is the perfect way to incorporate social emotional learning skills into your daily curriculum.

• Using Because and Jabari Jumps, your students will be inspired to set and meet their goals with a growth mindset.

• Help students take ownership of their learning with social stories

Want to try this later? Save these Goal Setting Mentor Text ideas to your favorite Pinterest board.

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