Available for grades K-3 and 4-6!
Habits of Mind Animations - Grades K to 3
Habits of Mind Animations - Grades 4 to 6
The Perfect Tool to Teach Critical Thinking
In the classroom, Habits of Mind animated stories quickly and successfully engage students. Students are primed from early childhood to connect with animated characters and learn from cartoons. The relationship students develop with the Habits of Mind animated characters is cultivated through extension lessons and used to help them refine problem-solving and critical thinking skills.
Educators can use the sixteen Habits of Mind animated stories in the classroom to begin a dialogue around critical thinking and problem-solving. Then, extension lessons are used to connect the Habit to math, reading, fluency, active learning, and more.
“The printable extension lessons included with this animated series help bridge the learning from school to home and develop even deeper connections for students over time.”
-Kathleen Malanowski, principal
Multi-Leveled Learning
7 grade levels. 16 critical thinking methods. Printable extension lessons.
Leveled Extension Lessons for Easy Differentiation
The Habits of Mind, identified by Dr. Bena Kallick and Dr. Art Costa, are 16 critical thinking, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills that 21st-century students will need to build tomorrow’s world. Each skill is modeled to students through relatable animated stories and built upon with printable extension lessons.
Habits of Mind Animations for Grades K to 3 offers over 350 leveled extension lessons allowing for quick differentiation. Extension lessons deepen learning by connecting each Habit of Mind to classroom content learning like math, active learning, fluency passages, printable books, and more.
Habits of Mind Animations for Grades 4-6 offers learning opportunities that deepen student understanding through active learning, peer interaction, and class discussion. Students will learn how to incorporate the Habits of Mind into their lives through critical thinking and role-playing.
“Creating a culture of thinking and learning in my classroom is what I strive for with carefully planned lessons, activities, and discussions centered around the Habits of Mind.”
The Habits of Mind Animations are accessible on any internet-enabled device.
Extension Lessons
Each of the 16 Habits of Mind animated stories comes with extension lessons covering multiple grade levels. The printable lessons connect critical thinking and problem-solving skills to content area subjects such as reading, math, and active learning.
Reading & Language Arts (K to 3)
Critical thinking skills are deepened through language activities that are available in three levels including:
fluency passages
language practice exercises
leveled storybooks
The Habits of Mind critical thinking skills are reinforced through printable lessons designed to address common language needs for kindergarten through second grade. Students will learn reading and writing skills, vocabulary, and sentence structure while learning interpersonal skills such as “Listening with Understanding and Empathy,” “Thinking Interdependently,” and “Finding Humor.”
Math (K to 3)
Math extension lessons easily blend the Habits of Mind critical thinking skills into regular classroom instructions by include math extension lessons in three levels. Students will learn:
addition
subtraction
comparing numbers
counting
and more!
The printable math practice exercises are designed to teach math skills while reinforcing the problem-solving skills modeled by the Habits of Mind animations for K-3. Students will learn problem-solving skills such as “Questioning and Problem Posing,” “Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations,” and “Striving for Accuracy” in the context of the traditional math curriculum.
Active Learning (K to 6)
Each of the Habits of Mind animations comes with a classroom lesson plan, as well as an active learning opportunity. Active learning is accomplished through:
hands-on projects
DIY projects
team-building activities
and more!
Nearly every learning style is accommodated through kinesthetic, visual, auditory, and reading/writing lessons. Students are able to deepen their understanding of critical thinking techniques such as “Thinking Flexibly,” “Thinking About Your Thinking,” and “Thinking and Communicating with Clarity and Precision” while using tangible tools to solidify learning.
Habits of Mind Active Learning lessons for grades 4-6 are aligned with Bloom’s Taxonomy.
“It is evident that students are applying the habits they have learned. They are not frustrated; they speak to everyone in the group, isolating no one; they help each other; they listen; and they talk things out.”
The Habits of Mind Kids Library
Animations
The Habits of Mind animations model the sixteen Habits of Mind to teach critical thinking, problem solving, and positive behavior. Children learn easily when presented with relatable animated stories! In fact, research into children and animation has shown that children form relationships with animated characters and that that relationship positively impacts learning. Children are already learning from animation in their everyday lives through television, movies, and video games. Educational animation takes that dynamic and harnesses it for good! Animations modeling positive classroom behaviors have been shown to be effective in traditional and nontraditional classrooms.
Write-In Reader Activity Books
Our brand new write-in reader activity books integrate the Habits of Mind at school and at home for kindergarten, first, and second students.
Available in three levels, Habits of Mind Activity Books allow students to revisit the story in a new format and extend learning through activity pages that give both at school and at-home learning instructions. The Habits of Mind Activity Books are perfect for blended and distance learning!
Printables
Each of the Habits of Mind animated lessons for Grades K to 3 comes with over 20 printable extension lessons in the areas of fluency, language arts, math, and active learning.
Each of the Habits of Mind animations for grades 4-6 come with multiple active learning opportunities and class discussion questions. Students in K-3 get creative with printable coloring pages and storybooks. Each extension lesson comes in three levels.
“The 16 Habits of Mind Animations help teachers effectively instill the most critical life skills in their young students, with a method that enhances rather than detracts from their core curriculum.”