Students Learning  at Their Tables

Students at Chestnut Street School in the West Hempstead Union Free School District enjoyed a day of fun and educational activities during its Habits of Mind program on Oct. 8.  

Throughout the day, school psychologist Taylor Birnbaum and social worker Leigha Hill visited classrooms to introduce kindergartners to the different aspects of the program such as persistence, thinking flexibly and striving for accuracy. Students watched videos from Habits of Mind Animations, which highlighted the importance of being persistent and never giving up. 

Birnbaum and Hill shared tips on what students should do when they feel frustrated or stressed out. Students then took part in an exercise in which they were tasked with stacking 10 blocks of different shapes and sizes to see who could build the tallest tower. 

A program that was introduced in the district last spring, Habits of Mind nourishes students’ social-emotional learning and aims to improve the performance of students under challenging conditions. 

Students Listening To Their Teacher In The Classroom

Students Building With Blocks

Students Building With Blocks

Students Showing The Teacher What They Created