Dr. Jeanne L. Paynter

Our minds tell us “Persistence Stories.”  We tell ourselves, “I’m persistent. I can focus my energy on a task and keep working when it’s difficult.”  Or, perhaps our minds tell us, “I’m not persistent. I’m scattered, hesitant, uncommitted.” Where do these stories come from? Ou...

Dr. Jeanne L. Paynter 

Why do some learners have negative mindsets about their aptitude for persistence? 

Traumatic experiences are likely to result in wrong “cause and effect” stories our mind forms about our persistence, such as: I’m helpless, hesitant, unsure, disconnected, unmotivated, aimless...

Dr. Jeanne L. Paynter

I’ve been reading a new book, Mind Your Mindsets, and discovered something about our marvelous brain: It continually seeks to make meaning from our memories and experiences and form “stories” or narratives that help us function. The stories are mostly helpful, until they’re no...

Dr. Jeanne L. Paynter

Recently I talked with an art teacher who lamented a student’s lack of persistence. She developed a unit on wire sculpture based on the work of a local street artist, REED bMore. He creates and hangs wire sculptures of pop characters above traffic lights “just to make people s...

Q: What capacity doesn’t diminish over our lifetime?

A: Our capacity for curiosity!

Children are naturally curious, aren’t they? Their motivation is to explore, question, and imagine. As parents and educators, we always want to nurture curiosity at every age and stage. Curiosity fuels the joy of l...