Thursday 30 January 2014

The Power of Perseverance

Let's face it.  If we want to do something well, we need to work at it.  Rarely to we get it "just right" on the first try.  Whether it's hitting a baseball, singing a song or writing a story, we need to work at it.  This is exactly what Austin, a first grader, learned when drawing a butterfly for class.  Check it out:



While we may not be drawing butterflies in our class, we can learn a lot from Austin's experience.  For Austin to succeed, he needed to persevere.  He didn't give up after his first, second or even third draft.  He kept going until he got it right.  Making multiple drafts of anything takes hard work, focus, and determination.  All of that can be summed up with one word, grit.

But Austin needed something else too.  To push him further, he needed feedback from others that was specific and timely.  When we get feedback from others, we see things that we may not have the first time around.  We notice what is possible, and if that feedback is delivered in an encouraging way, we become inspired to go back to the drawing board with renewed interest and focus.

As readers and writers, let's learn what Austin learned.  That we can outdo our previous selves with each and every draft that we create.  That we can be the ones to see the possibilities in others work.  That we encourage ourselves and others as we move through the process that we know will help us grow and flourish, just like a beautiful tiger butterfly.

32 comments:

  1. Well, first of all I think that that guy is an amazing drawer, and secondly, I guess that if a 1st grader can show that much perseverance, we all should be able to. :)

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  2. Well, I know that there's nothing perfect except for imperfection, however, we should still all try to make our stuff as perfect as possible by going through drafts and conferences. (Even though it can be pretty boring sometimes. And just remember that sometimes, when you've already got such a big draft, it's not always easy to start ALL over again!

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  3. Austin showed perseverance and kept on trying again to perfect his drawing. I think that this shows that no matter how many times you do things, there is always room for improvement. As a writer, I have learned that I can improve and get better when I am writing. No matter how good you are, there is always room for learning.

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  4. There is so much perseverance for a 1st grader and he was obviously strong for listening and not taking offence.

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  5. I think that with some advice, practice and perseverance, anybody can do anything if they try.

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  6. I think that if kids that are that young can persevere and make something as good as that, there is really no excuse for us to not be able to persevere and make our work better.

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  7. Most people give up easy and don't ask people for help if he would of left it he would of gotten a F on his project but he let his friends say what was wrong and then fixed it .

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  8. I learned that everyone needs to try and try again.

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  9. Austin was so eager about making draft after draft, trying to make his drawing better. From what I heard, I think he was having fun doing that, too. It's amazing how he made so much improvement. We should all persevere like that in whatever we do--we may surprise ourselves one day!

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  10. Austin helps us realise that you are not perfect. You don't always get things right on the first try. Austin didn't get it right at first, but he didn't give up either. He accepted the feedback from his peers, and it helped him get better. We might not always be drawing butterflies, but in life, we need to be able to learn to persevere. If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again!

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  11. Everybody knows that when you first draw something, it's not going to be perfect just the time when you draw. I suggest you practise and practise to make perfect. In Austin's case, drawing a butterfly. He first tries but he falls. He listens to his friend's feedback on it and he tried harder. He tried really hard to draw the butterfly. By the last try, he really made the picture of the butterfly really want it to make it be perfect. I think we can all learn something about Austin. To always try hard.

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  12. I think that for a first grader his fourth drawing was really good and by the time he reached his sixth drawing he had made something amazing for a first grader and what I took away from this is that if I persevere I can get past my goals.

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  13. Perseverance is a good skill to have, and Austin has a lot of it. Honestly speaking, the first draft would be the one that I would expect to have come from him. He went through six drafts, and ended up with an amazingly detailed drawing, that, looking back, I wouldn't have thought he did it.

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  14. I learned that you keep trying until you get better.

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  15. I think that I have learned that everybody needs to persevere no matter what happens and what advise you get and also listen to that advise.

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  16. It is important to persevere because if you try something and fail it isn't good to give up. You should try again and keep trying until you get it right which is what austin did when he kept making more and more drafts on his butterfly.

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  17. This means when I am writing, I should keep on trying to make it as good as I can. This means revising it, making multiple drafts, and asking for help. By doing this I can make the best work that I can make. So this means to keep on trying and never give up.

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  18. I think that I can use perseverance in my homework and when I study because sometimes when I don't get something right the first time, I just give up.

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  19. I think grit is a very important thing that everyone should have. it is more important than how intelligent you are or in this case how good you draw. Anyone can get better.

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  20. This shows me that you should never tell yourself that you're done, because you can always do better. I think if a fist grader can persevere like this, then I should be able to also. I also learned that perseverance can be used in many things, not just sports. I learned that to do anything in life, you need to persevere.

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  21. I think that with perseverance, anyone can improve on what they work on. Austin had a lot of grit and worked hard to achieve better every time. He also took criticism very well and used it to improve on his drawing.

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  22. Perseverence is something that doesn't come naturaly. It's something you have to work at and grasp. This video shows that anybody can have perseverence if the try if they get trough in all by persevering. Austin did a great job at that and I think his video is the motivation and then you can just lift of.

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  23. you should not give up

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  24. That rocks! I think that in oder to grow we need some of that though love. Austin showed that young or old. we all can learn grow from our past. He all so had a lot of Perseverance. I think that we all can learn form Austin.

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  25. Austin helps us realize in our life, nobody is really perfect. Austin didn't get the drawing of the butterfly he wanted at first, but as he persevered and worked hard at it, he was eventually successful. To me, this makes me realize that I can get through anything if I try hard at it.

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  26. From watching this video, I realized that I need to focus, not get frustrated, and to be determined to get it done right. I remember when I was in 2nd grade, I had a lot of trouble with math. I worked on it and didn't give up no matter how many times I got it wrong. Now, I really enjoy doing math and I feel like I am good at it.

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  27. I learned that if we try our best again, and again we will improve. And also that sometimes its good to ask for others help.

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  28. I think that when he made his first draft it was bad. But after everyone gave him feedback and told him how to make it better his upcoming drafts were a lot better. That shows that when he got feedback he took it and made better.

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  29. I think the reason that Austin got there in the end not only because he persevered but because he had a supportive class behind him. I should learn from Austin and not give up too easily when doing things, not only in drawing, but anything.

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  30. In your post, I learned that when you do your first draft, your don't have to get it right on the first time. And people should know is ok to fail sometimes. also is ok to do something a lot times.

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  31. Austin is a great example of a person that has grit, he kept on trying and trying until his picture was just what he wanted, he took advice from friends, and used it to persevere. You can learn a lot from Austin, and what I learned from him is that with grit and help from friends, you can do anything.

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  32. I liked how everyone gave feedback that was constructive, but not hurtful, because Austin's first draft was not very good and he needed to work harder and try again, so instead of saying that's bad the other kids gave him feedback that was very specific, so that he could go and make it better that way. If the other students had said that is not good go and make it better then come back, Austin would not want to try again because he would be feeling upset. Something I learned from the video is constructive feedback makes you want to try again and again because you think you can make it better, so you end up making it better and better.

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