EP 13 - Do Your Best and Reach for Everest!

After some mild turbulence, Zara and Leo land at the foot of the Himalayas. Leo is determined to find a rare goat, but realizes that sometimes the most important thing is to do your best and have fun along the way. In this episode, discover the adventures of Edurne Pasaban, the mountaineer who put her friends first on her search for a world record.

In this episode, children will:

discover why effort is key and how it can help them achieve their goals
travel to Spain
be inspired by Edurne Pasaban, a famous mountaineer

Supplemental Resources

Read

Turn to Chapter 7 "Effort is Key" in the Big Life Journal Second Edition. In this chapter, children will reflect on the time they put forth lots of effort and how it made them feel.

Chapter 7 - Big Life Journal second edition

Making A Splash by Carol E. Reiley
Whistle for Willie by Ezra Jack Keats
Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle by Chris Raschka

Watch

Edurne Pasaban: 2011 Adventurer of the Year by National Geographic
The Inspirational Story Of 9-Year-Old Ezra Frech by Stories

Activities

1. Complete the Big Life Family & Classroom Challenge (in the Podcast Activity Kit) to help kids exercise their growth mindset and feel uplifted. See if you can complete all squares without skipping a day!

2. Help your kids or students harness the power of a growth mindset with this inspirational Growth Mindset Poster.

3. Use the "Growth Mindset Praise Examples" printable (included in the Growth Mindset Printables Kit) with eight examples of how you can praise your children to foster a growth mindset. Remember to focus on progress, strategies, effort, practice, and determination.

4. Use the "My Growth Mindset Statements" (included in the Growth Mindset Printables Kit) to discuss how our words impact our mindset. Suggested use:

Cover the part under “I Can Say” and only show the part where it says “Instead of.”
Ask your children how they can change each statement from negative to empowering.
Go down the list and write your children’s suggestions down on a separate piece of paper.

Discussion Questions

What did you learn from Edurne’s story?
Think of something which was hard for you at first but then got easier with time and effort. What was it?
Think of someone who puts forth effort (a book character or someone you know). Who is it? What can you learn from them?

For Parents and Teachers

Produced by Alexandra Eidens and Big Life Journal team. Written and directed by Sarah Cyrano. Sound design and original music by Elettra Bargiacchi. Sound mixing by Mattia Marcelli. Characters played by Sean Chiplock and Ryan Bartley. Managed by Kait Bibb.