Who amongst us has ever accomplished something startlingly new without believing that it would be possible? Entrepreneurial education is all about possibilities.
Being able to see how possibilities become realities for children and hot they embrace the continuing wonder of discovery is what’s so exciting about teaching entrepreneurship!
Children are driven by curiosity and an urge to do. They immediately want to put into practice their ideas to make something new. They take risks knowing that risk-taking will lead them toward better ideas and innovations. They take on challenges that they would never have accepted if their efforts were being graded—because the probabilities of early failure are high.
But in entrepreneurial education, the focus is on can, not cannot. Think of doing, not what doing costs. The ridiculous can become the right solution. And a student who is “not good at math” may surprise us and solve a thorny math problem once she is intrinsically motivated to see beyond limiting expectations.
At VentureLab, we encourage children to dream up new ideas, whether gigantic or nano-sized—and to do so by ignoring boundaries and moving through several disciplines. Whether or not children think they are “good” at various subjects, we encourage them to go where their ideas lead them.
I’d love to hear from you about how the girls in your life have shown enthusiasm about the possibilities they encounter when learning something new. Thank you for sharing. I appreciate your comments.
