To me the purpose of the problem is to find out what is not instantly known. It is also to show how behaviors change when I do not know how to handle the problem. The purpose of a problem focuses on how we use creativity prior knowledge, reasoning, and creativity to solve problems that come up more than once, or for the first time. In addition the purpose of a problem is to help me not only reproduce knowledge, but produce knowledge. The difference between the two is that producing knowledge takes more of an effort. When I produce knowledge I look within myself for the answer. In other words this would be called prior knowledge, something I already know. However reproducing knowledge is when I use past experiences to solve similar problems to the ones they have came up in the past. Not only do I use these experiences to solve problems I will encounter in the future, I change the choices I've made in the past to correct any mistakes I could possibly make in the future.

To me habits of mind are stored choices I've made, or will make. To me it also means having discomfort when the answer to a problem is not instantly known. Habits of mind help me alternate my decisions to prevent me from making the same mistake over and over. Habits of mind help monitor behaving intelligently as to just doing what the I normally would do. For example, I am being bullied in school everyday. One day the I gets tired of the abuse and fights back, this is where habits of mind come into play. I knew that being bullied is not a pleasant feeling so instead I looks within myself to find an alternative. Now lets say I gets in trouble for fighting back, and then the next day I gets bullied again, at this point habits of mind alternate my choice once again preventing me from fighting and choosing a different way like telling a staff member of higher power. I naturally and constantly used my habits of mind until I figured out a way to solve my problem and behave intelligently at the same time.

Usually when face with a problem I act out of frustration, or anger. Sometimes I give up and forget the problem believing that the problem will just goes away. To me when I do this I show lack in fully understanding the importance of intellectual behavior. Having intellectual behavior can determine the outcome of various situations. It could be the difference between me solving a problem, or making another mistake. It could also determine whether I get hurt from a decision I've made, or weather I survive another day in life. intelligent behavior gives me the opportunity to have better understanding of reasoning.In addition to analyzing past, future, and present decisions. It can affect my appearance as far as the way I carry myself, as well as the way other look at me. Even the slightest sign of intelligent behavior show a sense or maturity, responsibility, independence, and leadership. To me the more I understand intelligent behavior the more reliable I feel. I say this because if intelligent behavior can give the gift of better judgment then I can be depended on to make the right decision at the right time.

Habits of mind are employed by not just me, but people all over the world. It is something that I am as well as every life form in the world. Some of the ways we employ the habits of mind is in relationships. For example, if I have an abusive partner my habits or mind will guide me to realize that the relationship is not working rather than just stay and take the abuse. I also employ habits of mind with finding a job, or shopping for food. In this case habits of mind would help me think of the past jobs I've had or food I've ate to make a better judgment to what I see fit. Other ways we employ habits of mind are by monitoring others employ habits of mind on their own. I suspect intelligent people solve their problems with cautious and organized analysis. In matters of seconds this intelligent person is thinking of hundreds maybe even thousands of variations for a solution to a specific dilemma. To be more specific I feel that an intelligent person is intelligent because of the knowledge this person has accumulated. Due to the many memories from this person's experiences the person has a data base of situations that fuel their habits of mind. In other words this person has been through a sufficient amount of scenarios to be able to carefully choose the answer to their problem based on prior knowledge, or reproduced knowledge.

One of the sixteen habits of mind that I apply to me would be thinking about my thinking. I choose this one because the human mind fascinates me. I know my mind is an infinite vessel that can obtain any amount of knowledge until I expire. In addition I am constantly trying to consider how I affect others. I love to use tactics, as well as figuring out why I think about the topics in my mind. For example my mother went way to work for two weeks straight and she asked me to behave. However a couple of days after she was gone I got into a dispute with my brother. As we continued to quarrel I got the idea to drop a weight on his foot for disrupting me instead of waiting for me to finish working out. Just as I thought of the idea to harm him I thought of what my mother asked of me. Then I thought of what would have happened if I went through with my actions I just stopped and left. Due to the fact I am more aware of my habits of mind like thinking about my thinking I was able to stay clam and find a different solution.

Another form of habits of mind that applies to me is remaining open to continuous learning. I use this because it connects to thinking about my thinking, as well as my mind being an infinite vessel. I am always willing to learn anything new just to learn from my mistakes. I feel the more I take in knowledge the more aware I become of what choices are the best decision for me. Another habit of mind that I can relate to is finding humor. I choose this one because I always find something to laugh at weather it be something tragic, hilarious, or just down right wrong. I remember the day my mom told me my biological father died, and I sort of chuckled. However it wasn't at him passing it was at the fact that he was barley there but when he's gone I hear about him the most. I laughed even harder when she told me how he died because it was so ironic how he didn't want his kids, Come to find out he didn't want his own life even more. Then there was another time where I fell down a flight of stairs, and I was so embarrassed because someone could have saw I fell again getting up to find no one was around. I must have been on the floor for about fifteen minutes laughing because I knew I wasn't perfect, and it could happen to anyone. Besides I knew if my friends were there someone would be laughing at me.

In conclusion habits of mind isn't something we learn, its a gift we are all born with it just depends on the type of person. In other word we are our habits of mind. The only thing that keeps us from being aware of this is that we choose to look at it in a different way. PERSPECTIVE!

sixteen Habits of Mind

Persistence Stick to it! Persevering in task through to completion; remaining focused. Looking for ways to reach your goal when stuck. Not giving up.

Managing Impulsivity Take your Time! Thinking before acting; remaining calm, thoughtful and deliberative.

Listening with Empathy and Understanding Understand Others! Devoting mental energy to another person's thoughts and ideas; Make an effort to perceive another's point of view and emotions

Thinking Flexibly Look at it Another Way! Being able to change perspectives, generate alternatives, consider options

Thinking about your Thinking : Metacognition Know your knowing! Being aware of your own thoughts, strategies, feelings and actions and their effects on others.

Striving for Accuracy Check it again! Always doing your best. Setting high standards. Checking and finding ways to improve constantly.

Applying Past Knowledge Use what you Learn! Accessing prior knowledge; transferring knowledge beyond the situation in which it was learned.

Questioning and Posing Problems How do you know? Having a questioning attitude; knowing what data are needed and developing questioning strategies to produce those data. Finding problems to solve

Thinking and Communicating with Clarity and Precision Be clear! Striving for accurate communication in both written and oral form; avoiding over generalizations, distortions, deletions and exaggerations.

Gathering Data Through All Senses Use your natural pathways! Pay attention to the world around you Gather data through all the senses. taste, touch, smell, hearing and sight

Creating, Imagining & Innovating Try a different way! Generating new and novel ideas, fluency, originality

Responding With Wonderment and Awe Have fun figuring it out! Finding the world awesome, mysterious and being intrigued with phenomena and beauty. Being passionate.

Taking Responsible Risks Venture out! Being adventuresome; living on the edge of one's competence. Try new things constantly.

Finding Humor Laugh a little! Finding the whimsical, incongruous and unexpected. Being able to laugh at oneself.

Thinking Interdependently Work together! Being able to work in and learn from others in reciprocal situations. Team work.

Remaining Open to Continuous Learning Learn from experiences! Having humility and pride when admitting we don't know; resisting complacency.

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© Michael Patrick 2009