The Formative Five: Fostering Grit, Empathy, and Other Success Skills Every Student Needs

For success in school and life, students need more than proficiency in academic subjects and good scores on tests; those goals should form the floor, not the ceiling, of their education. To truly thrive, students need to develop attributes that aren’t typically measured on standardized tests. In this lively, engaging book by veteran school leader Thomas R. Hoerr, educators will learn how to foster the “Formative Five” success skills that today’s students need, including

• Empathy: learning to see the world through others’ perspectives.
• Self-control: cultivating the abilities to focus and delay self-gratification.
• Integrity: recognizing right from wrong and practicing ethical behavior.
• Embracing diversity: recognizing and appreciating human differences.
• Grit: persevering in the face of challenge.

When educators engage students in understanding and developing these five skills, they change mindsets and raise expectations for student learning. As an added benefit, they see significant improvements in school and classroom culture. With specific suggestions and strategies, The Formative Five will help teachers, principals, and anyone else who has a stake in education prepare their students—and themselves—for a future in which the only constant will be change.

Thomas R. Hoerr retired after leading the New City School in St. Louis, Missouri, for 34 years and is now the Emeritus Head of School. He teaches at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and holds a PhD from Washington University in St. Louis. Hoerr has written four books—Becoming a Multiple Intelligences School (2000), The Art of School Leadership (2005), School Leadership for the Future (2009), and Fostering Grit (2013)—and more than 100 articles, including "The Principal Connection" column in Educational Leadership. Hoerr is an enthusiastic but poor basketball player.