Teaching grit in upper elementary classrooms isn’t just about helping students finish hard tasks—it’s about building resilient learners who believe they can overcome obstacles. Grit, often described as perseverance and passion for long-term goals, is a mindset that can be taught, modeled, and practiced. In this post, you’ll find tips for incorporating a focus on grit in your classroom as well as engaging grit activities to build resilience in students.

What is Grit and why it matters

Grit is more than just working hard. It’s the courage to keep going after a setback, the drive to finish something difficult, and the belief that effort leads to growth. According to the grit definition, it’s a combination of perseverance and passion for achieving long-term goals—even when progress is slow or obstacles arise.

When teaching grit, it’s important to pair it with related terms like resilience, perseverance, and even phrases like mental toughness. These words give students the language to describe their experience and develop a growth mindset.

Teach the meaning of grit and perseverance by displaying a bulletin board for students to refer to throughout the unit

🌟 I teach my students about grit and perseverance through SEL-focused Morning Meetings and always launch a new unit with a bulletin board display of the topic we are learning about. This bulletin board contains key vocabulary, related quotations, and anchor charts that we develop together throughout the unit.

See all my Grit & Perseverance Activities & Resources on TPT

strategies for incorporating grit into the classroom

1) START WITH VOCABULARY

definition of grit and definition of perseverance for students

Before students can apply grit and build perseverance, they need to understand the meaning of grit. Explicitly teach words like:

Grit – having mental toughness and courage to continue; ability to withstand the long-run necessary to achieve a goal
Perseverance – continuous effort to achieve something even when obstacles arise
Resilience – ability to bounce back in the face of trials and challenges
Determination – not giving up until you reach your goal

Using the student-friendly definitions (included in my Perseverance SEL unit), encourage students to describe what these words look like in action. For example, ask students to share a time they practiced perseverance or create a class anchor chart together with real-life examples. Keep these words visible in your classroom—I do so with my SEL bulletin board that anchors each unit.

2) READ ALOUD BOOKS ABOUT GRIT

Books and short stories are powerful tools for illustrating grit. Look for read-alouds with characters who face adversity and persist through challenges. Pause and discuss: What obstacles did they face? How did they respond? How would you have reacted?

read stories about perseverance to give students examples of grit and build resilience in students

One of my personal favorites to read to students is Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became The World’s Fastest Woman by Kathleen Krull. It tells the inspiring true story of Wilma Rudolph, who overcame polio as a child to become an Olympic gold medalist. It's a powerful read-aloud for teaching grit because it shows how determination, perseverance, and belief in oneself can help overcome even the toughest challenges.

Check out other great stories about grit and perseverance on my Amazon recommendations list!

3) SHOW VIDEOS ABOUT GRIT

Video is a powerful tool for introducing new concepts to students, especially when helping them understand perseverance and resilience in action. One of my favorite short clips is Grit & Perseverance: An SEL Video for Kids (just 2 minutes long), which explains the grit meaning in a relatable, kid-friendly way. It’s perfect for sparking classroom discussions around the grit definition and what it looks like in everyday life.

show videos about grit to give students examples of grit and deepen their understanding of perseverance

🌟 In my Perseverance & Grit SEL Unit, I’ve included a curated playlist of engaging videos that help teach students how to stay focused on goals, keep going when things are hard, and understand what it truly means to be resilient.

4) TEACH THE POWER OF YET

Help students develop a more positive, growth-oriented mindset by teaching them the “Power of Yet.”

Discuss as a class: What does it mean to say, “I can’t do this…yet?” How does that simple word change our outlook and keep us moving forward? Relate the power of yet concept back to perseverance—grit isn’t about being perfect now, but about working through the struggle.

Introduce the idea of positive affirmations—positive statements we can say to ourselves to keep going even when things are hard.

perseverance activity for teaching students about the power of yet

Have students brainstorm and create their own affirmations tied to the Power of Yet, such as:

“I’m not great at this…yet.”
“Mistakes help me learn.”
“I will get better with practice.”

You can post these around the room or create a class affirmation book students can revisit when they need encouragement.

5) CELEBRATE EXAMPLES OF GRIT IN EVERYDAY MOMENTS

Look for moments during lessons, projects, or class discussions when students demonstrate resilience or determination. Praise their efforts by name:

“I noticed Ava kept working on her math problem even when it got hard—that’s grit!”

Celebrating small wins reinforces the idea that grit isn’t just about big achievements—it’s also about consistent effort and attitude. Consider giving out “grit notes” or shoutouts during morning meetings or transitions to recognize perseverance in real time.

6) MODEL GRIT AS A TEACHER

Let students see your own perseverance. When technology fails, plans fall through, or a lesson doesn’t go well—talk about it. Share how you stayed calm and pushed forward. Your example makes grit real.

Be honest about your struggles and how you problem-solved through them. For instance, if you were nervous about presenting something new or had to rework a lesson after it flopped, let your students know. Model using positive self-talk and a growth mindset. When students witness how you respond to frustration or failure, they learn how to handle their own. Teaching grit is not just about what we say—it’s about what we show every day in our own behavior.

7) TAP INTO CREATIVITY WITH VISUALIZATION ACTIVITIES

Invite students to create a collage or a symbol that represents grit. Using magazine cutouts, drawings, clipart, or words, they can include images of people, actions, symbols, or places that embody determination and perseverance. As they work, ask guiding questions like:

What do you see or think of when you hear the word “grit”?
What colors or symbols best represent resilience?

grit activities to build resilience in students

This visual activity encourages students to connect emotionally with the concept and reflect on what grit looks like in their world. Display their collages or symbols in the classroom to create a collective visual anchor for future grit-related lessons.

8) BUILD A CLASSROOM GRIT BOARD

Designate a space in your classroom for a GRIT Board—a place where students can share short stories of how they overcame a challenge or stuck with something hard. Include sentence starters or prompts like:

“I wanted to give up, but I kept going because…”
“One thing that helped me persevere was…”

This ongoing class activity not only promotes reflection but builds a community of encouragement. Over time, the GRIT Board becomes a visible reminder that persistence is part of everyone’s journey.

9) REFLECT AND SET GOALS

Give students space to reflect on their own grit. Use journaling prompts or classroom discussions:

What is something hard you’ve done recently?
How did you feel when you wanted to quit—but didn’t?
What’s one goal you’ll keep working toward, even when it gets tough?

Teach students that setbacks are part of learning and that sticking with something—even when it’s challenging—is what helps us grow.

teaching grit activities to build resilience in students

Teaching grit takes time, intention, and consistency. By building student vocabulary, modeling perseverance, and incorporating hands-on grit activities, you’re helping students develop the resilience they need for school and life. Grit is more than a buzzword—it’s a life skill that gives kids the courage to keep trying, even when the going gets tough.

NEED MORE PERSEVERANCE & GRIT ACTIVITIES AND DONE-FOR-YOU RESOURCES FOR TEACHING PERSEVERANCE?

You can manage to do each of these activities with a reflection journal and materials you have around the classroom, but if you want some of the work done for you, you can check out my Perseverance theme SEL unit. I use this unit for a 2-3 week morning meeting unit. It includes student journal pages, detailed and editable perseverance lesson plans, bulletin board materials with perseverance vocabulary and related perseverance quotations, and Google Slides for the teacher and a digital student notebook.

This Perseverance theme SEL unit is also included in the SEL Morning Meeting MEGA Bundle that contains 16 social- emotional learning themes. If you’re looking to increase your social-emotional learning focus, you’ve come to the right place!

SEL THEMES TO GUIDE YOUR MORNING MEETINGS ALL YEAR

With units focused on gratitude, empathy and compassion, growth mindset, conflict resolution and compromise, grit and perseverance, responsibility, understanding and managing emotions, and so much more, your engaging SEL or morning meeting plans are done for you and your students will love them!

If you purchase the bundle from my personal website store, you can save an additional 20% on the SEL Mega Bundle of all 16 topics with the code SEL20.