How to Build Your Own Superhero (hint: just add tools)
I’m working on something new with the tool kit and went public with it for the first time on the Parenting in Motion Summit today. Once I published Ready Regan?, I always thought it would be great to package the book with it’s own real toolkit like some books come with a stuffed animal or truck etc. But I was stuck because the toolkit really didn’t do anything. It’s a metaphor. So once you unpack it and say “Isn’t that cute?” you’re kind of done. My husband calls all the toys that come with a kid’s fast food meal “Crappy Meal Toys” and I just didn’t want to be responsible for adding more crap to people’s homes.
And I really wanted the tools and concepts to “come alive” for kids. Then it hit me. Superheroes have tools. Right? Most of them wear capes - not so much a tool as part of the uniform. But Thor has his hammer, Wonder Woman has the truth lasso, Batman has a belt that always seems to hold the perfect tool. And isn’t the message of the toolkit that kids already have all the tools they need to be successful in school and life, they just need to be aware of them and to use them? So what I’m working on now is creating a form onto which all the tools can be added so that kids can BUILD THEIR OWN SUPERHERO. And that superhero is them, of course. The net ties on like a cape. The map folds into a shield. The rubber band is a perfect utility belt and the battery pops into their chest to power them up like Iron Man. This gives them a visual reminder that they are a superhero and they can do hard things. They would be able to play with it like any action figure or put it next to their toothbrush as a twice daily affirmation. However it works for them. It’s a physical object they can touch and manipulate to help them remember the tools and what they mean.
But even better, it will come with a training manual. How to Train Your Superhero will contain at least ten exercises for each of the four tools to help kids really create mindset muscles around positive attitudes, flexible thinking, problem solving skills and taking a risk which is really about not being afraid to make mistakes as we learn new things. They can integrate the behaviors into their days and apply them where appropriate, which is nearly everywhere it turns out.
Creating the actual action figure is going to take some time and money but today I am offering up coloring pages and 2 activities for each tool as free printables for your kiddos - see links below. I’m really excited about them because they were drawn for me by my son, Conor, who is a graphic designer. He used his growth mindset for this project because freehand drawing isn’t really his thing. I love my new superhero coloring pages and hope you will too. I would also love for you to use them and let me know what you think. I’ve been out of the classroom for a while now and my son is 26 so there’s no one at home to test it on. I’d love to incorporate feedback from real kids and real parents during this development phase especially when I can’t get into classrooms thanks to Covid.
Build Your Own Superhero Coloring Pages Train Your Superhero Activity Sheet