The World's Best Book Summaries
Are you looking for Hidden Figures discussion questions? Particularly, are you looking for discussion questions that explore adversity, prejudice, and other themes from the book? The following Hidden Figures discussion questions, explore many major themes in the book. You can use them in book club or educational settings, and hopefully they can serve as a jumping off point for a rich discussion of the book.
What is The Hampton Institute, and how did the school help the Civil Rights movement progress? Were any Hidden Figures characters Hampton Institute alumni? The Hampton Institute, now called Hampton University, was a school where several of the women of Hidden Figures took classes or received an education. As an HBCU, Hampton was founded to provide education and training to black students who couldn’t attend white schools due to segregation. The Hampton Institute became an important site of learning and civil rights in Hidden Figures.
Where did the Osage oil come from, and what were the effects of oil production on the Osage people? The Osage oil murders took placee primairily in the early 1920’s, following the discovery of oil on the Osage land. This oil discovery allowed the Osage to accumulate significant wealth-— and put a target on their backs by white people who aimed to steal it.
I’m not all that smart. I forget a lot of things. I didn’t get perfect scores on tests without trying, like some of my friends did. But there is one thing I know how to do—read and learn. Over 20+ years of learning, I’ve figured out how to learn better and faster than most people I know. I collected these reading tips from people smarter and more accomplished than me—like Elon Musk, Warren Buffett, and Mark Cuban (we’ll cover each of their strategies below).
Have you ever wondered: what is medical school like? Are there first-person perspectives that capture the pressures and high stakes learning environments? Paul Kalanithi’s memoir details his journey through medical school, through his cancer diagnosis. In When Breath Becomes Air, Paul discusses his journey to becoming a doctor, including a firsthand answer to the question, what is medical school like?
Experiencing rejection is painful for an adult, but imagine how it feels to a child. Children experience rejection daily in schools. Starting in grade school, some kids are victimized, attacked, or ridiculed. Ongoing bullying makes some children’s lives a nightmare and can evolve into years of depression and anger. What are the causes of bullying? Is the cause of bullying a fixed mindset? We’ll cover some causes of bullying, in schools particularly, and why a fixed mindset may be partially to blame.
Bullying prevention is a huge issue in schools, but are we approaching the problem from all sides? Do you wonder how to stop bullying at its source? We’ll cover how to stop bullying from the perspective of Carol Dweck’s growth mindset. We’ll also discuss why a fixed mindset contributes to the experience of both the bully and the victim.
While labeling people negatively according to their perceived potential is often inaccurate and can hinder their development, positive labels and praise can also be detrimental. Are the positive labels you’re giving your kids hurting them? We’ll cover the effects of positive labeling and discuss why your efforts to build children’s self-esteem actually hurt them.
Is there a correlation between student attitude and academic performance? Can a fixed mindset keep students from reaching their academic potential? We’ll cover how student attitude and academic performance are related and why a fixed mindset is one of the most detrimental attitudes a student can have. We’ll also cover tips for developing a growth mindset in yourself or your students.
