I recently read Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins’ Essential Questions: Opening the Doors to Student Understanding, and thought, “How wonderful to have a book so totally supportive of creativity, while focusing all the while on understanding.” The Creativity in the Classroom Model links creativity, learning for understanding, and motivation for learning. This book provides a … Continue reading
Bad behavior in schools can be really frustrating—especially when the bad behavior is among the adults. I don’t know if it is warmer weather or exhausted lack of patience, but I’ve heard more stories lately of teachers not-at-their-best. And most of these stories center around students who just don’t fit the mold–the creative ones with … Continue reading
This is the fifth in a series of posts on assessment FOR creativity, that is, classroom assessment that is not aimed at assessing creativity itself, but at thinking about the ways classroom assessments may support—or stifle—creativity. Assessment for creativity allows students to demonstrate knowledge by using it in varied ways, and is structured to support … Continue reading
Dan Meyer says he spends his days trying to sell a product to a market that doesn’t want it but is forced by law to buy it—he teaches high school math. He believes math class needs a makeover, and is ready to lead the charge. From a creativity perspective, Dan is a master of problem … Continue reading
A recent article in the Creativity Research Journal had an intriguing title, beginning, “Tell Me Your Name and I’ll Tell You How Creative Your Work Is.” The article looked at how a creator’s name and gender affected judgments about the work’s creativity. I found the results pretty disturbing. Authors Izabela Lebuda and Maciej Karwowski presented … Continue reading
David Wiesner’s classic picture book Tuesday is a delight, and inspiration for creativity from preschool to graduate school. Tuesday is an almost wordless tale that begins “Tuesday evening, around 8:00.” It uses a series of wondrous watercolors to recount the story of swarms of toads and flying lilypads as they adventure through the night. Here, … Continue reading
Working with historian Dr Suzannah Lipscomb, a team of digital artists try to answer that question in a series of updated portraits imagining what historical characters might look like today. Dr. Lipscomb is Senior Lecturer for History at New College for the Humanities and a presenter for the television series “Secret Life of…..” on the … Continue reading
This month’s family fun ideas are dedicated to all things maker. A maker, of course, is anyone who makes something, and they are on the rise. From maker spaces, where collaborators young and old share equipment and expertise, to Hacker Scouts dedicated to solving problems through making, there are lots of opportunities for creative building … Continue reading
This is the fourth in a series of posts on assessment FOR creativity, that is, classroom assessment that is not aimed at assessing creativity itself, but at assessing content in ways that support students’ creativity. Assessment for creativity entails at least three factors: Assessment FOR creativity builds intrinsic motivation through a sense of … Continue reading
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