This is the story of three “aha” moments regarding students with special needs and creativity. A few years ago I was teaching a basic research class that is taken by students in a number of masters’ degree programs. Several of the students, knowing I had written Creativity in the Classoom, asked if I could take … Continue reading
It is easy for all of us to forget the power we have to change the world. That certainly is true of many children. When children go through days and weeks of scheduled hours and mandated activities—in and out of school- it is easy to imagine how they may come to feel small and lacking … Continue reading
Creativity killers. Sounds pretty scary—my immediate image is of brain-sucking aliens or some such thing, draining creative energies from the people around them. The reality is less dramatic but still pretty frightening. Last week I talked about the importance of intrinsic motivation in creativity. In fact, Amabile proposes a three-part model of creativity in which … Continue reading
One of the most interesting and puzzling dilemmas in thinking about creativity and schools is the relationship between creativity and intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation, of course, is defined as the motivation to do something for its own sake, for the sheer pleasure or satisfaction of the task. A runner may run marathons for the joy … Continue reading
Last week I asked you to think about the things you do to help your students prepare for, and survive, the times their creative risks don’t play out the ways they’d hoped. Having things fail or getting things wrong is part of human nature–part of life– part of creativity. It was facinating to learn that … Continue reading
I’ve recently started a new adventure in mosaic art. To say this was an unexpected turn would be a significant understatement. Through the grace and gifts of a talented community education teacher, I’ve been reversing 50+ years of believing I could not possibly do anything worthwhile in the visual arts. It has been more than … Continue reading
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