How did those of you in the U.S. celebrate the 4th of July? I spent the afternoon going down a 600-foot slip ‘n slide, courtesy of Slide the City Ann Arbor. Despite the long lines, it was glorious fun. It also gave me plenty of time to contemplate the creativity involved in building such a … Continue reading
What happens when Cinderella goes high tech? Interstellar Cinderella, of course! In Deborah Underwood’s delightful new book, Cinderella loves fixing rocket engines, assisted by her robotic mouse Murgatroyd. Though her stepmother tries to keep her from the Royal Space Parade, you know that won’t stop her. Cinderella fixes the prince’s broken rocket and attends the … Continue reading
Sometimes little things are really interesting. No, I’m not talking about the latest diamond commercial or kitten video (though I’d take the kitten any day). Sometimes small studies about small changes in teaching can bring thought-provoking ideas. Here’s one. A 2014 study in the Early Childhood Education Journal, researchers Angela Webb and Audrey Rule describe … Continue reading
When I ask college students if they consider themselves creative, the most common response is, “No, I can’t draw.” So, of course, I spend a lot of time and energy helping them understand that creativity is important in all disciplines. As a result, I sometimes worry that I neglect some of the areas in which … Continue reading
Summer. Finally. Oh my. I love the cycles of the academic calendar, but I’ll admit that the last few weeks of everything-is-double-time summer school threw me for a loop last week—hence the unexpected week off from blogging. Perhaps that is why this week I’m drawn to ideas for artistic fun. I love the photography of … Continue reading
When is a utility box not a utility box? When it’s a work of public art. My home city, Ann Arbor, Michigan, has some of the best looking traffic signal utility boxes you’ll ever see. Thanks to a collaboration between the civic and arts organizations, the city is beginning to cover 42 utility boxes with … Continue reading
Recently I saw a notice of National Hummus Day, which made me smile. I mean, I like hummus, but how did it come to have a national day? Then I discovered hummus appears to have two celebrations: National (U.S.) Hummus Day on the third Thursday in May and International Hummus Day on May 13. I … Continue reading
One of the best ways to help students experience the power of creative thinking is to involve them in solving real world problems. Sometimes problems appropriate for young problem-solvers are local to a school or neighborhood, but sometimes young people can have an impact on problems of global scale. One such problem is the die … Continue reading
For me, it started with popcorn. I discovered The New York Times ScienceTake video explaining the physics behind the glorious dance of the popcorn kernel, and I was entranced. Sadly, I can’t manage to get the video to embed, so you are going to have to Click here to see it. I know, it’s annoying. … Continue reading
A few years ago I first learned about the small country of Bhutan’s unique contribution to the process of measuring progress—Gross National Happiness (GNH). Gross National Happiness suggests that there are things that make a country great, beyond the amount of money it generates. Gross National Happiness, as defined by Bhutan’s survey, includes nine dimensions, … Continue reading
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