Reflection on Creativity and Learning

Reflection on Creativity and Learning Responding to My Colleague’s Enthusiasm and Concerns Your passion for fostering creativity in the young is truly what I’m so excited about! I’m glad to see you taking it so seriously as I’m really committed to making a learning experience that feels meaningful. I completely understand your concerns about some of the activities mentioned in the article “Snapdragons and Math: Creativity to Inspire, Motivate and Engage.” The article does a really good job talking about how important creativity is in education but the origami task, for example, feels way too structured to truly inspire you. My view of creativity is that it's very lively when children are encouraged to think and solve for themselves when there's a way to explore new things, and new possibilities, and reconsider things in their own manner of interest. Activities that are too rigid often close down opportunities for self-expression. I'm not saying that structured activities don't have value because they do; they do things like teach you to pay attention to details and follow directions. The trick, however, is to strike this balance by offering children open-ended opportunities that provide space for them to think and act creatively. Can a Learning Experience Promote Creativity Without Involving the Listed Behaviors? Based on my experience I believe that the dimensions of creativity such as fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration are necessary to spark creativity. I think that without these behaviors, it’s hard for me to really champion creative thinking. Structured activities might do all of that, but it is unlikely; that they fail to spark imagination or curiosity. One example is the origami activity. It’s super good for teaching fine motor skills and steps, but not so much for allowing children to be creative or explore. Creativity to me is kids that will adapt, be able to explore, and reimagine what’s sitting in front of them. I think it’s hard to call an activity “creative” if you don’t have lots of space and flexibility for originality. Amending Learning Experiences to Enhance Creativity I honestly think we can tweak it to be a bit more inspiring for kids. 1.         Snapdragon Origami To add some creativity to this activity, I would add an open-ended component. For instance, I could move away from a dictated pattern and ask children to make their own folds or write a narrative about their snapdragon work. It could be asked, a question such as, “What could your snapdragon turn into if it came to life?” 2.         Dragon Chain Addition With storytelling, this activity could be more engaging. Suppose, for example, that I get the children to imagine a dragon adventure, and to imagine that each math problem is a problem the dragon has to solve. With their stories, the dragons can add or subtract for elaboration or for curiosity without the math being too much if they can make up stories about why the dragons are adding or subtracting. How I Would Inspire Creativity For me, inspiring creativity means creating activities that are open-ended and adaptable. I want kids to also ask the 'what if' questions and try using materials in some way I didn't intend. I like loose parts like buttons, blocks, or even natural items because they give children the chance to build and make without a prescribed end. And I also think that there are certain activities that I think foster your thinking in this way, curiosity like exploration stations or imaginative play scenarios, they can create moments of discovery and delight. Creativity is so important for kids because they’re able to think outside the box, problem solve, and express themselves emotionally from something that looks on the surface like a boring, cold page of math and the science part. Also, it gives them the confidence to try new things and learn from their mistakes. Not only will learning with these skills be more meaningful now, but they will also help set them up for future success. How This Reflection Has Changed My Thinking? This has really given me pause to think about creativity in the classroom. Now I understand that while structured activities have a role, they must be moderately utilized with opportunities to explore. Going forward I would like to incorporate more open-ended materials such as loose parts, into my lessons and allow for ‘Ah!’ (curiosity), ‘Aha!’ (discovery) and ‘Ha-ha!’ (delight) moments. In the math lesson, for example, instead of teaching children one way to solve a problem, I’ll encourage them to work through several ways and invent their own number stories. This approach will also spur creativity and instead of being grueling, they would find the learning exciting and important to them. To encourage children to enjoy learning, to enjoy discovering and delighting, I want them to think of learning as an exciting, imaginative journey; learning where your ideas are valued, where your creativity is not limited.