On Creativity

Sue Shellenbarger  (A Box? Or a Spaceship?  What Makes Kids Creative - The Wall Street Journal Wednesday, December 15, 2010) cites research by Dr. Kyung Hee Kim, assistant professor of educational psychology at the College of William and Mary  and drops a real shocker...

"Americans' scores on a commonly used creativity test [the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking - a standardized test considered a benchmark for creative thinking] fell steadily from 1990 to 2008."

Shellenbarger continues:

"Researchers believe growth in the time kids spend on computers and watching TV, plus a trend in schools toward rote learning and standardized testing, are crowding out the less structured activities that foster creativity."

As my kids say...daaaahhhhh! [See my blog post "Our Education Dilemma" (Dec. 6, 2010]

Finally, Shellenbarger discusses how parents are "stepping into the breach by nurturing their kids' creative skills:

• They are challenging them to generate new ideas or encouraging them to notice problems in the world around them and research possible solutions;
• They are signing their children up for programs designed to foster creativity (she mentions three such programs in New Jersey and Florida);
• Parents can ask open-ended questions and show interest in the responses;
• Refrain from judging ideas;
• Shellenbarger cites a parent whose kids would make up their own lyrics and dances to nursery rhymes.

My Response:

1. This is a huge topic, Shellenbarger, deftly begins the discussion but falls short of discussing why creativity is so important.
2. Shellenbarger's solutions are good, they are a start, but they unfortunately are not very creative.
3. I am not familiar with these outside programs, but know that there are TONS of easy things your kids can do at home, when walking or driving, with or without friends to foster creativity.  I mention a few below.

Why creativity is important:  

• It encourages novel solutions to problem solving.  Our greatest innovations resulted from novel ways of looking at a problem or ways of integrating common every-day objects and concepts in unique ways.
• Demanding creative and independent thought in school makes whatever is being looked at more meaningful AND by having to generate unique solutions it means the student is integrating the topic with other information stored and retrieved from memory;
• Creative thinking is FUN!! Learning will be more effective and more meaningful.

Some creative ideas for fostering creativity:

• Lie down in the park or backyard and look at the clouds with your child.  What do they look like to you?  Make up a story about each of the clouds/characters/objects you "see" above;
• If you go for a walk, think of different ways you can step/walk down the block (being careful not to be careless or get hurt);
• When driving in a car look for and create fun license plates;
• Read different types of books/media. Graphic novels are GREAT for this because the art, design, and wording HAVE to be creative to get their points (and inferences) across;
• Visit parks, museums, sites in your area that you don't normally visit.  Talk about what you liked, what you hated, what was totally weird, gross, fun, etc.  Make up something that you think should have been exhibited but wasn't;
• Have your kids make (instead of buy) cards for Christmas, New Years, birthdays, anniversaries, invitations, thank you notes, etc.
• Before throwing out large boxes (especially now when you are getting so many deliveries), play with them - have your kids 'make' things out of them.  Calvin (from Calvin & Hobbes) was a master at this.  If your kids have any trouble figuring out what to do with a large box, go find the comic strips, read them together, then go back to the box!
• Take out various ingredients of food that you think might 'go' together.  Without a recipe, try to create a meal together with your kids.

These are just the tip of the iceberg.  I'd love to continue this conversation - especially with kids home for vacation!  What are you doing to foster creativity?

In the meantime, I wish you all a happy holiday and while I hope to write one more blog for the new year, let me wish you now a happy, healthy, successful new year to all - and thank you for your support!

Departing the Text 101: Beginners Manual

While I have received some really nice comments to my blog entries there was one response to my "GoodNight Sweet Gems" entry that I want to respond to formally:  "Hi-- I am very unsure of what the phrase actually means: putting the book away? best j.

While I am not sure if "j" was joking or not, I figured it may be prudent to respond.  So often we make assumptions that just aren't valid and I am always the one saying, "don't assume anything!"

 

So first, a definition:

departing the text (v): requires an action or actions in which the reader and/or audience take a mind trip, in this case when reading.  These mind trips are best used for savoring language, humor, and for battling angst and idleness. It requires taking a moment and relating what is read (or said or viewed) to past memories and experiences, in an effort to get just a little bit more out of it.


Please note the background to this blog.  It's intention is to simulate the above definition visually!

So, dear readers, with this definition in mind, below is a beginner's manual, if you will, on how to best depart the text when reading aloud.  Note, that you can and should substitute the word "reading" with "viewing" and "listening" when appropriate.  All are most highly recommended.  Also note that these directions have been written for reading aloud with your child, but feel free to improvise at will.

How to Depart the Text:

1.  Select a book.  Selecting books to read to your child can be a tough. My recommendation is select a book with rich illustrations/photographs or with compelling text that your child is already familiar with.  While you can also select a 'new' book, experience has shown me that often kids are anxious to hear what happens next in a story they aren't yet familiar, with and so are not as eager to depart the text.

 [Note:  Don't push departing the text.  If they don't want to, just wait for another opportunity OR depart the text  after reading the story.]


2.  Select a comfy spot to read.  Comfort is essential!  Maybe you want to cuddle, or just find a place that is cozy and induces mind wandering.  Fluffy pillows or a nice warm lap are both recommended.  Opus' bunny jammies were a nice touch in Goodnight Opus, but you may not want to depart the text at bedtime (see note).

[Note:  I would not depart the text at bedtime as it will stimulate attention, memory and problem solving all of which are not necessarily desirable when you want the kids to go to sleep so you can get on with your life.]


3.  Choosing when and how to depart: My mind naturally wanders and so departing the text is a knee-jerk reaction for me.  My advice here is to relax and as you come across an illustration with interesting detail, or text that reminds you of something your child can relate to and have fun talking about, depart!  You can depart with word definitions too, but they are not nearly as fun as departing with rich detail or something to think about.  Berkeley Breathed books are rife with detail in the illustrations and these were favorite 'departing' books in my family.

4.Departing doesn't just mean talking.  While "departing the text" often means talking about something interesting, it doesn't have to be.  It could involve singing, dancing, and banging out a beat.  It always involves brainstorming and creativity.

 Examples of singing and dancing: 

Abiyoyo by Pete Seeger  comes with music for the Abiyoyo song.
Tacky the Penguin by Helen Lester has great parts to sing and cheer.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak has two pages to rumpus.


4.  Frequency of Departures:   This is totally your call.  It will depend on how much time you have for reading and departing.  It also depends on how long your child can sit.  Know, however, that the more you do this and the longer you do it, the longer you are increasing your child's attention span and ability to sit.

5.  Have fun.  The main thing is to have fun enriching the reading experience and your time together.

So, please let me know how this works out for you, and let me know what your favorite read aloud books are for departing the text.  Happy travels to all!