Creative thinking: A fundamental skill that takes practice

Kelly Jarrell is an educator, program developer, counselor, and family wellness coach with more than 25 years of experience working with children, families, schools, and communities. She provides a range of services to help Austin families create success both at home and at school. Kelly joins us on the blog to share her expertise in nurturing children's creative thinking.
 

The term creative thinking too often is reserved for “artistic” types, or for those few who are considered “creative.” However, creative thinking is a fundamental skill, just like learning how to read. Unfortunately, the structure of our current education system emphasizes quantifiable results and productivity. This hyper-focus eliminates the space to exercise a much more qualitative, process-oriented experience for essential skill development. Creating new pathways for innovative education that meets the needs of the 21st century depends on one's concrete and deepened understanding about creative thinking:

• what exactly it is
• how it works and how it is different from other ways of thinking
• why it is important

Education is filled with buzzwords that lure us to one modality or another: higher-order thinking skills, shared inquiry, the Socratic method, executive functioning, science-based learning, metacognition, a child-centered approach, creative play . . . The list can go on and on. It is important for educators to invest time in learning what these different terms mean, how educational programs are applying them, and how they actually apply to learning. Let’s take a comparative view of two common educational terms: critical thinking and creative thinking.

In his “Introduction to Creative Thinking,” Robert Harris gives a clear explanation of the difference between critical and creative thinking and how they work together.

Much of the thinking done in formal education emphasizes the skills of analysis—teaching students how to understand claims, follow or create a logical argument, figure out the answer, eliminate the incorrect paths and focus on the correct one. [Creative thinking] focuses on exploring ideas, generating possibilities, looking for many right answers rather than just one.
 

Critical Thinking            Creative Thinking

analytic                              generative

convergent                        divergent

vertical                              lateral

probability                        possibility

judgment                          suspended judgment

focused                             diffuse

objective                           subjective

answer                              an answer

left brain                           right brain

verbal                                visual

linear                                 associative

reasoning                          richness, novelty

yes but                              yes and

In an activity like problem solving, both kinds of thinking are important to us. First, we must analyze the problem; then we must generate possible solutions; next we must choose and implement the best solution; and finally, we must evaluate the effectiveness of the solution. As you can see, this process reveals an alternation between the two kinds of thinking, critical and creative.
 

Critical thinking is classification, analysis, comparison, inductive and deductive reasoning, concluding answers. It is linear, sequential. Creative thinking is brainstorming, imagining multiple possibilities. It is metaphorical, associative. In today’s world, where information and knowledge are changing and expanding at an accelerated rate, our education system must shift to developing citizens that have skill sets to adapt to such a world in proactive, constructive ways.

Sir Ken Robinson is one who has dedicated his life work to doing just that. In his Changing Education Paradigms animation, he defines creativity as “the process of having original ideas that have value.” He shares research that illustrates how creative “Genius” is strongest in young children (which means we all have this capacity), and slowly deteriorates as children get older (which means the capacity is somehow lost). This point brings us back to where we started. Creative thinking is a skill that needs to be developed, nurtured, practiced, and exercised to become stronger and readily utilized.

In the book New World Kids: The Parents' Guide to Creative Thinking, authors Susie Monday and Susan Marcus provide simple yet comprehensive ways to support children in developing their creative process.

It’s not a matter of chance or talent or luck, creative thinking is a matter of focus and practice. Like reading, it’s a skill that is learned by doing. Inborn imagination and natural creativity become fluent thinking tools when children learn to see patterns, use associative thinking and practice creating. Also, just like reading, adults help kids along by supplying the right challenge at the right time. (p.9)

The book identifies “a Creativity Map” (p.17) that includes these components:

• Imagination: “the more you feed your imagination with observations and experiences and memories, the richer and wiser your imagination becomes”
• the Sensory Alphabet: a sensory language that provides a new perspective for witnessing the world in order to discover new patterns
• media: “anything you use to get your ideas from the inside of your brain out into the world”
• play: “thinking in action”
• Individuality: recognizing the metacognitive aspects of each person
• the creative process: 1) collecting or gathering; 2) playing; 3) creating; 4) reflecting

Monday and Marcus describe the NWK approach to practicing this process as follows:

The process begins as children find and identify ideas through observation and interaction with the world around them, using the elements of the Sensory Alphabet as lenses. Next they experiment and play with these ideas to help them “grow.” Creative products emerge and are photographed or saved in a personal portfolio. Finally, children learn more about their creative selves as they reflect on their experiences and choose favorite elements, materials and activities.

The Sensory Alphabet—color, sound, light, space, movement, rhythm, line, shape, texture— is a sensory language that provides a new set of lenses to see the world, which enables new patterns and relationships to emerge that were previously clouded by cultural and learned preconditions. “Because this sensory vocabulary describes, but doesn’t define, it enlarges the capacity for seeing patterns between disparate objects, fields and cultures. This ability to perceive patterns is one of the hallmarks of a creative mind” (p.27).

With my own educational background anchored in this process of learning, I quickly recognized its absence when I stepped into the classroom as an elementary educator. My students had plenty of imagination about ideas that were “outside the box” of possibilities. But their ideas fell short of how to transform them into something beyond a diorama or poster board. Elementary is a time for Big Work, but my students were stuck—they couldn’t imagine how to create Big Forms for communicating their ideas. I realized they needed to practice the creative process, to focus on the process regardless of the content, to experience the Sensory Alphabet in order to make new connections. And that is what we did.

We first exercised our ability to recognize sensory language. We explored different kinds of materials and media (not technological). We then chose topics of interest (whatever they wanted) and practiced different ways of sharing information they discovered. Then we chose a collective topic and picked different ways to communicate our new knowledge. We exercised all aspects of the creative process to build the mental muscle. Students had a heightened engagement in their work and expanded their ways of approaching it.

As educators, parents, neighbors, and active community members, we all need to nurture and exercise our creative thinking skills to provide the fodder necessary for creating a collaborative, innovative, inclusive, diverse, collective, productive, world in the 21st century. What ways can you begin exploring this week? I am available to listen, share thoughts, and provide ideas for starting places in your learning community.

Kelly Jarrell
 

P.E. for the soul

Guest contributor Kim Hiles teaches physical education for Kindergarten through 5th grade at Austin Discovery School, a homegrown, progressive charter school in East Austin. She has training and expertise in special education, behavioral coaching, mediation, and conflict resolution and is a Third-Degree Reiki practitioner. She blogs at Kim's Korner. Empowering others is her passion.   

I have been fortunate to have found a school that thinks outside the box and encourages the students to do the same. This was a school that called to me, over 10 years ago, because of its weekly hikes, gardening program, academic philosophy, and positive approach to discipline. After working in a Montessori School, and learning so much about what respect looks and feel like, I knew I wanted a school that fosters the whole child. I wanted this for my child and for myself—a place where professionals cultivate this in each other.

I am a physical education teacher at Austin Discovery School. My job is to teach students to love their bodies, take care of their bodies, listen to their bodies, and feed their bodies nourishing things. This can look different from one person to the next, so I teach students to do their own research and find what works for them, which also helps nurture tolerance and acceptance.

I love starting the beginning of the year with our Cooperation unit. In this unit, our focus is on character building, integrity, and honesty. Students begin by practicing what it means to really trust someone by doing free fall and other trust activities. We encourage teamwork with games such as the Human Knot, Parachute, and BLOB. In this unit students also learn how to assertively take care of themselves by speaking up as well as listening compassionately.

Students at most schools are taught to go to an adult so that the adult can fix their problems. At our school, however, and in this class, we teach students how to problem solve so that they have the skills to go off into the world as solvers, innovators, and bringers of peace. We use Conscious Discipline by Dr. Becky Bailey, a wonderful program that fosters love of self and others. Our school also uses restorative practices. Starting class with circle and ending class with appreciations/shares (and using the talking stick) fosters connection, and connection is the key to everything.

P.E. must be a positive experience for every student. In our classes, we introduce a wide variety of activities to help students find a love in something fun and healthy for the body, so they will enjoy an active life. I also offer dance, yoga, and guided meditation. The students love it when they practice “sponge” (a yoga pose) and I take them on a journey.
 

I like to think that I teach P.E. for the soul, wellness for the whole self. In truth, wellness isn’t just about what we do physically but is more about how we treat ourselves holistically. It is about the messages we give to ourselves and the focus of our thoughts and beliefs. When a student is struggling and saying, “I can’t, I can’t, I can’t,” I remind them that it is very true when this is their focus. Instead, when we give more positive messages to ourselves, we are feeding self-love into the body, which in turn can teach us new things and keep us strong, healthy, and confident. I tell the students that our bodies are listening to what we say, so it’s important to feed our body kind thoughts. In our classroom we have a Safe Place (all classes on campus have these), and on the wall are affirmations such as “I can handle it,” “I am enough,” and “I am doing my best, and my best is enough.”

P.E. for the soul is my journey. It’s a full and fulfilled life with no regrets. It’s a celebration of mind/body/soul and an awakening into awareness. It's a realization that I am doing what I came here to do. Look for my memoir coming soon.

Kim Hiles
 

Game of Village

My work at Alt Ed Austin includes visiting lots of great innovative schools and enrichment programs and getting to see some beautiful ideas in action. There’s no program I love more than Game of Village, so we’re thrilled to have Village director and consultant Cheryl Kruckeberg join us on the blog for a show-and-tell about its educational benefits and sheer delights. Read on to learn how you can get your kids signed up for Village this month!
 

Village is about Play.
Play stretches the imagination,
and imagination can lead us to
whatever and wherever we want to go.

Throughout history, children have prepared for their adult lives by observing and modeling the activities of the adults around them. They imagine, pretend, and practice, and through these activities they gain understanding, stretch their capacities, and explore new concepts and ideas. In play children are released from the constraints imposed by a fear of failure and are left free to experiment. In short, they grow! Play is, in fact, a natural and powerful way to learn, and Village is all about play!

Each game of Village is set in a particular geographical location and time period. It starts with the bare bones of a story line: some challenge to be faced, a problem to be solved, or obstacles to overcome. From this loose outline and the fertile imaginations of the players a world emerges.

Village is played on two integrated levels. On a 1/24 scale the players, known as “Villagers,” design and build a complete village. This aspect of the game includes a “Peep,” a 3" avatar, with an independent personality, life story, and hopes and dreams.

Peeps want a home; Villagers design it for them. Peeps want a piece of land on which to place their fine homes; Villagers get that for them as well! Peeps like party hats, rocket ships, furniture, and social gatherings. (Some of them, like the unique character below, enjoy hammocks, too.) They become embroiled in scandal and drama! There are weddings, fundraisers, funerals, kidnappings, and robberies.

Fulfilling the demands of the Peeps and keeping up with their antics keeps Villagers pretty busy. Using their Peeps’ home design and land as collateral, and inspired by the needs and wants of the Peeps, Villagers head off to the Village bank to secure a loan and begin making purchases for their many new projects. And here begins the second aspect of the game.

Now the Villagers are running their own dynamic community. With money in hand, they go to the Trading Post to purchase all manner of goods for building their Peep homes, general crafting, and various independent enterprises. Villagers open businesses; apply for jobs at the bank, trading post, newspaper, or post office; run for government office; or perhaps attend the Village University. There are many ways for Villagers to earn income and stay busy!

Money and time management and goal setting become important: some Villagers accumulate wealth, others overdraw their bank accounts. Will the Villagers form a government? If they do, will that government be ethical and trustworthy or crooked and out for personal gain? Will laws be needed to keep the peace and ensure that all are treated fairly? The Villagers themselves will determine all of this and more. As in real life, there are model citizens, civil servants, bakers, and artists—as well as scoundrels, loafers, and ne'er-do-wells. It's all learning and all valuable! The possibilities are endless, and the game takes a new turn each time it is played.

From designing and building the scale model village for the Peeps, to managing personal projects and jobs, to attending to civic matters and the myriad interpersonal issues that always arise where groups of people converge, Village is filled with valuable, real life learning. Village is dynamic, unpredictable, and messy. It's challenging, rewarding, and fun! Village, like life, is filled with unforeseen circumstances and opportunities and, although children may play it over and over again, it is never the same and never loses its appeal. Village is filled with peer-based learning, natural consequences, and “Aha!” moments. In Village, young people step into leadership, confront real problems, and collaborate to find creative solutions. They take on the world, and they do an admirable job of it!

As a teacher, mentor, and school director of 40+ years, I can confidently say that Village is the most powerful teaching tool I have ever encountered, and it has completely transformed my understanding of learning and teaching. Most importantly, it has transformed and vastly expanded my view of what young people are capable of. Village has provided me a platform from which to explore and teach applied academics in a meaningful context. I have learned to trust the natural learning process and have grown comfortable with the chaos and mayhem that can come with letting creativity, self-expression, and learning by experience take reign, rather than imparting knowledge in a controlled learning environment. Moreover, Village has brought the spirit of play, creativity, and trust back into my own adult life. Village has become my passion, and it's my goal to share it with as many young people and mentors as I can!

Village takes roughly 25 days from start to finish. It has been played as the central component of an integrated, academic school curriculum, with homeschool groups, and as summer camps. It is best played with 20–26 (or so) children, aged 9–14 years (or so). However, Village, like life, can be adapted to a wide array of circumstances and needs.

For the past 10 years Village has been the heart of the Austin EcoSchool/Village Academy curriculum. With the recent closing of this wonderful school, Village is now loose; unfettered by a brick and mortar location, Village is free to come to you!

If you would like to register your child in an existing Village program or are interested in bringing Village to your child’s learning community, please contact us at play@gameofvillageaustin.org.

A Friday Village program is starting at AHB Community School on January 6, 2017, and is open to the homeschool community. Applications are accepted through mid-January. We are also in the process of launching a Summer Village, complete details of which will be available soon.

You can keep up with VillageinAustin by liking us on Facebook. Or read much more about us on the new Game of Village Austin website.

Cheryl Kruckeberg
 

Synergy Middle School: “Together we can do so much.”

Rachel Green Soto is one of the most creative, hard-working, and accomplished people in Austin. She is a community organizer and educator with over 14 years experience in the public, private, and co-school communities. Rachel is best known as the founder, director, and teacher of Verona Schoolhouse, a pre-K and kindergarten program in southwest Austin; founder and board chair of the nonprofit Kairos Ed; and founder and executive director of the new Synergy Middle School. We invited Rachel to the blog to explain how she dreamed up the unique Synergy program and what makes it so special.

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” Helen Keller recognized the power of a community that brings together its unique gifts to serve all more fully. I couldn’t agree more, and this thought has inspired me to continue my life’s work of responding to the educational needs of our community in collaboration with some of the biggest names in essential youth programs in Austin. Together, we have redesigned the middle school experience to be one where students thrive, not just survive as so many young teens currently find themselves doing in conventional schools.

Synergy Middle School’s vision, adopted from Kairos Ed, is to maximize meaningful learning opportunities within and beyond the classroom by facilitating a culture of collaboration that ignites curiosity, nurtures strengths, and empowers students, families, and educators.

Austin is bursting with amazing youth programs that offer learning opportunities as afterschool classes, spring break and summer camps, and homeschool classes. As a co-school family for many years, we have had the ability to pick and choose our own combination of classes that we consider “essential” parts of our schooling rather than “enrichment.” These programs have provided new experiences, broader content, and refined skills that, as my child’s primary teacher, I have been able to build on, connect to, and weave into our full learning experience. The combination of outside programs with integrated academic content has proven to be a very effective way to deepen learning and make it fun and relevant. Our “a la carte” version of schooling has gone far beyond the four walls of our house and my own expertise as a homeschooling parent. Instead of being limited to my skill set, my kids have had the privilege of also learning from a handful of other teachers with their own knowledge, skills, and passions.

Middle school can be an uncertain and sensitive time of life for students. So much is changing, physically, emotionally, socially, and academically, that these students require the most engaged learning environment possible. Additionally, middle school is an ideal time to introduce a more flexible, yet still structured, environment that allows students new freedom and independence where they naturally desire it, variety to keep things interesting, and a socially and emotionally supportive team of educators to help them navigate these crucial years of development.

Inspired by the positive experience of my family’s a la carte co-schooling years and with a heart to provide wraparound support to students and families during the critical middle school years, I created Synergy Middle School as a full-time, alternative education school that will open in Fall 2017 to its inaugural class of 6th graders and grow by one grade level each year to serve grades 6–8. Synergy Middle School is combining the expertise of established local programs already providing classes to the community and the skill and oversight of professional classroom teachers into one school program.

The handpicked essential youth programs with whom Synergy Middle School is partnering includes outdoor education from Earth Native Wilderness School, visual arts classes from The Art Garage Austin, theater and robotics through the Paramount Theatre, aerial yoga and mindfulness from Yogapeutics, and guitar/voice lessons from Don’t Stop Rockin’.

Teacher-Mentors, the Synergy name for classroom teachers, will provide the students with content area instruction in math, language arts, science, and social studies, multidisciplinary curriculum design skills, and the heart and training to mentor middle school students during these pivotal years. Teacher-Mentors intentionally weave together the five days of programming into one amazing middle school experience connecting academic, social, and experiential learning together in the minds, hearts, and bodies of middle schoolers.

Rachel Green Soto

Behavioral interventions for ADHD

Dr. Lindsay Evans is a child and adolescent psychologist at the Austin Psychology & Assessment Center (ApaCenter). In her work with children and families, she is often asked about the best interventions for individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or similar concerns. In particular, many families want to know if there are any effective treatment options for managing ADHD without medication. We’re grateful to Dr. Evans for addressing these questions here as a guest contributor.

Many parents are surprised to hear that comprehensive ADHD treatment should always include a strong psychosocial (non-medication) component. Behavior therapy has been shown to be an effective behavioral treatment for child and adolescent ADHD. In fact, for preschool age children (under 5), the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends behavior therapy as the first line of treatment for children. For older children, research indicates that when medication is the only form of treatment, it generally does not lead to positive long-term outcomes. And, importantly, a substantial percentage of children and adolescents with ADHD may be able to avoid using medication if good behavioral treatments are employed. If behavioral interventions are not sufficient, the combination of medication and behavioral modifications strategies can be considered.

Behavior therapy involves using positive reinforcement and structure to help modify a child’s behavior and environment. The interventions can improve the parent-child relationship, and teach children concrete skills to help them function better at home and school. Because they work best when coordinated across settings (home, school, and community), behavior therapy typically involves three components:

1. Parent training
2. Teacher consultation/school interventions
3. Child-focused treatment

Behavior therapy often helps to reset the “magic ratio,” or the frequency of positive to negative interactions and feedback that a child receives. A more in-depth description of behavior interventions for ADHD can be found at the Center for Children and Families. 
 

Parent Training

The first and most important aspect of behavior treatment for ADHD is parent training. As we often tell parents in our practice, although many parents know standard (good) parenting strategies, having a child with ADHD can require a “black belt in parenting,” which is where Behavior Parent Training comes in. Parent training programs (such as Parent Management Training/PMT and Parent-Child Interaction Training/PCIT) are typically provided in weekly individual or group sessions, lasting 12–18 weeks. Parents are taught specific strategies and are asked to practice those in the session with their child or to go home and practice for a week. At the next session, the family reviews their progress with the therapist, problem-solves, and learns new skills to assist their family. Here is a more detailed description of Behavior Parent Training and how to find a provider in your area.
 

Consultation/School Interventions

School interventions typically involve having a child’s teacher provide more structure and positive reinforcement (e.g., specific verbal praise and a sticker chart) in the classroom to help a child reach specific behavior goals. Teacher involvement is critical because behavior therapy is most effective when it is consistent across settings, times of day, and people. A “Daily Report Card” coordinated between teacher and parent can be a very effective method for helping a child reach specific goals at school (a parent guide for starting one can be found here: ADHD parent resources). Coordinating with teachers is an integral piece, and we have listed some tips about parent and teacher collaboration at our ApaCenter blog.
 

 Child-focused Treatment

The third part of behavioral treatment involves teaching children how to improve their interactions with other children. Social skills interventions are typically most effective when they are implemented in school or recreational settings, and the training typically needs to take place frequently for the child to learn the skills (e.g., such as through daily practice at school or in Saturday or summer therapeutic recreational programs). Besides social skills training, a new intervention called Organizational Skills Training has also been shown to improve organization, time management, and planning skills in elementary school children with ADHD.

Finally, it is important to note that individual or small group counseling sessions with children in a therapist's office (such as “Play Therapy”) are not effective for treating child ADHD because they do not help a child practice new skills in other settings. Behavior therapy is effective because it teaches concrete skills to parents, teachers, and the children themselves.

And, a quick note: When I am providing guidance to families about how to help their child, I rely on recommendations that are backed by scientific evidence. Some great websites for finding unbiased information about interventions for children are www.Effectivechildtherapy.org and www.ChildMind.org. Treatment guidelines for ADHD in children can be found at the Center for Disease Control website (believe it or not, a great resource for parents!). Importantly, ADHD is a chronic condition and children with unmanaged ADHD are at risk for poor academic performance, greater problems (such as substance use) in adulthood, and difficulties in their relationships.

Some parents at this point may be thinking, “Gosh, that seems like a ton of work!” And they’re right that behavior therapy does require time and commitment from parents on the front end. But, once learned, the skills quickly become a more natural part of a family’s routine, and they set up a child for more success both in academics in their relationships. The extra effort on the front end can help a child overcome challenges in daily life functioning, which can be valuable in managing ADHD throughout a lifetime.

Dr. Lindsay Evans
 

Austin author's new book helps kids write loved ones' life stories

Jess Hagemann is an Austin-based ghostwriter and award-winning author. Her company Cider Spoon Stories helps people write fiction and nonfiction books. The newest Cider Spoon book, titled Notes from a Distinguished Life, is a DIY guide to family history for kids ages 8–22. It retails for $40 on the Cider Spoon website.

Even in heat-stricken Texas, the short, dark days of winter can make you want to hibernate. Last January, business was slow and Sunday afternoons were long when I decided to pass the time with crafting. I’d always loved collage art, and the unread magazines in our house were plentiful. With The X-Files reruns on Hulu in the background, I set to cutting out and trimming random bold words, colorful images, and isolated textures. Somewhere around the Martha Stewart Living caption “It’s time to share your stories,” I had the idea for a new book.

I’m a ghostwriter. That means I help people write books—life stories, in particular. A typical day for me is sitting down with a grandma or grandpa and my voice recorder and listening to them cry and laugh their way through recollection. It’s a time-intensive process, and while you can’t really put a price on leaving a definitive legacy behind, the service can be cost-prohibitive for some families. Enter Notes from a Distinguished Life.

Notes from a Distinguished Life is a 70-page, full-color, 100% interactive guide for kids to interview their family members. Each page of the book was originally hand-collaged, painted, and designed with an eye toward bright colors and maximum student engagement. Each page also has one or more questions, prompts, or activities to stimulate critical thinking and meaningful discussion. It’s a book meant for families who want to “ghostwrite” their loved one’s stories themselves.

No one underestimates the power of story. As children, we came to know firsthand the special ability of stories to transport the imagination. Foreign lands, exotic creatures, long-gone worlds, and far-distant futures unspool in the mind’s eye when we hear about them. They are, in some sense, made real. What people too often underestimate is the amount of time left to tell stories, and to listen to them. If I had a dime for every person who’s said, “I wish we’d hired you when Mom was still alive . . .” It doesn’t have to be that way. You and your kids can capture the stories now; you can craft a legacy that your loved ones will feel proud to leave behind!

My maternal grandfather’s name was Jackie L. Schrader. He was an enlisted sailor in the U.S. Navy, and later, chief arson investigator for the Wichita fire department. I was fortunate, while he was still alive, to help Jack write his life story. I didn’t have the same opportunity with my paternal grandfather, Donald Hagemann. Don was a lifelong farmer, permanently suntanned and wind-whipped and quiet in the way that introspective old men are. I never got to ask him if he liked being a farmer. Did he name all his cows? How did he feel about being a father to nine children (my father among them)? What was life like in the 1940s? I won't get to ask these questions, but you can.

Please do.

Jess Hagemann