Clik here to view.
Did You Ever Wonder….
Ever wonder why birds wear feathers instead of fur? Why spiders don’t get caught in their webs? What kind of chocolate is the most popular? Me, too. And now we have a place to go for all those wonders,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Have Instruments, Will Question
How many creative young people (and maybe not so young people) like to tinker with “stuff?” I have it on good authority that some of my scientifically oriented friends ended up in their fields because...
View ArticleClik here to view.
10-Minute Lesson: Secret Nanas
In the busy moments of the holiday season–or any season for that matter–it is helpful to have a quick lesson to pull out in the 10 minutes before lunch. In one of those times you might want to pull out...
View ArticleClik here to view.
GameKit: Creative Game Design at Work
Have you ever looked at the rows of games in the toy aisles and thought, “Who thinks of these things?” Or even, “I could design something more interesting than that.” Perhaps now is the time you can!...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Time for Creativity?
How much time does it take to be creative? Is ten seconds enough? Ten minutes? This short video, from Café Communications, looks at what happens when students are given a bit more time for creative...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Choose 2 Matter: Make the World a Little Better
How many times do we watch the news and feel helpless, surrounded by problems too enormous to understand, to say nothing of solve? Imagine then, being young, and feeling the same way. But it doesn’t...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Be An Explorer of the World
Ever wonder how creative people come up with their ideas? Me, too. So many times I look at a new invention, artistic endeavor, or form of literature and think, “How did they ever imagine doing that in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Alien Flowers and the Road to Problem Finding
One of the most fascinating mysteries about creativity is problem finding. How do artists decide what to create, writers decide what to write, or scientists determine what to investigate? The finding...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Off the Wall Teaching–and Learning
As those of us in the northern hemisphere begin to contemplate the crazy last-days-of-school approaching, it may be time for some off-the-wall teaching. Really. The Off the Wall Learning project of the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
SCAMPER, Sharpies, and a One-Aisle Challenge
For the last few years, during annual Ann Arbor Art Fairs, I’ve enjoyed my personal SCAMPER scavenger hunt. It usually takes me a few hours, but I locate examples of interesting art that represent each...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Storybook: Stories of Creativity to Inspire You
Remember Caine’s Arcade? In that viral moment, a chance encounter between a young boy with a cardboard arcade and a filmmaker became an Internet phenomenon. It also launched the nonprofit Imagination...
View ArticleClik here to view.
June 18: First Ever White House Maker Faire!
Ever since Joey Hudy fired his marshmallow cannon in the Whitehouse, there has been talk of a White House Maker Faire. Now, the big day is almost here. The first ever White House Maker Faire will be...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Unbored All Summer Long
If I had to spend all summer with a group of kids and only one book, I know what I’d pick: Joshua Glenn and Elizabeth Foy Larsen’s Unbored: The Essential Field Guide to Serious Fun. This book is a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
M I Curious? You Bet!
The M I Curious series on my local Public Radio station is a cooperative exercise in problem finding. Modeled after the Curious City series at WBEZ in Chicago, M I Curious asks, “What do you wonder?”...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Jimmy Fallon Does Morphological Synthesis
I’ll admit it—Jimmy Fallon is bad for my sleep cycle. My late-night theatrical husband returns home right about Fallon-time and the temptation to watch just for a while….well, let’s just say I...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How is That Billboard like a Squid? Biomimicry and Design
One of the classic questions in the creativity strategy Synectics is “What animal is like….?” Or “What in nature is like….?” The problem at hand is compared to something in nature that solves a similar...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Global Cardboard Challenge: Come on Down!
What has more than 25,000 participants in 10 countries and inspires creative play with things usually thrown away? The Global Cardboard Challenge! It is that time of year again, and this time I hope...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Of Wolves, Rivers, and the Interconnectedness of Things
Every now and then I run into something that reminds me of the interconnectedness of the world around us—and the wonder of it. I’m sure many of you have see the video making the rounds of social media...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What’s Your Worst Idea?
This week, while reading about schools using design thinking, I was struck with a piece of advice given in one school’s literature. When brainstorming, it suggested, think of your worst, most obvious...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Design Thinking 1: What is it?
Want a better mousetrap? Want hotels that feel like home? How about a new way of thinking about literature? A new way to design curriculum? You might consider Design Thinking. While there are a number...
View Article