Curated OER
Lesson: More Than Meets the Eye
Older learners analyze a controversial painting entitled The Cutting Scene, Mandan O-kee-pa Ceremony 1832. They use the issues raised in the image to construct debate arguments questioning if the artist's painting exploits Native...
eGFI
Marshmallow Design Challenge
How tall is your marshmallow structure? With limited supplies (including uncooked spaghetti noodles, masking tape, and one marshmallow), teams endeavor to support the marshmallow atop the tallest spaghetti structure they can build....
Curated OER
Lesson: Resolving Conflict Creatively
The wood sculpture Nkisi Nkondi is said to have been used to aid in conflict resolution. Learners pretend they are journalists reporting on a conflict in which the figure was used to resolve an issue. A creative and interesting use of...
Curated OER
Classical Period: Understanding Four-Bar Sequences
Her is an interesting topic, as well as a great way to teach it! You'll find two worksheets on this link, one for the teacher, and one for the learner. Worksheet one describes how classical composers used musical repetition to make their...
Curated OER
Jazz Exploration: A Collage Project
Middle schoolers explore and experience jazz through collage. They listen to improvisational jazz, discuss the origins of jazz, then design and create a collage that shows jazz being played. This project will result in amazing works of...
Curated OER
Human Body Riddle
The human body can be a mystery, or at least a riddle. Fifth graders pair up and use Photostory to create a riddle relating to a human body part and how it functions in the body system. They will compose a riddle, use a story board, take...
Curated OER
Teaching Students There Isn't Only One Right Answer
By encouraging students to take risks in learning you can create a group of problem solvers and critical thinkers.
Curated OER
The Odyssey
Students write a dramatic scene based on The Odyssey and perform it for the class. In this living literature lesson, students work in small groups to discuss the way the characters look, act, and sound. They then choose scenery and...
University of South Florida
Fcat: Problem Solving Strategies
This page gives students a guide for problem solving. A list of strategies is presented, and each strategy has an example to demonstrate it.
FNO Press
From Now On: Building Good New Ideas
An article, from the online journal From Now On, that discusses a wide range of issues related to originality of thought--the kind of thinking that leads to new ideas, innovation, and creative problem solving. Covers a variety of...
Other
Emsl: The River Crossing Problem
The lesson plan for an interesting word problem concerning swimming and rowing across a river, being swept downstream by the current, and walking back up the other side. Basic arithmetic skills are all that are needed to approach the...
Other
Litemind: Creative Problem Solving With Scamper
SCAMPER is a technique you can use to spark your creativity and help you overcome any challenge you may be facing. In essence, SCAMPER is a general-purpose checklist with idea-spurring questions - which is both easy to use and...
Other
Rube Goldberg
Get a look into the life of the wacky machine inventor Rube Goldberg. Includes a terrific biography, a gallery of his cartoon inventions, and a link to The Rube Goldberg Machine Contest.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Media Lab: All I Really Need to Know (About Creative Thinking) I Learned in Kindergarten
This paper in pdf format focuses on how kindergarten students learn about creative thinking and emphasizes that their approach is ideally suited to the needs of the 21st century.
Other
Techniques for Creative Thinking
If you are stuck on ways to teach creativity in your classroom, you will find many various techniques on this site. Everything from mind mapping to fuzzy thinking is listed here. Each technique has a link to its description.
Other
Best100 Ideas: The Six Hats of Creative Communication
One of the more popular models of initiating creative thought is that of De Bono's six hat thinking strategy. This article explains the role of each hat and how they are used to develop creative ideas.
Other
Infinite Innovations Ltd.: Tutorial on Creative (Lateral) Thinking
Learn how to use creative-thinking techniques within a problem-solving framework involving problem definition, problem analysis, solution generation, solution analysis, solution voting, and next steps.
Other
Creating Systems to Reinforce Creativity
Although this article was written from a business perspective, the ideas throughout can easily be adapted to the classroom. The formula for creative output is explained and is a good way to encourage creativity among your students.
Other
Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy Creative Thinking
With humor and an easy to understand common sense approach, this article explains how easy it is to be a creative thinker. It provides good practical ideas that will enable you to find your creative side.
Other
Odyssey of the Mind Curriculum Activity: Made Up Math
An interesting way to make math more creative. This page gives ideas for three different exercises that encourage students to use math in a creative way.
Other
Odyssey of the Mind Curriculum Activity: Extend Sive Thinking
Encourage students to apply creative thinking to historical research in order to predict the future. This page provides three different activities that encourage creativity.
Other
Odyssey of the Mind Curriculum Activity: Understanding Misunderstandings
Provided are three activities that help students develop communication skills by using creative experimentation.
Other
Mycoted: Creativity Techniques an a to Z
A large assortment of various creative techniques that can be used to help spark your creative thinking skills. Listed in alphabetical order, each technique has a brief article describing its process and how it can be used.
Other
Thinking Skills in Education: Methods to Improve Problem Solving
Containing many resources for further reading about thinking skills, this site provides a lot of good information about how to improve problem solving.