what+is+creativity?

Sometimes our cookie-cutter, monotonous lives cause us to lose sight of our own creative abilities. It is important to believe in one's own creative skills and in those of one's students. [|Don't lose it.wav]

=What does it mean to be __c r e a t i v e ?__ =

Fluency
According to the article by Candace Hackett Shively, "fluency is the ability to generate lots of ideas, which loosens up the creative wheels"; brainstorming, for example (11). With many interesting ideas to choose from, students are free to exercise their talents and challenge themselves. A teacher with many interesting ideas provides these opportunities for students and has access to a variety of useful teaching strategies.

Flexibility
"Flexibility is the ability to look at a question or topic from a different angle" (Hackett Shively 12). When students develop the skills to look at different situations from different points of view, they also develop an understanding for others' emotions, cultures, learning styles, ideas, etc. Flexible teachers who can think of their subject matter from their diverse students' point of view can create lesson plans that work best for them.

Originality
Hackett Shively says "originality is the quality that generates unique or unusual products, unexpected ideas, or the first of a kind" and that it "requires the greatest risk taking and is the crux of innovation, yet it is the most fragile dimension of creativity in school settings oriented to correct “answers"" (12). Unique ideas should be encouraged, as they lead students to new discoveries and learning experiences. Original teachers model creative thinking, risk taking, and abstract thinking.

<span style="color: #ff5200; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Elaboration
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">"Elaboration involves adding details, filling in the gaps, embellishing, and completing a creative idea" (Hackett Shively 13). Creative projects, including those involving digital technology, must be refined -- edited and reviewed upon -- in order to truly learn from it. Teachers should help students pursue their discoveries and improve upon them. Teachers and students who expand their ideas are the ones who feel the most gratification and do the most inspiring.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">These four dimensions of creativity are useful for teachers when trying to recognize what constitutes creativity in their students' work. Recognizing <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">fluency, <span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">flexibility , <span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">originality , and <span style="color: #ff8300; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">elaboration will help teachers identify which technological activities foster these abilities, provide a guideline for what should be expected from students' creative designs, and aid in assessment of creative abilities. It is important to make the criteria for creativity clear to students when asking them for creative assignments.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Works Cited: <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Hackett Shively, Candace. "Grow Creatively!". //Learning and Leading with Technology// 38.7 (2011): 10-15. PDF. 10/12/11.

=__ RSA Animate - Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us __= //This lively RSAnimate, adapted from Dan Pink's talk at the RSA, illustrates the hidden truths behind what really motivates us at home and in the workplace.// //www.theRSA.org// media type="youtube" key="u6XAPnuFjJc" height="315" width="560" []

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">**__<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 120%;">The three motivators __** RSA Animate draw attention to - <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 120%;">__** autonomy **__, __** mastery **__, and __** purpose **__ - are good for teachers to keep in mind when encouraging creativity in the classroom. As the video explains, students will develop more creative ideas when they are given <span style="color: #0707d7; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">freedom of choice; choice of medium, for example. Students will work harder when they feel they are <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">improving their skills, which makes <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">positive feedback, constructive criticism, and showing students their growth very important. Finally, students need to feel that <span style="color: #05a605; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">what they are learning contributes to their own lives, futures, and the world around them. Technology is especially helpful here, as it provides a <span style="color: #0707d7; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">new, extremely wide range of mediums for students to produce and master. The internet itself provides a <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">hu <span style="color: #05a605; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">ge <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">aud <span style="color: #05a605; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">ience from which students can receive <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">endless feedback and to which students can make <span style="color: #05a605; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">endless contribution.