Creativity and the Common Core State Standards are both important to today's teachers. Yet, for many educators, nurturing students' creativity seems to conflict with ensuring that they learn specific skills and content. In this book, the authors outline ways to adapt existing lessons and mandated curricula to encourage the development of student…

Toddlers and two-year-olds are in a fluid and dynamic state of development. They have a sense of wonder that is easily activated, and they are always ready to learn. In this book, you will learn how to use hands-on creative projects to engage very young children's interests and nurture their unique ways of exploring and learning. You will be…

Art educators are concerned with exposing their students to contemporary art making practices. They aim to create fresh lessons that expand their understandings of art in today's world while highlighting the importance of imagination. With a personal interest in performance and street art (art forms that have gained popularity in recent years),…

The best corporations know that innovative thinking is the only competitive advantage that cannot be outsourced. The best schools are those that create cultures of imagination. Now in paperback, "Imagination First" introduces a wide-variety of individuals who make a habit of imaginative thinking and creative action, offering a set of universal…

Classroom teachers can provide more creative opportunities in the classroom by providing an atmosphere of psychological safety and by presenting material that encourages divergent thinking. Examples of the bull's eye strategy, brainstorming, and checklisting activities to stimulate imaginative ideas are offered. (CL)

The authors assert that history can be approached from a creative perspective; the student need not merely report what has already been written. Instead, students may make an original contribution by becoming a practicing historian. Strategies and examples of ideas to motivate students toward this level of productivity are described. (Author/CL)

Ideas for teaching children about creativity and its importance are offered in this article. Ingredients for developing creativity skills are presented and suggested projects are discussed. (DF)

Offers a systematic approach to creative learning in music through an analysis of the components of complex learning and creative activity. Outlines goals for fostering creative learning in music education, and delineates person, process, and product objectives. Suggests methods of evaluating creativity. (RW)

Defining creativity as a process that draws upon talents, education, skills, thinking and working styles, and inherent intelligence, and pinpointing motivation as the single most important ingredient in the creativity recipe, this book provides dozens of concrete, hands-on exercises and techniques that can help a parent or teacher keep creativity…

Ways in which creative dialogue fosters the development of creativity through expressive language and motor movements are described. Procedures are outlined for generating creative dialogue with children ages 3-5 through the observation component (observing, interviewing, transcribing), and with children ages 6-8 through the language development…

This book is designed to be of assistance to primary school teachers who have had little training in arts and crafts and for use in teacher training colleges. Tested in Nigeria and Jamaica, this manual gives children an opportunity to develop their natural creativity, and also develops accuracy and manual dexterity in hand skills. Lesson plans are…

The monograph presents a variety of language arts teaching ideas for use with gifted students. Teachers are encouraged to expose children to much literature including poetry, folk tales, riddles, fairy tales, "pourquoi" tales, myths and legends, fantasy, science fiction, and biographies and autobiographies. The document offers the SIMMER theory of…

The classroom activities suggested in this resource booklet, proven successful by South Dakota poet Jack Kreitzer, are designed to spark or increase students' creativity by bringing the exciting language of poetry alive in the elementary and secondary classroom. Introductory comments present thoughts on what poetry is and how it should be taught,…

The book describes Learning to Read through the Arts (LTRTA), a curriculum combining art activities with writing and reading in small group workshops. The methodology of LTRTA has been applied and modified to work with different groups of students: perceptually impaired, reading disabled, and gifted students. Workshops are offered in mixed media,…

Describes the rise of musical notation in the West, showing the relationship between that development and the origin of music literacy in China. Suggests that the balance of oral and literate means of music learning may foster creative expression in performance. Encourages the study and practice of orality in the training of young musicians. (LS)