Analysis and assessment of young children's spontaneous writing and drawing in daily journals may focus on three significant dimensions: what, who, and how: what stands for thought and meaning; who, for person; and how, for form. These categories may be further divided. Thought and meaning include theme(s), organization, and vocabulary; person…

This paper argues that just as imagination has been important for the inception and promotion of invitational education, it is also necessary for the development of inviting research strategies. Applying the educative process to the study of inviting, recommendations are made for relating the constituent parts of the inviting stance (optimism,…

These learning activities are intended to help elementary school children learn how to communicate, cooperate, and prevent or solve conflicts through creative thinking. There are 17 chapters. The first five chapters provide background information for teachers, discussing the Children's Creative Response to Conflict (CCRC) Program, ways to create a…

A practical guidebook of ideas, lesson materials, and related resources for developing imaginative and productive thinking skills of children is presented to assist teachers and parents. Emphasis is placed on the use of strategies and techniques that enhance originality, mental imagery, reverie, reflection, humor, novel playfulness, and divergent…

A college English teacher, dissatisfied with the approach used in her composition classes and with its results, turned to the Outward Bound concepts of the German physician and schoolmaster, Kurt Hahn. These concepts include a belief in the value of creating adversity in order to overcome it, a belief that important things happen to people who are…

This document describes a project in which elementary school students explored the problems experienced by early pioneers and compared them to similar problems that will face future space pioneers. Comparing a past way of life to the present and future helps students examine and understand change in the physical, social, and cultural environment,…

While there has been much debate about defining and teaching critical thinking, little discussion has occurred regarding the connection between critical thinking and creative thinking, especially in relationship to teaching speech communication. While it was once thought that creativity is something that some are born with and some are not, recent…

Two learning strategies are discussed: (1) fluent and creative idea-production involving concepts and problems, and (2) metacognition, or students' awareness of and direction of their thinking. The sample included college students, as well as teachers who used these strategies in elementary and secondary mathematics classrooms. Techniques for…

A pre/post experimental-control design was used to evaluate a social studies curriculum based upon inquiry methods. Subjects were 308 eighth-grade students. The results indicated that there were no significant changes in creative thinking, attitudes toward power, understanding of power concepts, and problem-solving skills as a result of experience…

Although teachers may sequence instructions carefully, they are unable to respond to the complex unique experience of each individual learner. Divergent production should be an instructional choice that enables individuals to learn through their own recall and idea construction. Learning is problem solving; when individuals do not know how to deal…

Materials related to a humanities program for talented and gifted students in grades seven through nine that reinforces skills in communication, research, and thinking and provides for independent study, are presented in this paper. Among the materials provided are the following: (1) statements about the goals, development, and format of the…

THIS BOOK ABOUT THE FUNCTIONS OF LANGUAGE IN HUMAN LIFE EMPHASIZES LEARNING HOW TO CLASSIFY, DEFINE, AND ANALYZE. FOLLOWING AN EXPLANATION OF THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL ROOTS OF LANGUAGE, CHAPTERS ON ANALYSIS, MEANING, SIGNS, AMBIGUITY, SEMANTIC GROWTH, AND METAPHOR LEAD TO A DESCRIPTION OF THE COMMUNICATIVE FUNCTION OF LANGUAGE,…

This study investigated (1) the extent to which thinking and problem-solving of fifth-grade students could be improved by the use of self-instructional programed lessons (the productive thinking program), (2) the relationship between productive thinking abilities and IQ-sex characteristics of the learner, and (3) the relationship between level of…

This guide for a basic high school speech course is intented to develop the student's sense of responsibility for words and actions, his skills in the use of the voice and bodily actions, his poise and self-confidence, and his appreciation and understanding of other people's ideas. The nine units included in the guide are concerned with listening,…

A primary science program was developed over a 2-year period at a Montessori school. The program is intended to encourage creative but logical thought and active participation by the child in learning "hows" and "whys." It teaches the mathematical operations (measurement and comparative notation) necessary to know what to do with scientific…