Unique Ideas

Purpose: to access flexibility, fluency, elaboration, and originality in creative thinking.

Concepts Introduced:

• Understanding elaboration and why it’s important
• Understanding that being able to create many different ideas is important
• Understanding that titles are important to describe pictures
• Understanding that we can celebrate our ideas and thoughts to build creative skills

Materials needed:

• Copy of Isabel the Inventor (image) and lesson plan from Lesson #1(Inventor Thinking)
• Copies of Doodle Cards, cut apart by parent/teacher (attached)

Directions:

• Review the term flexible thinking from last lesson and discuss.

Warm-up Activities:

1. Select an object from the classroom and have students brainstorm all the possible uses of the object.
2. Show the Doodles copy and have students brainstorm what the picture could be. Turn the copy so that students can view it from different perspectives and continue brainstorming ideas.

Independent Application:

1. Show the student the eight Doodle Cards.
2. Brainstorm about what each card could be.
3. Have student select two of the Doodle Cards and create a picture (preferably a picture that hasn’t already been brainstormed). Encourage student to write a title or description of his/her picture.
4. Have student share their finished product with someone else and display student’s work on a refrigerator or any location of your choice.

Reflection:

Ask student to brainstorm when flexible thinking might be useful to them or others. Discuss when it’s useful to you as well.