DEVELOPING AND
USING CREATIVITY IN
LEARNING
BY: SANDRA
CREATIVIT
Y
It is a definable measureable, set of psychological
skills that enhance learning.
Do your student regularly display and develop their creativity
while in your classroom?
Are you in touch with your own creativity as a teacher?
CREATIVIT
Y
Why schools need to prioritize
creativity
There isn’t just one way for a person to “be creative,” or one set of
characteristics that will differentiate “the” creative person.
Instead, many experts think of creativity as a set of skills and
attitudes that anyone is capable of: tolerating ambiguity, redefining
old problems, finding new problems to solve, taking sensible risks,
and following an inner passion.
Why schools need to prioritize
creativity
“Big-C” creativity: rare ideas of extraordinary people, like
Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, or Einstein’s paradigm-shifting
theories of theoretical physics. But there are also everyday forms
of creativity
“Mini-c” creativity, when a person learns something new and
their understanding of the world changes, and “Little-c”
creativity, when a person’s life become embedded with everyday
creative thoughts and actions.
What Creativity is not
Just for artists, writers, and painters.
Necessarily a result or sign of mental illness.
A fixed trait that only some people possess.
The same as IQ
Beyond measurement
Importance of Creativity in School
In a knowledge economy where rote tasks are can be completed
by machines, and almost all information is available with one
click, students need to be ready to learn independently, and
constantly adapt, innovate, and creatively problem-solve in the
workplace.
Creativity also directly enhances learning by
increasing motivation, deepening understanding, and promoting
joy.
Importance of Creativity in School
Creative thinking can facilitate deeper cross-curricular
learning
Support depth of understanding.
Beyond academic achievement, creativity can make learning
more fun
Leading to joy and positive emotional engagement in
students.
How to Develop your students’
creativity in the classroom
Role of the Teacher
Take risks to establish this kind of supportive classroom
Safe Environment which exercise autonomy
Create a compassionate, accepting environment
Be present with students’ ideas
Encourage autonomy
Re-word assignments to promote creative thinking
Give students direct feedback on their creativity
Role of the Teacher
Help students know when it’s appropriate to be creative
Use creative instructional strategies, models, and methods
Channel the creativity impulses in “misbehavior
Protect and support your students’ intrinsic motivation
Make it clear to students that creativity requires effort
Experiment with activities where students can practice creative thinking
Teachers: Develop and nurture your own
creativity
Creativity isn’t just about
innovating or making art—it’s
about living creatively
Teaching is, through and
through, a creative profession
Some ways teachers can develop and
nurture their own creativity
Be aware of your own limiting misconceptions about creativity
Experiment with new ways of teaching in the classroom
Take a risk to express your creative side
Develop personal creative rituals
Travel
Embrace ambiguity
Some ways teachers can develop and
nurture their own creativity
Treat lesson planning as the creative exercise it is
Seek solitude
Play music during activities
Switch up your daily routines
Try meditation practices that encourage creative thought
Why is creativity in the
classroom important?
Creative classrooms focused on developing creativity in students
builds long term success for life
“Specifically, creativity involves cognitive processes that transform
one’s understanding of, or relationship to, the world,”
Creativity is the novelty-generating component of cultural evolution
Creativity isn’t an action you perform, it’s a mode of thinking you
apply
Even if nothing ‘results’ from our creativity, it’s still a beneficial
approach to apply to learning.
Why is creativity in the
classroom important?
You’ll know from personal experience: engaging with
knowledge in a creative way is far more fun than writing lines
and lines of text in a notebook.
As the guide to your students learning, it’s up to you as the
teacher to inject some creativity into your classroom
environment.
Keep your classroom layout flexible
Introduce unconventional learning materials
Innovative lesson plans
Podcasts
Encourage hands-on learning and discussion
Creative Ideas for Teaching
English
Media/Design
Maths
Replace hierarchy with collaborative learning spaces
Encourage more color
Don’t limit assignments to one format
Incorporate humour into your classroom
Rewards and recognition are key to motivating your
students
Film a classroom video diary
Visualize goals with timelines
Creative Ideas for Teaching
Pin up motivational posters
Team building exercises
Use design thinking
Explore different cultures
Pair struggling learners with students who excel
Challenge advanced students with extension projects
Celebrate wins with ceremonies
Barriers to Creative Teaching
Some teachers may not have the mindset of teaching their
students how to be creative
Some teachers might view creative work as “extra” and not
needed
There is a “creativity gap” in classrooms where creativity is
discouraged
Some studies have found that teachers cannot be creative in
classrooms due to pressures by the system, standards, and big
classroom size
CREATIVE WAYS TO TEACH
ENGISH (EFL)
Use Games
Games can be used to warm up
games are used to test vocabulary, practice conversing, learn
tenses
ENGLISH GAMES FOR
KIDS
Board Race • Why use it? Revising vocabulary; grammar
Where Shall I • Why use it? Prepositions; Speaking and Listening
Go?
The Mime • Why use it? Vocabulary; Speaking
Call My Bluff /
Two Truths and • Why use it? Ice-breaker; Speaking skills
A Lie
• Why use it? Listening comprehension; Vocabulary;
Simon Says
Warming up/winding down class
Word Jumble • Why use it? Grammar; Word Order; Spelling; Writing
Race Skills
Pictionary • Why use it? Vocabulary
ENJOYABLE
The very wordMATHS
‘Maths’ evokes mixed feelings in most people
Maths Craft
Fraction
Flowers
Maths Craft
Learning Clock
Alligator Math
for Kids
Maths Craft
Lego
Multiplication
Tower
Math Car
Racing
Maths Craft
Sunshine
Addition Fact
Families
Equation
Spinner Cups
SPELLING GAMES FOR
KIDS
Lily Pad Letters
You'll need a large sheet of construction paper, a
marker and two players. Write the 26 letters of the
alphabet and then cut out each letter in the shape of
a lily pad. Then lay the lily pads out on the floor.
To play, the first person must think of a word and
read it aloud (start with simple three‑letter words
for younger kids). The second person must step on
the letters to spell the word.
SPELLING GAMES FOR
KIDS
Stair Steps
This easy spelling game helps your child memorizes the way certain words are
spelled. Ask them to write each word as if they are stairs, adding one letter at a
time. You can do this on a piece of paper or use alphabet magnets. For example:
B
Ba
Bas
Bask
Baske
Basket
SPELLING GAMES FOR
KIDS
Spelling Ball
This game requires three or more players. Stand
together in a circle with a ball. The first person
must call out a word then toss the ball to another
player. The catcher must spell out the word and
then toss it to the next person with a new word. If a
player gets stuck, they can pass on the ball to let
someone else have a go.
SPELLING GAMES FOR
KIDS
Letter
Clippings
Help your child cut out different letters from a
newspaper or magazine to spell different words.
You can make your own list or use a list that
matches their level in Reading Eggs (find this in
the Spelling section). This activity lets them
consider each letter carefully and individually,
while creating visual representations as a helpful
memory aid.
SPELLING GAMES FOR
KIDS
Scrambled
Spelling
You will need alphabet blocks, fridge magnets or
the letter clippings from the previous exercise.
Take the letters of a word and scramble them for
your child to put together in the correct order. You
can make this game more fun by using a timer and
getting multiple players involved!
SPELLING GAMES FOR
KIDS
Spelling Train
Choose a word for your child to write down. Then,
get them to write another word starting with the
last letter of the first word, and so on. They can
continue building their spelling train using the last
letter of every word. For example:
Toe
Eat
Tea
Ant
Ways to Keep Your
Class Interesting
Incorporate Mystery Into Your Don't Take Teaching so Seriously
Lessons
Don't Repeat Classroom Material Make Your Lessons Interactive
Relate Material to Your Students'
Give Your Students Choices
Lives
Use Technology Create Classroom Games
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A N KY
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