Sometimes a bread knife:

Sometimes a saw:

“Creativity involves coming up with ideas that work.” (Teaching for Creativity p. 14)

Sometimes the creativity arises from necessity. This was the case in my kindergarten class. I needed a way for me and my students, to cut, or saw, cardboard pieces and tubes. It had to be safe and easy to use.

Necessity, and creative thinking, yielded a super useful girl-powered tool. It just required me to look at things, think about them, and use them in a new way! With a little creative thinking, a common kitchen tool become something much more.

As they used the “bread-knife-saw” the following conversation ensued:

Students: “Oh come on, Miss James, this isn’t really a bread knife!!!!”

Me: “Yes it is! I cut my bread with it at home.”

Students: *silently stare me with looks of incredulity, amazement and delight*

If this were a graphic novel, or cartoon, the next frame would have shown the students heads exploding from this mind blowing experience and conversation!

I love when creativity evokes joy, wonder, even disequilibrium or disbelief. These feelings help to cement the moment  in our brains and hearts. Hopefully, these feelings and moments increase our future awe, fascination, and creative thinking.

Resources:

Beghetto, R., Kaufman, J. C., Baer, J., (2015). Teaching for Creativity in the Common Core Classroom. New York, NY: Teachers College Press,