Recently, in our Kindergarten Maker Space …
Me: “Hey, may I take a picture of what you’re working on?”
Student: “Sure. It’s a bug playground.”
Me: “A bug playground?”
Student: “Yeah, because otherwise they just get stepped on.”
Me: “Wow, they do get stepped on, don’t they? What a great idea. I bet the bugs will like it!”
How awesome is that?
A 6-year-old, using all sorts of creative thinking (human/bug design thinking, possibility thinking, positive thinking, lateral thinking, divergent thinking, convergent thinking) to problem-find and problem-solve. I love it!
It’s what happens when students are given recycled materials, duct tape, and, most importantly, the opportunity, space and encouragement, to think, risk and build.