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

 OU
A N KY
TH