Creative and Divergent Thinking Exercise

I am always reading various blogs and educational info in order to keep myself abreast of learning techniques I may wan to try with the girls. I happened to come across this blog post that REALLY got me excited!  The blogger talked about "creative and divergent thinking"  and how "creative arts is an oxymoron." I was intrigued immediately!! It was something totally new and different for me to try and I knew the girls would really like to try it! I was also interested to see how each of our daughters would approach the "problem" and how solutions would be found. I also wanted to see if the activity would foster team work or if the girls would venture out to solve the problem individually.

First, I presented my "problem." I told the girls that I had some toy vehicles and I really wanted them to be able to write/draw, but I could not figure out how it could happen. I told them the only thing they could NOT do is draw on the markers. I placed all of the materials (markers, cars, tape and rubber bands) on the table and told them to help me solve the problem while I cooked dinner. 

Well, first they had to enjoy a snack before they could "think." Ha, ha. I will post another blog about the wonderful apple chips we made!

Em had NO problem figuring this out---very quickly, in fact. I was shocked at how "easy" this was for her. Interesting.

Of course, the baby is trying to do everything her big sisters do:)

Elle had to work a little harder to figure hers out. She kept trying to just use the tape or rubber bands, and got frustrated with it not staying when she tried to write. I was so proud of the tenacity she showed during this project!!!! She did not give up---she just kept trying and figured it out! She ended up with a wonderful sense of accomplishment and her confidence was definitely increased by this activity!

Won't you give it a try? Let me know what you find out, will yah?

Blessings,

Aria:)