When bringing creativity into your everyday teaching, it doesn’t have to mean every lesson is an explosion of paint and paper. It could simply involve allowing ways for students to deepen their learning by exploring solutions to real-world problems through project-based learning.

When many of us think of “creativity” we envision an artist with a paintbrush or a 
 musician in the studio. While these examples certainly fit the bill, creativity goes 
 beyond the arts. All subject areas can support and benefit from creative thinking 
 and problem-solving. From math to physical education to meeting the needs of 
 students in special education, the challenge, enrichment, and satisfaction of 
 out-of-the-box thinking can be found throughout the school campus.


 Creative thinking is more important than ever in the classroom and beyond. 
 Original thinking and the ability to problem-solve are valued by innovators, 
 employers, and decision-makers alike. It is becoming more and more apparent that 
 this sort of thinking deserves a much higher priority in education than it has 
 received in the past. Dede (2010) explored the numerous ways an emphasis on 
 “21st-Century skills” has forced educators “to systematically examine all the 
 tacit beliefs and assumptions and values about schooling that are legacies 
 from the 20th century and the industrial age.” Of course, we want to help our 
 students prepare to be independent and successful after graduation, but, as 
 Peter-Szarka (2012) observed, “today’s education should prepare children for 
 a future that we do not know.” While it isn’t possible to predict the future 
 our students will live in, we can work to provide them with skills and knowledge 
 that apply to many situations and possibilities, with creative thinking being just 
 one of those skills. So how can we encourage creativity and problem-solving in our 
 classrooms? 


 Luckily, researchers have begun exploring best practices to help 
 guide educators who want to bring creativity into their teaching. 
 Beghetto and Kaufman (2014) suggest some starting points:


<ul>
 <li> Integrate creativity into daily lessons and activities</li>	
 <li> Offer students opportunities for choice, imagination and exploration</li> 
 <li> Be mindful of the motivational messages conveyed through classroom practices </li>
</ul>

It is important to consider how classroom practices impact learning since 
 they are often unconscious or simply habits we’ve perpetuated. One example is 
 using early recess or another fun activity as a reward for completing assigned work. 
 While this may seem like a way to motivate students, it can sometimes send the 
 message that the work itself isn’t rewarding and is just something to ‘get through’ 
 to get to the ‘fun’. Baloche (2005) encourages educators to “consider ways to 
 celebrate learning with students and celebrate learning in ways that the learning 
 itself is the celebration that is shared by all the students and the teacher 
 together.” This means developing meaningful and engaging learning experiences 
 that students will find rewarding, rather than relying on extrinsic rewards.


When bringing creativity into your everyday teaching, it doesn’t have to mean 
 every lesson is an explosion of paint and paper. It could simply involve allowing 
 ways for students to deepen their learning by exploring solutions to real-world 
 problems through project-based learning (PBL). An example shared by DuPriest (2017) 
 involved students figuring out prize payouts for their carnival game based on 
 probability. The students were still doing math and exploring probability, 
 but the elements of authenticity and choice added a motivating layer of context 
 and creativity. 



A few more suggestions from Beghetto and Kaufman include:


<ul>
 <li> Approaching creativity and academic learning as more than just an end goal in 
 itself, and

 </li>
 <li> Supporting and modeling creativity in the classroom. </li>
</ul>

When supporting creativity, it is important to remember that part of creative thinking 
 is questioning norms and experimenting with new perspectives. Fostering a safe 
 environment, where mistakes are a part of learning, is a good way to allow for this. 
 When teachers model the creative process and demonstrate how to work through a 
 mistake, students can learn to be comfortable with their own mistakes as a part 
 of that process rather than a roadblock. While it may be challenging at first, 
 the reward of encouraging student creativity and problem-solving will surely help 
 set them up for success no matter what the future holds.


If you’re looking to explore more about fostering creativity into your classroom, 
 here are some great resources:


<ul>
 <li><a href="https://www.creativitypost.com/article/creativity_and_special_needs_learners" target="_blank">	Creativity and Special Needs Learners</a>
 </li>
 <li><a href="https://bridge.edu/tefl/blog/creative-thinking-esl-classroom/" target="_blank">Unleashing the Power of Creative Thinking in the ESL Classroom</a>
 </li>
 <li> <a href="https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/articles-and-how-tos/articles/educators/skills--assessment/inspired-classrooms/" target="_blank">
 Seven Ways to Cultivate Creativity</a> 
 </li>
 <li><a href="https://www.waterford.org/education/how-to-mix-creativity-and-stem-education/" target="_blank">How to Mix STEM Education and Creativity in the Classroom</a> 
 </li>
</ul>

<h3>References:</h3>
<ol style="margin-left:20px">
 <li> Baloche, L. (2005). Developing cooperative contexts for creativity. 
 Creative Engagements: Thinking with children, 53-60. 
 <a href="https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=d8e6cb035d1e21a1a357ee2c0189ce29f7f13e4d " target="_blank">
 https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=d8e6cb035d1e21a1a357ee2c0189ce29f7f13e4d 
 </a>
 </li>
 <li>
 Beghetto, R. A., & Kaufman, J. C. (2014). Classroom contexts for creativity. High ability studies, 25(1), 53-69. 
 <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/James-Kaufman-2/publication/263286614_Classroom_contexts_for_creativity/links/00463536297336b73d000000/Classroom-contexts-for-creativity.pdf " target="_blank">
 https://www.researchgate.net/profile/James-Kaufman-2/publication/263286614_Classroom_contexts_for_creativity/links/00463536297336b73d000000/Classroom-contexts-for-creativity.pdf 
 </a>
 </li>
 <li> 
 Dede, C. (2010). Comparing frameworks for 21st century skills. 21st century skills: Rethinking how students learn, 20(2010), 51-76. 
 <a href="https://allchildrenlearning.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Dede_2010_Comparing-Frameworks-for-21st-Century-Skills.pdf" target="_blank">
 https://allchildrenlearning.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Dede_2010_Comparing-Frameworks-for-21st-Century-Skills.pdf
 </a>
 </li>
 <li> 
 	DuPriest, D. (2017). Creativity in the Classroom. neaToday: March 16, 2017. 
 <a href="https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/tools-tips/creativity-classroom" target="_blank">
 https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/tools-tips/creativity-classroom
 </a>
 </li>
 <li>	Péter-Szarka, S. (2012). Creative climate as a means to promote creativity in the 
 classroom. Electronic journal of research in education psychology, 10(28), 1011-1034.
 <a href="https://ojs.ual.es/ojs/index.php/EJREP/article/download/1547/1897" target="_blank"> https://ojs.ual.es/ojs/index.php/EJREP/article/download/1547/1897 </a>
 </li>
</ol>