uncreative students

[jessen100]

here i go asking for ideas on a friday again. anyways...

I dont know about YOu but i can tell you that im being generous in saying that 95% of my students have 0 creativity. thats a zero in case you thought it was just a circle. I think students would have a much better time and improve upon their English more efficiently if they tried to be creative. So i want to implement a lesson that isnt really an English lesson, but something to help them be more creative. ANYTHING that you have that is close to an idea, please write.

things I have considered that could be good are..
- work in groups (i dont think this counts)
- something with pictures that they make
- something with combining things or ideas to create something that didnt really exist before, or is funny etc...
- as many possible uses for a paperclip.
- help from the HRT
- attempt to make them brainstorm. (see directly above)

i know you have ideas, even if you dont know what im talking about.
write them.

[pakalikaPakalika]

The reason they have no creativeity is because they are afraid of being wrong.
What grades are you talking about?

[Paul]

I dont know about YOu but i can tell you that im being generous in saying that 95% of my students have 0 creativity.

Could I suggest that you amend this to read during English classes?

[moolooman]

Firstly, could you possibly edit the title of this thread to have an initial capital. It will continue to nag at me otherwise. Many thanks.

Secondly, I find that group work can be difficult in many classes, as the students simply aren't familiar with the group work dynamic. All the dickheads derail it aswell. Differentiation for ability can also be a problem, as it always is.

I think that you are scratching at the scab of the sores that educational philosophy and pedagogical (or lack of) approaches are.

[jessen100]

id do this in 5th and or 6th grade.

ill amend my statement to say "express 0 creativity" not just during English.
anyways...

back to brainstorming.

[jessen100]

Firstly, could you possibly edit the title of this thread to have an initial capital. It will continue to nag at me otherwise.

id much rather it nag at you.

and scratching or not, lets try to make a fun activity.

[moolooman]

Paper clip art? Either by bending them or stringing them together?

[jessen100]

paper clip machines?

[Paul]

Halloween is coming up, how about an activity using orange and black construction paper? Give them a chance to decorate their own classroom. Typically around this time of year many ES schools have parents day classes and the teachers generally like having some work that their students did decorating the class for the parents to enjoy.

I've done that in the past, and I even had a class one time where I passed out paper to the parents who were in the classroom and had them make Halloween pumpkins too.

Give them some examples, maybe some cut outs that you make of Halloween related characters, pumpkins, etc and then let the kids have at it. Most of the kids go right at it and enjoy the activity.

[jessen100]

that sounds fun but thats not what i mean necessarily.


i mean something more like an activity that forces them to imagine AND talk about what they imagine. something rediculous like they have to make a prototype of a machine that does something for them, something that they dont like to do, so their machine does it for them.

[Paul]

Oopps, sorry about that. Question for you, are you expecting the kids to tell you in English what their "machines" are supposed to do?

Edited here.....

I reread your OP so you answered my question there. I like what you are attempting to get them to do, but have serious reservations about their ability to tell you using English to explain it. Unless your school's kids are that much better than mine I can not imagine that they have enough vocabulary or knowledge to actually do it.

Might I suggest here that you give them an explanation and then some examples to work from, nothing that they could copy from, and instead of having them make it physically maybe have them draw it or give them the option to verbalize it using some vocabulary that you prepared for them to use.

[moolooman]

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

[jessen100]

no intention of having them use english at this point maybe if something conveniently works out but for now, just a creative activity.
would be a good way to practice verbs, i guess though. have them say "it can~"

anyways.

what about imaginary animals? plants? planets? ways to eat bread? storywriting with conditions?

UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

?

[moolooman]

u U

[Paul]

It can....

Do my homework for me....
Clean my room.....
Make me hit like Ichiro.....
Shoot a basketball like Kobe......
Take notes in class for me........

Use doraemon as an example and his dokodemo door or take-copter, things like that.

The animals and plants thing is cool too, maybe a pet that doesnt crap, or a dog that doesnt bark.

[jessen100]

So i want to implement a lesson that isnt really an English lesson, but something to help them be more creative.

sorry for being so persistent, but...

[jeisensei]

Personally, I think creativity comes from within not from the outside. You can tell a person to be creative until you are red in the face and nothing will change. On the other hand if that person is in an environment that promotes creativity it will come naturally. Maybe it is not an activity that you are looking for but a way to bring out creativity naturally during normal classes.

[jessen100]

an activity essentially is an environment if you ask me.

google seems like a good solution.

[jessen100]

http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/NLS/TeamCreativityPracticeActivities.ppt#269,6,Imagination List

[jeisensei]

I don't know about an activity being essentially an environment. For example, I did an English play with my 4th, 5th and 6th grade classes. I started the few month long effort being a might be strict about almost everything and none of the groups got anywhere. I decided to make the atmosphere more relaxed and as soon as that happened the students started writing their own plays (in Japanese of course) and thinking about how to be a good actor. It was the same activity, but the first part was not very creative whereas the second part was. (BTW, you might want to try that...have the kids make their own English plays)

[jessen100]

what do you think of drawing pictures using only letters of the alphabet?








edit: i decided that a question mark was appropriate for the question.

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

Personally, I think creativity comes from within not from the outside. You can tell a person to be creative until you are red in the face and nothing will change. On the other hand if that person is in an environment that promotes creativity it will come naturally. Maybe it is not an activity that you are looking for but a way to bring out creativity naturally during normal classes.

So in short inspiration (aka creativity) comes from the outside. (environment)?

[jeisensei]

Not exactly what I was going for there. I just wanted to say that it is never good to try to force creativity. Yet another in a long string of "open mouth, insert foot" moments haha.

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

I see, foster it. Put don't try to pull it out by force!

[jessen100]

get back to brainstorming imo.

this were not discussions thread!

[jessen100]

see how im fostering you there?

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

see how im fostering you there?

touche

But I sure am glad I don't need any extra teaching/ activity tips, and lesson help on this fine Friday afternoon! I do wish you luck!

[jessen100]

more ranting....

http://psychcentral.com/lib/2011/creativity-crushers-and-8-creativity-harnessing-activities-that-work/

“Creativity is the ability to combine and recombine bits of information — either from your store of memories and knowledge or from the outside environment — in novel, original, and useful ways,” said Shelley Carson, Ph.D, Harvard researcher and author of Your Creative Brain: Seven Steps to Maximize Imagination, Productivity, and Innovation in Your Life.


is that not the same the exact same thinking strategy as using a foreign language effectively?

this is why we should brainstorm to make good activities designed to foster our students creativity.

If you look at many creative exercises, they are often language based. we are all language professionals, so lets try to make something effective. kk?

[jessen100]

i dont have anything to do on friday afternoons so thats why i sit here trying to think of things and how to improve present ones. also nag at you to do the same thing.

[sum1wholikesengliped]

Personally, I think creativity comes from within not from the outside. You can tell a person to be creative until you are red in the face and nothing will change. On the other hand if that person is in an environment that promotes creativity it will come naturally. Maybe it is not an activity that you are looking for but a way to bring out creativity naturally during normal classes.

Yeah, I agree. Once you know HOW to approach them, rather than bashing it into their beautiful minds, you will find they will follow you if you can find interest in them and their ideas, without deviating from the cirruculum.