The world is slowly veering towards out-of-the-box thinking and reasoning skills, in every aspect of life. With the breakdown of the traditional system of thinking, learning & knowledge imparting, creative thinking skills are the ‘new kid on the block.’ Schools & higher education systems are stressing curriculums that encourage creative brilliance and thinking.
Understanding Creative Thinking Process, Creative Intelligence and Components of Creativity
Creativity is the power to present, think or put forth ideas in an unconventional way which also has a recall value. It not just promotes imagination and creative thinking, but also makes room for sharper focus and helps young students describe their feelings.
While curriculums & pedagogies are being aligned toward a creative mindset, it’s essential to remember that young minds need constant stimulation to feed their creative spark & give wings to their ideas. The key elements of creativity include innovation, flexibility, fluency & the ability to elaborate on an idea or project.
The intelligence of anyone–an adult or a child—cannot be counted on IQ alone.
Rather it’s an assimilation of individual potential, imagination and emotional intelligence. These are the key hallmarks of creative intelligence. A study published in Educational Researcher & Education Nest found that exposing children to galleries and other cultural institutions can help them create a high level of cultural tolerance, historical heart, better memory & stronger critical thinking skills. Creative intelligence supports divergent thinking, problem-solving skills, the capability to experiment, hand-eye coordination, understanding the requirements of others, enhancing social skills and learning how to cope with feelings. In a nutshell, creative intelligence helps hone the emotional & mental well-being of students.
We at Gurugram Global Heights School provide a challenging and stimulating curriculum designed to stimulate creative thinking among the children & make them future-ready.
Now, let’s talk about some of the ways to encourage the creative thinking process with the young learners:
- Feed their curious spark by asking them questions and encouraging them to share observations, thoughts, and feedback. This makes the students feel valued & boosts their confidence.
- Teach them to multitask & to develop a multi-solutions-oriented mindset. Simply put, the young learners develop risk-taking capabilities, learn to manage risks, & learn to view failures as learning lessons & not as a setback.
- Children should be encouraged to read, discuss whatever they read & asked how they could do things differently if they had written something.
- Encourage activities & projects that encourage collaboration, flexibility, adaptability, & a spirit of innovation.
To meet the challenges of the 21st century & beyond, it’s necessary to move beyond the four walls of the classroom and tap into not only the external ecosystem but the inner one that has unexplored potential. Students are the changemakers of the future & therefore, they should be encouraged to open their minds to endless possibilities and ways of doing things. This is why creativity and its related method are the stepping stones to a bright future, for mankind.
