daVinci’s  Diary:    Seven  Ways  to  Enhance  Creativity,  Inventiveness,  and  Problem  Solving  with  Students  

 Prent  Klag,  Ed.D.  

Utah  Education  Association  –  October  16,  2014    

   

 Leonardo  daVinci  the  great  scientist,  artist,  and  inventor,   lived  an  extraordinary  life.  Michael  Gelb,   in  his  book,  “How   to   Think   Like   Leonardo   daVinci.”   Identified   seven   principles   that,   if   used   by   teachers,   can   enhance  creativity,  inventiveness,  and  problem  solving  with  students.    Teaching  with  toys  and  objects:    Teaching  with  toys  and  objects  utilizes  a  unique  combination  of  simplicity  and  power.   The   acronym  SIMPLE  describes   the   power   of   teaching  with   toys   and  objects.       Each   letter   of   the  acronym  describes  the  benefits  and  uses  of  toys  and  objects  during  instruction.       Senses  -­‐  Using  their  senses,  students  learn  through  toys  by  touching,  seeing,  smelling,  hearing,  and  tasting.       Intuition  -­‐  Students  can  use  toys  to  become  connected  to  their  intuitive  feelings  and  their  ability       to  think  creatively.    Toys  energize  the  imagination.         Manipulation  -­‐  Students  need  the  opportunity  to  manipulate  variables  and  objects  and  to  have  control  over     things  in  their  environment.    Using  and  playing  with  toys  connects  the  mind  and  body  and  builds  personal     empowerment.         Process    -­‐  Students  learn  by  doing.    Toys  promote  skills  such  as  observing,  classifying,  experimenting,       communicating,  comparing,  etc.         Logic  -­‐  Toys  can  help  students  think,  analyze,  and  rationalize.    Toys  can  be  very  intellectually         stimulating.       Experience  -­‐  Knowledge  without  action  should  not  be  considered  knowledge.    Toys  can  help  students  apply     real-­‐world  phenomena  to  real  world  situations.    Playing  and  learning  with  toys  is  action-­‐based  and     experience  rich.    Creativity:    Using  toys  and  objects  promotes  the  development  of  four  key  elements  of  creativity.    Those  key  elements  are  the  following:       Fluency  -­‐  Ability  to  generate  a  large  number  of  ideas.       Flexibility  -­‐  Ability  to  change  the  direction  of  ideas  and  thinking.       Originality  -­‐  Unique,  innovative  or  one-­‐of-­‐a-­‐kind  ideas.       Elaboration  -­‐  Ability  to  expand,  enhance,  enrich  or  enlarge  upon  ideas.    The   creative   process   has   often   been   described   as   having   four   stages.     In   the   first   stage,   preparation,   the  individual  gathers  information  relative  to  a  project  or  problem.    This  stage  is  essential  in  the  creative  process.  

The  second  stage,  incubation,  is  the  stage  in  which  the  individual  relaxes  and  does  not  make  a  conscious  effort  to  work  on   the  problem.  During   this   stage,   images   and   ideas,   realign   themselves   as   the   individual   attends   to  other  duties.    The  third  stage  is  illumination.  During  this  stage  the  solution  often  occurs  spontaneously  and  unexpectedly.      In  the  fourth  stage,  verification,  the  individual  puts  the  idea  into  use,  and  consciously  works  with  the  idea  in  a  more  detailed  manner.  Using   this  model,   the   second  and   third   stages   are   intuitive,  while   the   first   and   fourth  stages  are  more  analytical.    Inventiveness:  Toys  and  objects  are  a  great  way  to  introduce  students  to  invention.  Invention  can  come  about  because  of  a  need  or  desire,  or   it   can  come  as  a   result  of  a   resolution   to  a  problem.    While  many  people  are  aware  of  great   inventors  such  as  Leonardo  Da  Vinci  and  Thomas  Edison,   the  majority  of   inventors  come  from  average,  everyday  people  who  simply  connect  ideas  and  put  them  into  action.      Why  should  students  be  exposed  to  invention?    The  reasons  are  numerous:     1.   The  invention  process  connects  thoughts  and  ideas  and  puts  them  into  action.     2.   Invention  can  also  be  the  refinement  of  existing  ideas,  equipment,  objects,  or  processes.  To           build  a  better  mousetrap  is  always  in  the  back  of  the  mind  of  real  inventors.     3.   Being  involved  with  invention  means  being  involved  with  real  phenomena  and  the  act  of             manipulating  real  world  materials.  Most  students  have  a  natural  desire  to  manipulate  and  gain  a         certain  degree  of  power  over  the  materials  they  have  access  to  on  a  daily  basis.       4.   Invention  is  an  act  of  creation.    At  the  deepest  level  a  person  who  invents  obtains  a  great  deal           of  satisfaction  and  personal  reward.  By  bringing  something  new  into  existence,  the  inventor           taps  inner  sources  of  creativity  and  provides  an  outlet  for  these  to  grow  and  flourish.     5.   Through  the  invention  process,  conflicts  can  be  resolved,  and     problems  can  be  remedied.  Not           all  invention  needs  to  be  physical  in  nature.  Many  great  ideas  are  inventions  of  mind.     6.   The  invention  process  can  be  planned  and  very  well  organized.  There  are  those  who  believe           that  invention  comes  about  only  after  a  sequential  set  of  steps  are  followed  and  actualized.  In           reality,  most    inventions  comes  about  through  serendipitous  happenings.  Flashes  of  insight,  or           moments  of  inspiration,  often  come  about  while  being  engaged  in  something  else.        

    7.   The  invention  process  encourages  the  individual  to  seek  answers  to  problems  and  solutions  to           dilemmas.  Qualities  that  enhance  the  invention  process  are  similar  to  qualities  of  a  budding           scientist.  They  include  playfulness,  risk-­‐taking,  curiosity,  adventurism,  wonder,  motivation,  work,         diligence,  creativity,  resilience,  patience,  intuition.  wisdom,  vision,  joy,  knowledge,  sagacity,  and           sacrifice.    Problem  Solving:    Problem  solving  is  an  important  skill  for  students.  The  abilities  to  think,  reason,  create,  and  find  solutions  to  problems  are  evidence  that  a  student  is  on  the  path  of  effective  learning.  Problem  solving  is  the  process  of  reaching  a  goal  when  a  direct  path  to  that  goal  is  temporarily  blocked.  Students  must  recognize  that  the  process  is  multifaceted  and  involves  questions  about  the  ways  we  think  as  well  as  the  ways  we  learn.      Students  who  are  successful  problem  solvers  also  use  facts,  rules,  skills,  and  strategies  that  are  called  heuristics.  “Heuristic”  means  steps,  or  sequences  of  steps,  that  are  used  to  organize  thinking  and  solve  problems.  For  example:     •   Studying  the  solution  process     •   Making  a  figure  or  drawing     •   Checking  the  solution         •   Identifying  information     •   Restating  the  problem         •   Looking  for  patterns             •   Working  backwards         •   Constructing  tables  or  models  

The  Seven  daVinician  Principles    Curiosita’:  An  insatiably  curious  approach  to  life  and  an  unrelenting  quest  for  continuous  learning.      Using  BOINKS  to  promote  curiosity  and  wonder.      

 Sensazione:  The  continual  refinement  of  the  senses,  especially  sight,  as  the  means  to  enliven  experience.    Using  “Rainbow  glasses:  and  taking  students  on  a  “Visual  Walkabout”  to  activate  and  refine  the  senses.      

   Dimostrazione:    A  commitment  to  test  knowledge  through  experience,  persistence,  and  a  willingness  to  learn  from  mistakes.      Using  “Newton’s  Yo  Yo’s  or  “Paint  Stick  Bull  Roarers”  to  allow  students  to  experience  and  learn  from  trial  and  error,    

   Sfumato:    Literally,  “going  up  in  smoke”.    A  willingness  to  embrace  ambiguity,  paradox,  and  uncertainty.      Using  photos  or  illustrations  of  ‘mind-­‐bending’  illusions  helps  students  to  understand  how  to  interpret  and  make  sense  of  discrepant  events.      

 Arte/Scienza:      The  development  of  the  balance  between  science  and  art,  logic  and  imagination.    It  is  a  holistic  approach  to  thinking.    Using  “Doodle  Tops”  are  a  great  way  to  integrate  leaning  through  art  and  science.    

 Corporalita:      The  cultivation  of  grace,  ambidexterity,  fitness,  and  poise.    Using  “Gyro-­‐rings”  or  learning  how  to  juggle  are  great  techniques  to  introduce  students    to  this  principle  and  connect  learning  with  body  and  mind.    

 Connessione:    A  recognition  of  and  appreciation  for  the  interconnectedness  of  all  things  and  phenomena  -­‐  unified  thinking.      Using  yo  yo’s  and  tops  and  spinners  can  allow  students  to  see  and  connect  a  variety  of  learning  principles  and  processes.    

               If  you  would  like  more  information  on  this  topic,  contact:         Prent  Klag  at  Southern  Utah  University  at:    klag@suu.edu                                 or  go  to  the  website:    www.ProfessorToyWise.com