Think with things
Make learning happen everywhere with Everything
Think with Things is promoting everyday objects and their connected learning possibilities. Through years of observing and working in educational settings I have come to one conclusion; ‘Things’ that promote thinking and learning are all around us. We only need to unlock their potential.
The ‘Things’ are simply found objects, bottle tops, corks, buttons, things from everyday life, you probably throw them away without thinking twice. These things are much more than stuff that clutters our surroundings. I have seen their potential as amazing thinking tools, they can fuel the imagination, promote creative thinking and problem solving.
There are two workshops available:
Ideation: Find new Ideas in a Box of Things
This workshop will bring out your creative spirit! (and yes EVERYONE has one) Participants bring in 10 circle objects from home/work/etc. We begin by getting your creative thinking started, learning how to “think with things” and most importantly remembering how to play! After this first warm up that starts the process of playing again and understanding how to use everyday objects as thinking tools we will get more focused on your team and their needs as far as new idea creation.
What are GOOD questions?
With this workshop there is a little pre-work, meaning the team leader gives me (beforehand) a few questions that the team would like to address in the workshop. I turn these into GOOD questions that we can play with. This play takes different forms depending on the team size and questions. In short, we form working teams to collect “things” that you can use to connect to a Good Question, in order to create an answer or solution. Your team works on a method to communicate this. Communication can be written, drawn, animated, spoken, acted out, etc…sky is the limit. We then have time for presentations and reflection. The process of thinking and each phase of thinking is as important as the next. Communicating your ideas, your play, your outcomes, and your next steps and hearing the reaction of your colleagues can spur even more thinking and new ideas.
Team building: A tête-à-tête with Things
This workshop will put you in front of a co/worker or team member in a playful, communicative way that will allow you to see a different side of that person and maybe yourself. Participants are asked to bring 10 ‘circle’ objets from home/work/etc. We start by introductions, getting our creative thinking started, learning how to “think with things” and most importantly remembering how to play! After we have learned something new about everyone in the room, started the process of playing again and understanding how to use everyday objects as thinking tools we will get even more connected.
Sitting across from someone you contemplate the words in front of you. The you collect “things” that you can use to connect to the words. With these things you work together to create a response to the prompt. Once your response is perfect you decide how to communicate this response to the larger group. This can be written, drawn, animated, spoken, acted out, etc…sky is the limit. We then have time for presentations and reflection. The process of thinking and each phase of thinking is as important as the next. Communicating your ideas, your play, your outcomes, and your next steps and hearing the reaction of your colleagues can spur even more thinking and new views on your way of thinking as well as the people around you.
“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” – Plato
