101 Activities For Teaching Creativity And Problem Solving

101 Activities for Teaching Creativity and Problem Solving.Copyright © 2005 by John Wiley &

Sons, Inc. Reproduced by permission of Pfeiffer, an Imprint of Wiley. http://www.pfeiffer.com

• What will we be able to use from this exercise?


• What ideas were generated, and which ones were most interesting?

Variation #1

1. Have the groups listen to a relaxing, but lively, song all the way through.


2. Play the song again and instruct them to focus their attention on what the music is
   trying to say. Have them notice any changes in mood, tempo, beat, or sound level,
   sudden chord changes, and so on.


3. Play the song a third time, but tell them now to concentrate on general concepts
   suggested by the music. For instance, a sudden change in tempo may suggest sur-
   prise, a slow portion may suggest caution, and a loud part may suggest power.
   Have them write down these concepts as they listen and use a scribe to record
   them on a flip chart.


4. Tell the groups to look over all the concepts and use them to help stimulate ideas,
   also writing them on a flip chart.

Variation #2

1. Have the groups use the lyrics of one or several different songs as stimuli.


2. Tell them to write down on a Post-it®, as individuals, words, phrases, or complete
   sentences that intrigue them. For instance, someone might write down (1) “drives
   me wild,” (2) “maybe it’s the clothes she wears,” (3) “you know even though the
   river is wide,” (4) “in the middle of the night,” or (5) “on the radio.”


3. Post the notes on flip-chart paper and tell the groups to use the words to trigger
   ideas.


4. Provide them with the Sample Ideas handout.

Basic Idea Generation: “No-Brainers” 63

04 VG 39-76b 10/5/04 5:31 PM Page 63