Silenzio, Bruno! Building Fearless Environments to Promote Creativity in Schools

It’s August. With the start of school approaching, some teachers have started thinking about how they will organize their classrooms. Others are already going back to school. Somehow, they are all thinking about how to create a great learning environment. If they asked for my advice, I would suggest including a “Silenzio, Bruno” poster in […]

Copying for Creativity

We are taught from a young age not to copy…don’t copy the test answers from your neighbor…don’t copy your best friend’s homework…all valid instructions, and yet in the world of creativity, copying is a great place to start in building confidence and expanding boundaries. This is certainly true in art, but I think it can […]

Fail + Learn = Flearn:
8 Ways to Embrace a Creative Mindset

As a parent of teens and an elementary school educator, I can say that this year has been a stressful one for students. Connecting has been more challenging than ever. It is also more essential than ever. It takes a lot of time and effort to create a classroom culture that nurtures a creative mindset.  […]

Beautiful OOps for Adults

Let’s play with Beautiful Oops!

A torn sheet of paper.  A little drip of paint.  A smudge and a smear.  “OOPS!”   Often times, children (and adults!) are paralyzed when they have an oops.  However, what if we were to take an oops and turn it into something beautiful?  This is the wonder-filled lesson of the children’s book, Beautiful Oops, written […]

The Five Pillars of Creative Problem Solving

Introduction Over the last 40 years, I have taught more people to lead the Creative Problem-Solving process than anyone else in the world.  When I step back and view the field from this perspective, I have observed that there are five “pillars” that support the successful use and implementation of the creative behaviors embedded in […]