Lesson Idea | Creative Thinking Activities for Students

Creative Thinking helps students problem-solve in new and relevant ways. By using creative thinking activities in the classroom, students participate in a process designed to support 21st-century skill development and application.

Creative thinking activities can help students deepen their understanding of interconnected topics, explore problems, and collaborate on solutions. The activities in this guide are examples of ways you can begin to bring more creativity into your classroom – no matter what you teach.

Why Creative Thinking and How Do We Cultivate It?

Creative thinking and creative mindsets are two sides of the same coin. Creative thinking encompasses skills and processes that lead students toward a creative mindset. A creative mindset is a practice of leveraging creativity to continually grow and evolve. Think of a creative mindset as a muscle and creative thinking as the strategies needed to build that creative muscle.

When this happens, creative thinking becomes a natural habit that opens us to future possibilities and opportunities. So it’s essential to promote creative thinking in our classrooms. Now, more than ever, we are pushing the boundaries of the known. We need learners who aren’t afraid to ask questions, take thoughtful risks, and engage in productive dialogue. This isn’t possible with bubble tests and right/wrong test questions. So cultivating creative thinking is imperative to our future.

Cultivating creative thinking can be simple. It happens in the daily habits, instructional strategies, and creative activities we explore with students. In this guide, we’ll be offering several creative thinking strategies as examples, but there are so many additional opportunities to explore this pathway. Start with these ideas and then expand on them over time to truly see creativity come alive with your students.

1 x 5 Creative Thinking Strategy
Museum Procedures
Exhibit Ideas
Creating Learning Centers
Take an Artful Field Trip
Learning Artifacts for Assessing Creative Thinking
For further information, visit Institute for Arts Integration and STEAM website.

Final Notes

As you begin considering creative thinking activities and strategies, be sure to reflect on the learning needs of the students in your class. Some students may prefer hands-on activities while others would like to take time analyzing and exploring different mediums. The activities shared in this guide address all kinds of learning preferences, so you can quickly get up and running with your students.

No matter which activities you choose, remember to embrace the joy that comes with creative learning experiences. There’s just nothing else like it when we teach.