Teachers develop their creativity:Ideas for Teaching English Creatively
Are your students creative?
Creativity is usually described as having a number of different dimensions: the ability to solve problems in original and valuable ways that are relevant to goals, seeing new meanings and relationships in things and making connections, having original and imaginative thoughts and ideas about something, using the imagination and past experience to create new learning possibilities.
Why is creativity important?
Creativity improves self-esteem as learners can look at their own solutions to problems and their own products and see what they are able to achieve.
Creative work in the language classroom can lead to genuine communication and co-operation.
Learners use the language to do the creative task, so they use it as a
tool, in its original function. This prepares learners for using the
language instrumentally outside the classroom.
Creative tasks enrich classroom work,
and they make it more varied and more enjoyable by tapping into
individual talents, ideas and thoughts - both the learners’ and the
teacher’s.
Creative thinking is an important skill in real life. It is part of our survival strategies and it is a force behind personal growth and the development of culture and society.
Teachers develop their creativity:
Step one: become a knowledgeable teacher Step two: connect with other teachers Step three: become a collector of teaching ideas Step four: share your learning Step five: remove the blocks to creative thinking Step six: practise your creativity Step seven: start experimenting and reflecting on your teaching Step eight: make creativity a daily goal
Creativity in the Classroom
1. Allow students to explore their creativity in relevant ways.
2. Value creativity and celebrate and reward it.
3. Teach students the other skills they need to be creative.
4. Give students space in which they can be creative.
