Monica+(Moni)+Gamboa

Email: mgamboa@alliance.k12.ec

PRE -ASSIGNMENT 

Monica Gamboa PRE ASSIGNMENT FOR CRS 560: Module One: Why is studying creativity important?

// Write a summary of five main points you find compelling from these articles. // The reason that students become “disembodied heads” so to speak is that we are in large educating people out of creative capacity. We are born creative, we don’t grow into it- therefore we need to be looking for ways to nurture the creativity (processof having original ideas that have value) we all have. The education system world wide has a hierarchy Math/Language---Humanities---Arts with a hierarchy within the Arts, that focuses on education from the waist up, the head and then mostly one side of the brain. I would say from the shoulders up/ creativity often comes from the heart!!! In doing so we forget that intelligence is diverse, dynamic and distinct and we tend to value certain things and stigmatize others. Two final thoughts that impacted the way I can do class remember that, “ if you’re not prepared to be wrong you’ll never come up with anything original,” and “projects are open ended by design and force student to engage with the challenge.” You chose fine points. I wish you had elaborated on them a bit more.

// Discuss how you nurture creativity in your students currently. Provide concrete examples. // I am currently teaching and class: Introduction to the Middle Ages to 7th and 8th graders. Their performance task for this class was to choose a group and create their own kingdom. Everyone in the group has a certain position in the kingdom, they were to write a journal about the day in the life of a knight, king, queen, etc. They were also instructed to create their own castle, name their kingdom, create a coat of arms and create a map of their kingdom. Finally they will present through PowerPoint, video or any other visual form a festive day in their kingdom. Rather than stand in front and lecture or even show documentaries each group is researching so that they can create something that is not only about the Middle Ages but also about themselves as a group. What a great assignment. Lot's of room for creativity embedded within it.

// Finally list three understandings or skills you would like to learn in this course on Creativity. // Compatibility of creativity and excellence in the classroom. Modeling creativity in the classroom. Teaching teachers how to nurture creativity in the classroom. I FEEL CONFIDENT THAT COURSE READINGS, ASSIGNMENTS, AND ACTIVITIES ANSWERED THESE POINTS FOR YOU.

ASSIGNMENT 1 Scavenger Hunt Reflection: Scavenger Hunt

The city is teeming with the creative process. Unfortunately I realized that most of us, not unlike the citizens of the ‘City of Reality’ in //The Phantom Tollbooth// have chosen to hurry from one place to another until the creative process in the city has become literally invisible to us. The scavenger hunt became a new awakening to me.

When I did my undergrad I minored in Geography, I went for the most part down the path of social Geography, community planning etc… When we were thinking about where we were going to go for our scavenger hunt, my mind went back to that class. This city is so diverse and busy (like most cities) that there were a lot of places to choose from. However I thought that if we could find a place a center of convergence between socio economic classes, use and activity our senses would be awakened. Immediately what came to mind was Naciones Unidas. It comes down from the top of the hill at the foot of Pichincha to the stadium at the end. The street passes by malls, a park, the Lions Club, a gas station. On the street are the street vendors young and old, beggars, students coming and going to class, the kids with money in their fancy cars, women going to the malls, business men going to their business lunches. The less wealthy going through the park to take a short cut to the bus stop and so on. The truth is that that whole process of thought was not on the forefront of my mind when I said to my group, “let’s go down Naciones Unidas.” As we walked and talked these were the thoughts that came back to me.

It was such a beautiful afternoon that it gave our group the perfect opportunity to take advantage of the good weather to do our scavenger hunt. There were many others taking advantage of the weather as well and due to this we were able to encounter some of the things we were looking for. It seemed like a bit of a risk to carry our bags, cameras and a nice video camera but we decided that for purpose of our final project this was the best way to capture as many visual aids as we could. What we decided to do was simply walk and look and when someone saw anything that sparked a thought we would stop take pictures, video and discuss what we were looking at. It was interesting that depending on each of our interests, strengths, how long we have been living here our perception was different.

Quito is going through the pains of regeneration or transformation, and on our scavenger hunt through the creative process I recognized a pattern of regeneration- people taking back the city for themselves. The obvious signs of were the telephone, and electric wires being put under ground, and the brick side walks being put in, but I also saw bicycles tied up in unusual spots (an indicator that some people want to make a more environmentally and people friendly city), and spaces being shared for art, music, sports and work. Some city workers were using a tree as a locker in which to leave their back pack, jacket, and dust pan. This idea came up a lot as we were discussing a problem that needs solving, a problem being solved in a creative way, and using things in different ways.

As soon as our group stepped out the back gate of the school we realized that there were many aspects of the scavenger hunt to see: a problem to be solved: wires, TRAFFIC, a dull knife- and we encountered a women sharpening said dull knife on the side walk. Fortunately I and several group members speak Spanish so we could approach people fairly easily. Interestingly enough I would not consider it a risk to buy the food the women was selling (which I have done in the past) - I did feel that it was a risk to ask her if she minded if we took pictures of her while she was getting everything ready (sharpening the knife, lighting the coal etc…) As I shared in class, I always balk at the thought of not fitting in as an Ecuadorian and we definitely stuck out as we were out on the street. However as we kept walking and discussing I found myself enveloped in the excitement of our groups and the exclamations of look at this, what about that, look over there, and I forgot about what we might look like to others.

Quito is a large city and because of this I assumed that people weren’t going to want us to disturb them by taking video and pictures, and they won’t want to stop and give us the time of day if we want to ask them questions (especially since there was no reward in it for them. It was pleasant to discover that that was a misassumption the women with the knife was a little embarrassed but she just kept working, the slushy man was willing to give us an interview – after we bought a slushy from him – and gave it to a little girl (I was saving room for ice cream). The kids playing with water in the park, ignored our cameras but didn’t get angry and the young adults dancing, laughed and danced a little more rather then getting upset. A few people asked me what we were doing and I explained that we were doing a scavenger hunt for a class. I discovered that my fear that everyone would be too busy, too shy, or get upset at us for intruding was wrong they were willing to share with us. I was glad that language wasn’t a barrier for me.

It was through the scavenger hunt that we came up with our favorite singer. It was difficult that a group would coincide on the same person. What did happen was that the beautiful sunny day and the “grittiness” of the city brought Bono and U2 to mind. The fact that we had mentioned a beautiful day on more than one occasion inspired this thought.

Initially the Shakespeare and Mozart aspect seemed like the impossible in our hunt. Due to this we were almost artificially looking for them. However they both grew out of conversation. With Shakespeare we were thinking of his works that everyone is familiar with and what they were based on. Suddenly we encountered the concert on the corner of Shyris and Naciones Unidadas and were distracted by that. It wasn’t until we arrived at the ice cream shop and were debriefing that the idea of Shakespeare //All the World’s a Stage// and the literal stage were connected in our minds. The coffee shop was also inspiration for Mozart. We walked in and it was like we were all visually assaulted by the desserts and the colors and flavors of ice cream, Maggy tasted her dessert and said Mozart could compose about this. One of my colleagues comment on a metal band that plays Mozart came to mind and all of a sudden I looked at the ice cream and heard a hardcore Mozart in the background. We started throwing out ideas of how this would work and it was really exciting and a different way of looking at things.

The whole experience of the scavenger hunt was a reawakening to me. It brought back the beauty of my city. It reminded me that necessity is the mother of invention as we observed some interesting ways that different people used things. The creative processes in the city that have become invisible to me because I haven’t been looking at them became more visible. I hope to continue looking at things around me in a different light after this experience.

YOUR REFLECTION IS SIMPLEY INSPIRATIONAL. I FELT LIKE I WAS THERE WITH YOU AND ALL THE PROCESSES DEFINED BY BARRON AND EISNER WERE INTEGRATED MAGNIFICENTLY INTO YOUR DISCUSSION. BRAVO!!!! I MAY USE YOUR WORK AS A MODEL FOR OTHERS.


 * SCAVENGER HUNT **
 * A view of Quito **
 * Group Members: **
 * Jillian Parsons **
 * Gabby Larrea **
 * Margarita Delgado **
 * Mónica Gamboa **
 * Brent Becker **


 * SCRIPT **
 * Opening section: **
 * -Fast moving of all of us preparing for the 2012 Creativity Scavenger Hunt **
 * -Brent invites along the adventure of the hunt **
 * -Beautiful Day begins (with subtitle of favorite singer—Bono singing about it): montage of various elements without subtitles: pictures, shots of kids playing in the fountain, couples dancing, slushee maker going, various scenes over the course of the song **
 * Narration: “Quito, a city caught in the middle of the creative process. Creation surrounds it, the natural landscape rising up as a sentinel of truth, proclaiming its enduring presence through countless generations.” **
 * -Pan to shot of mountains around the city **
 * Narration: “And at its foothills, people seek to create.” **
 * -Pan to shot of foothills and activity **
 * Narration: “Problems surface.” **
 * -Shots of telephone and power lines everywhere. Shots of garbage in the trees and broken sidewalks. **
 * Narration: “The problems surface, but as they do creativity finds new avenues for solutions.” **
 * -Cut to shot of bike and being tied to the telephone pole. Next have the shot of trenches and Brent’s brief description of the solution that is being provided by burying the cables underground. **
 * Narration: “People take the seemingly ordinary and represent its diversity, finding multiple and various uses all along the way.” **
 * -Cut to shot of woman sharpening her knife on the sidewalk, the guy sitting in the truck while driving, the bicycle that drives the shaved ice maker and the disabled man using the bench as a footrest. **
 * Narration: “Music flows from the summit down through the streets and into shops, lilting in the laughs of children or blaring from the bursts of color and flavor around us. It is the stuff of great composers like Mozart.” **
 * -Cut to scene of ice cream shop and cue Mozart music **** ( **** http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ismZ3ewcOZY) **


 * Narration: “Sounds become words become ideas become city parks and art walks and rock concerts. It is fodder for great writers, such as Shakespeare.” **
 * -Cut to scene of music stage with overlay of reading “All the world’s a stage…” **
 * ** You Like It ****, Act II, Scene VII [All the world's a stage] ** ||  ||
 * **// by [|William Shakespeare] //** ||
 * **// Jaques to Duke Senior //**
 * **// Jaques to Duke Senior //**


 * // All the world's a stage, //**
 * // And all the men and women merely players; //**
 * // They have their exits and their entrances, //**
 * // And one man in his time plays many parts, //**
 * // His acts being seven ages. //** ||


 * Narration: “Everywhere around us. Art. Creation. Even in some of the unlikeliest places.” **
 * -Cut to scene of lion in the parking lot **
 * Narration: “Artists and musicians and playwrights and construction workers and dancers and lovers and children and shaved ice makers all blending together in a concerted movement, a rhythmic expression of life, a tapestry of chaos on one side, turned over to reveal beauty and order and purpose.” **
 * -Cut to interview with shaved ice maker and his input..” **
 * -Cut to Brent describing the two worlds of Quito **

OUTSTANDING EXCEPT THIS INTERVIEW WAS SO FUNNY--SHOWED NO CREATIVITY EXCEPT FOR THE ORIGINAL IDEA WHERE THEY DECIDED TO HAVE THE CART. I SUSPECT YOU FOUND MORE CREATIVE FOLKS CREATING ON YOUR JOURNEY THAN THIS EXAMPLE. BUT VERY FUNNY. ASSIGNMENT 2 Creativity Application Lesson
 * Man: This syrup is made out of sugar. We buy 5 kilos and cook it for about a half hour, we add food coloring in after that. **
 * Gabby: that’s the syrup, **
 * Man: yes, that’s the syrup **
 * Gabby: and how do make the slushy? **
 * Man: we buy the ice, and work with that, we buy the straw, the cup, the milk and that’s what we work with **
 * Gabby: could you make one for us? **
 * Man: sure **
 * Maggy: could you tell us how you make it? What you put on it? **
 * Man: This is how we prepare it . We add the mint, this is mint, orange, strawberry **
 * Gabby: Why do you use these flavors? Do you have more or are they always the same? **
 * Man: this is strawberry, orange and mint **
 * Gabby: do you always use the same flavors? **
 * Man: yes, always three flavors **
 * Gabby: When do you come out to sell? **
 * Man: everyday, everyday we come out to sell. **
 * Gabby: at what time do you come out to sell? **
 * Man: at 8:00 until 6:00 **
 * Gabby: what do you do when it rains? **
 * Man: when it rains we have no work **
 * Gabby: Why did you decide to do this? **
 * Man: we started to to what we saw someone else do, we saw him so we bought this cart so we could work. **
 * Gabby: Thank you! **

Description of the Strategy: “//Attribute listing// requires you to list the various attributes of anything in order to examine the parts. Knowing the nature of things allows you have many opportunities to change elements in order to create new and different ideas.” (Creativity Strategies Handout)
 * Lesson #1**
 * Discipline:** Administration/ Middle School Team Meeting
 * Strategy:** Attribute Listing
 * Objectives:** To make a decision about quarter vs. semester exams in Middle School
 * Implementing the Activity:**


 * 1. Call teachers to a MS Team Meeting**


 * 2. Hand out the following policy to teachers and let them read over it**

//Past exam policy for Middle School (gr. 7+8)// 1) A comprehensive __semester__ examination is not administered or utilized in the Middle School, with the exception of those students taking Algebra 1 for High School credit. 2) The semester grade is determined by the following formula:
 * 1) a. For 7thGrade:
 * 2) i. Quarter Grade = 40% (Qtr. Exam counts as 1 test grade.)
 * 3) ii. Quarter Grade = 40% (Qtr. Exam counts as 1 test grade.)
 * 4) iii. Average of Both Quarters = __20%__
 * 5) 100%


 * 1) b. For 8thGrade:
 * 2) i. Quarter Grade = 40%
 * 3) ii. Quarter Grade = 40%
 * 4) iii. Average **Quarter Exams** for Both Quarters = __20%__

100%
 * 3. Hand out the following paper and have teachers fill it in .**


 * ** Attributes of current exam policy ** || **Possible Changes or Modifications** ||

4. Give teachers time to talk to one another in small groups.

5. Come together as a whole group and start working on a new policy together.

6. Take all the information and create a new policy for example it could be something like:

//New Exam Policy for Middle School (gr. 7+8)// 1) AllMiddle Schoolstudents are required to take scheduled semester examinations. We recognize that not all students are good test takers; however, most students will improve as they have the opportunity to take exams. It is also understood that written tests are not the best form of examination for all classes; therefore, some classes may include an oral element or be performance based. 2) All five-day per week courses are required to administer //either// a semester examination or comprehensive project. 3) The semester grade is determined by the following formula: a) For 7th Grade: Quarter Grade = 45% Quarter Grade = 45% Semester Exam= 10% Semester Grade = 100%

b) For 8th Grade: Quarter Grade = 42.5% Quarter Grade = 42.5% Semester Exam= 15% Semester Grade = 100%


 * Assessment/Follow-up: (WILL HAPPEN IN THE FOLLOWING MEETING)**
 * 1. Email the new policy to the teachers so they could look at it before the meeting. At the meeting hand out the new policy to them on paper so they have it in front of them and discuss the following questions that have no right or wrong answers.**

The discussion would move on from here to make a decision if the new policy really is something we want to pursue and then we would follow the road to do so. EXCELLENT USE OF THE STRATEGY FOR CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING AND CREATIVE APPROACHES TO GRADING. SCAMPER MAY HAVE HELPED TO THINK ABOUT THE ATTRIBUTES LISTED. I DO SEE THAT YOU USE THAT STRATEGY IN THE NEXT EXAMPLE.
 * 1) 1. Could you explain to me any possible positive differences you see in the new exam policy?
 * 2) 2. When you think about your students, express how you think they’d react to this new exam policy?
 * 3) 3. If you could write a metaphor for how this new policy makes you feel what would it be?
 * Lesson #2**


 * Discipline:** Administration/ End year meetings for new teachers


 * Strategy:** SCAMPER


 * Objectives:** Helping 1st year teachers to review the past year and set goals for the following year.


 * Description of the Strategy:** SCAMPER is a problem solving technique that helps work through stressors in your life. By identifying situations in which you feel stressed you can use SCAMPER to generate possible solutions to the problems. Each letter represents a strategy for changing a situation that would help alleviate the stress. (Creative Strategies Hand Out)
 * Implementing the Activity:**

1. Meet with the new teachers at the end of the year. The purpose of the meeting would be to discuss how this year went and what the biggest stressors were for them. They should come away from the meeting with some strategies and some concrete goals to lessen their stressors in the following year.

2. Explain to them how the SCAMPER works and then give them the following hand out. To fill in. **A**djust Adapt || **M** Minify Modify || **P** Elaborate || **R** Rearrange ||
 * **S**
 * S**ubstitute || **C**
 * C**ombine || **A**
 * M**agnify
 * P**ut to other uses || **E**
 * E**liminate
 * R**everse

3. Encourage each teacher to find one big stressor they really want to focus on and then move on and work on their own for a few minutes.

4. Share with each other and work together to help teachers work on different ideas for each area.

5. Give teachers time to come up with some concrete goals for the following year.


 * Assessment/Follow-up:**

Have teaches email goals to me, and respond to them. At the beginning of the following year include these goals in their professional development plan and track them as usual.

GREAT IDEA. BUT YOU WOULD ALSO WANT THEN TO EXAMINE THE ATTRIBUTES OF THE STRESSOR BEFORE APPLYING SCAMPER. IT MIGHT HELP OR IT MIGHT NOT BE NECESSARY DEPENDING ON THE GROUP.

ASSIGNMENT 3 Class Reflections and Activities CREATIVITY IS...



FINE DEFINITION WITH VISUAL METAPHOR. BLOCK BUSTING I have never had a problem taking risks, I don't care about what most people think of me and I don't mind being in front of people. However as we worked through the activities I did realize that I have some really big blocks to creativity. One of them is my "if I'm going to be involved in something it needs to be well done." I am not a perfectionist in the sense that every line has to be straight etc...however I am when it comes to performing. Another block for me is getting the correct answer. Especially in anything that has to do with Math (math has always been scary to me), I always feel that there is only one way to do it and I need to have the correct answer. The last block is following the rules- I think I often times set up my own rules even when they don't exist. If I look carefully at these blocks I would say that some of them are self imposed (rules), however some of them come out of my own experiences in school. The great news is that now that I am aware of them I can start to take steps to overcome them!! YES, I AGREE WITH YOU--AWARENESS IS THE FIRST STEP TO CHANGE!!!

TED TALKS (Steven Johnson Where good ideas come from) Jillian, Gabriela, Monica GREAT AD--SUMMARIZES THE EXCITEMENT AND ESSENCE OF THE TED TALK.

__**Math Problem 3**__ The caller is complaining about his constipated cow causing a lack of manure for the fields. To cure, the caller will need to purchase: 4 shiny beads, 1 bead = $ 1,00 5 shell, 1 shell = $1,00 2 metal medals, 1 medal = $15 1 lion tooth = $ 50,00 1 rabbit’s tail = $ 5,00 1 lock of human hair = $ 0,10 5 red beans, 1 bean = $ 0,25 1 toe bone of a bat = $ 100, 00 5 shavings of eyebrow hair, 1= $0,10
 * ZACK the Massai Pre Warrior with witch doctor powers**

**If a cow is worth $ 200,00 should patient buy a new cow or save his constipated cow?**



Tricia Bastidas Monica Gamboa Dayana Boland Carla Amores Gabriela Larrea Margarita Delgado Veronica Perez Ximena Paola Branganza Liza Barba
 * Group members:**

THIS WAS SUCH A FUNNY IDEA. I LOVED BEING PART OF THE THINKING. THE CREATIVE ASPECT BROUGHT NON MATHEMATICAL MINDS TO THE TABLE. SUPER IMAGE HERE!!!

ASSIGNMENT 4 Creativity Socratic Seminar

SOCRATIC SEMINAR ENTRY CARD Article “The Creative Personality” Ted Talk Steven Johnson “Where Good Ideas Come From”

Things that were interesting or confusing:

Of all human activities, creativity comes closest to providing the fulfillment we all hope to get in our lives. Call it full-blast living.

Creative individuals are remarkable for their ability to adapt to almost any situation and to make do with whatever is at hand to reach their goals. If I had to express in one word what makes their personalities different from others, it's //complexity//. They show tendencies of thought and action that in most people are segregated. They contain contradictory extremes; instead of being an "individual," each of them is a "multitude."

Chance favors the connected mind

My QUESTIONS:

1. In my article creative people are thought of as complex with tendencies of thought and action that are contradictory to an extreme. How does this translate into being able to work with these kind of kids in your classroom? How do you allow them to be creative and still keep order and your own sanity?

2. What kind of places provide a place for minds to connect and share their creative ideas?

YOU HAVE CAPTURED THE ESSENCE OF THIS ASSIGNMENT. I AM THRILLED THAT YOUR QUESTIONS EVOLVE OUT OF YOUR RESOURCES. THE QUESTIONS ARE OPEN-ENDED AND WOULD STIMULATE FINE DISCUSSION.