Learning and Leading

1. What are the four dimensions that J.P. Guilford used to describe creativity?
Fluency, flexibility, originality, elaboration

2. With which of the four dimensions do you struggle the most? Provide details as to why/how this dimension is difficult for you.
I struggle the most with originality because I always feel like I can never come up with my own ideas.  I feel like once I hear somebody else’s opinion or input, then I may be able to come up with other suggestions to go a long to whatever we may be discussing. 

3. Think about all of the tools we’ve learned about in class so far. Select a tool and describe how it might help with two or more of the four dimensions of creativity. 
I think a simple tool that one could use to help with creativity is Blogger. Blogger is a simple tool and I feel like most anyone can use. Also with Blogger you have the ability to do just about whatever you want with your site.  There are no restrictions on what you want to write or what you don’t want to write, it’s all up to you.

4. Spend 10-15 minutes exploring one of the creativity tools listed in the chart on p. 14 in the article. Make sure not to choose a tool you’ve used before. How could that tool be used to support creativity in your chosen grade/subject area?
The website I visited was Go Animate.  I believe this tool would be useful because a teacher can make video lessons for his or her class.  If a student is sick and cannot attend the lecture, then the teacher would have to ability to record a short message or even the lecture for the student that missed.  I also liked this site because the students could use it in the classroom.  They might make a commercial or an ad for a product, or try to pitch an idea pertaining to whatever the instructor may be teaching about at the time.

Yummy!

On Monday after a much need nap, I got up and decided to try out my mothers crock pot that she let me barrow.  I've always enjoyed cooking, but i've never actually used a crock pot before.  I've always heard that you can throw basically anything inside so how hard could it be?  Before I started I decided to look up a few recipes on Instagram.  What I found what something called "Cream Cheese Chicken Chili." Since I had all the needed ingredients, I decided to give it a whirl.

Ingredients:

2 frozen chicken breasts

1 can rotel tomatoes

1 can of corn

1 can of black beans

1 pkg og ranch seasoning mix

1 T cumin

1 T onion powder

1 T chili powder

1 8-oz pkg of cream cheese

After placing all ingredients in the bottom of the crock pot I let it cook on low for 4-6 hours.  Afterward about 5 and a half hours I gave it a stir, pulled apart the chicken, and wahlah! 

Not going to lie, this was probably one of the best meals I have ever prepared and was so proud of myself afterward.  This made a ton of food and my roommates loved it.  I can't wait till it gets cold outside and I can make this again.

Funny Stuff

I always enjoy funny videos that people post on YouTube. One of my friends showed me this one and thought it was worth sharing. Enjoy!

Horizon Report

A trend that I found interesting is the idea of more online classes and hybrid learning.  I feel like this is a great idea to help save schools money.  I have personally never taken a hybrid class, but I have heard good reviews from friends that have taken them.  I don't know if this could be incorporated with children still in grade school, but I think it would be cool if it could be offered to high school kids. I think that this could be a great tool to prepare high schoolers for higher learning.  They would not only learn how a college classroom can be ran, but that they would also have to learn time management in getting the online assignments completed on their own.

Meaningful Learning

The theory of learning in my opinion is a natural process.  I believe different kinds of people learn in different ways.  Some people might learn better at just listening or seeing things, but others like myself, learn better while having to perform an action or while doing an activity.  Learning can also come from simply observing.  I believe observational learning is a very important factor in today’s society.  With the use of the World Wide Web, I believe somebody can learn how to do just about anything by looking it up on Google or even looking at a YouTube video.  Some people may not be as successful as trying to teach themselves, when others may find it rather simple.  I think the most important aspect is that one must simply try whatever it may be.