Claims that creativity can be nurtured in young children using the appropriate creative environment, such as schools with creative programs, continuous enrichment of the environment, and creative teachers and creative ways of teaching. Concludes that the most powerful possibility of nurturing creativity in an individual lies in interaction with…

An evaluation of a Canadian program that infused the arts throughout the elementary curriculum reviewed test scores of 7,000 students in Grades 1-6 and surveyed teachers, students, administrators, artists, and parents. Findings indicate that involvement in the arts improved mathematical computation scores, contributed to student motivation, and…

Students make paper "Flat Stanleys" and send them with blank journals to classes in other states or countries. Recipients treat Stanley as a guest, record the things they do with him, and return him with the completed journals to the senders. Flat Stanley has sparked teacher and student creativity and motivation in 2,500 classes in 18 countries.…

Presents an approach that teachers can use to promote and investigate students' motivation to learn in the classroom. Notes that the strategies used are from Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking courses. Explains the following motivational devices: dual-entry diary; clusters; know/want to know/learned; think/pair/share; discussion web;…

A study evaluated the relationship of teacher nomination instruments to later performance of 121 students from low-income backgrounds in a gifted program. Results indicate nominations based on thinking abilities, general gifted behaviors, and special learning skills were related to later performance on creativity, group skills, and language…

Investigates the creativity and behavior precipitated by employing the mandala as an active centering device for children with Attention-Deficit Disorder or Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Drawings were requested and rated according to the Formal Elements Art Therapy Scale. Preliminary findings indicate that attentional abilities…

Describes an engaging project in which students have to design and construct a three-dimensional candy box that would appeal to children. Requires students to make the box out of prisms, pyramids, or cylinders, determine the surface area and volume of the solids, and write a persuasive business letter. (YDS)

A study explored the relationship between two creative types (adaptor and innovator) and the Big Five personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience), in 164 teachers in Singapore. Adaptors were significantly more conscientious than innovators, while innovators were significantly more…

Discusses the need for librarians to develop effective strategic plans and to regard the library operation as a business operation. Explains 12 entrepreneurial traits that are needed for success in librarianship and information services, including passion, enthusiasm, trustworthiness, creativity, persistence, responsibility, flexibility,…

This study investigated relationships between parent-perceived psychological intensities of a heterogeneous sample of 67 preschool-age children and standardized measures of intelligence and creativity. Total intensity scores correlated negatively with children's chronological age and positively with intelligence scores, indicating that bright…

The study of four highly original preschool children found that the children had high levels of inner imagination, extremely varied expressive creative behavior with each having a "specialty area" as a creative focus, and different levels of social competence. Results support D. Shmukler's model for organizing elements of creativity in preschool…

This interview with James T. Webb, clinical psychologist and coauthor of "Guiding the Gifted Child" (1982), focuses on ambivalent messages communicated to gifted/talented children, balancing parental attention among gifted and less gifted siblings, teaching social skills, underachievement, benefits of special programing for emotional development,…

This study examined how experienced teachers use their complex knowledge structure to find and solve problems in the classroom. Of 30 teachers and teacher trainees, the experienced teachers imposed an experiential structure on lesson content, spent less time planning, and focused on general concerns rather than specific problems. (PB)

Describes how the author, influenced by Celtic, Trajan, and contemporary alphabets, created his own alphabet. Discusses the developmental drawing process, color determinations, and how he created his final large scale letter forms in plywood. Outlines how students can adopt these ideas to develop their own alphabet. (KM)

The legal system of copyright may have worked in the era of print, but with electronic technology, society needs less encumbered and cheaper access to expressed ideas. Economic success will go to those nations that best succeed in promoting creativity without inhibiting the incorporation of expressed ideas into other products. (MLW)