SPARK

The Creative Space has been hosting 25-30 Grade 8′s each Tuesday from 1:30-3:00 pm. (90 kids, three classes total as they rotate each week.  We’ve journeyed through figuring out our burdens, passions and missions for life. We talked about fear, failure, perseverance, social stigmas, brainstorming, affirmation, creative and critical thinking, sustainability, courage and integrity, innovation and invention. Some walked blindfolded from HMES to TCS, drew on the tables, did improv around consequences of doing the right/wrong thing, made up commercials for cool new products, designed a logo, critiqued local art, etc.

A special thanks to three amazing teachers from Holly Meadows ES: Leslie Copeland, Mark Wilson and Tim Smith!  Thanks to Jan Olsen, a Principal with vision!  Thanks to Bill Trayling who connected us all to kick it off.  Thanks to all the TCSers who suffered through the noise to allow these students to experience this adventure of learning.  We will get together as leaders and see where this goes from here.  If you’ve been a part of this and want to share your thoughts, ideas, comment below!

If you’re curious about what we’ve been up to, come out to the culminating event on June 5, 2012 from 7-9 as IGNITE BARRIE kicks off with 10 grade 8′s share their burdens and passion in 5-minute presentations. There will be refreshments and a live DJ. Come be enlightened by these amazing youth!

A few weeks ago, I was chatting with Ward Councillor John Brassard about joining us one Tuesday for SPARK, as the kids doing the program are from Holly.  With this past week being all about BRAINSTORMING, we thought it would be great to have John send us a few ideas, issues in the Holly area for the students to chew on.  The three topics were a proposed skate park, the annexed land and library services in Holly.  The kids zeroed in on the skate park and the annex lands and came up with some great insights.  John dug in as well with the students, asking questions and getting some great feedback.  This is just one more example of how SPARK is working.  As we read their testimonials, we saw a common thread.  They love being asked their opinion as it relates to the bigger picture.  We sometimes think kids need to wait till they’re older to contribute to community/world issues, but they have great ideas now!  This week we’re talking about Social Stigmas around poverty, addiction and homelessness.  Special Guests: The Busby Centre

For those new to SPARK, this is a pilot project with 90 Jr High students from Holly Meadows ES.  Its An alternative learning environment focusing on creative and critical thinking and helping them discover their BPM (Burden+Passion=Mission)  We just finished week 11, so I have a few weeks of summary to catch up with.  In the meantime – enjoy some honest feedback from a few of the students!

“Spark has affected me in a way that I am no longer completely focused on my problems but focused on how I can solve them. How I can change the world.” – Jessica

“I think Spark is an awesome program and it helps me get out of my shell, share what I want, but I’m still shy. I love how we are all there together to help each other with problems.” – Ashly

“The Creative Space visits have really opened my eyes to my surroundings and have made me realize there is a world of opportunity.”

“I like Spark because it drives you to want to change and stuff. I feel like it’s making us pick what we want to do in the future. The activities are fun and cool. They help you make decisions and be creative.”  - Griffin

“Spark has changed my view on the way I see life. I feel more compassionate about issues that not only affect myself as an individual but is also affecting my peers, the community or even the world.” – Megan

“Spark is a place to go when you have ideas. You don’t have to feel judged or pressured by your peers since they’re doing the same thing. It’s a comfortable environment to express your opinions and yourself.”

“Spark is Pro! I like Spark. It’s really fun. It’s fun ‘cuz we can be in a place where we can let our ideas out.” – TM

“Great experience with learning with the class. Skills that are useful for school and addressing problems.”-  JB

“I think that Spark is a creative project. It gets you thinking about a lot of stuff. I also think the logo is very cool as well.”

“The Spark Project has been really cool so far. I have enjoyed all the activities we have done and they have been very thought provoking. I am really looking forward to presenting the issue I have chosen from my BPM. I think it will be a great evening.”

“I like that Spark allows teens to open their minds to global issues and break through the status quo.”

“I like how interactive the program is and how everything is us and our ideas.”

“So far I have noticed I do like Spark. It’s been able to catch my interest, unlike many other activities. I have started to enjoy this project!!”

“The Spark project has been a really inspiring journey for me as a teacher. I have enjoyed the process of differentiating instruction to appeal and engage all my students. It has felt great to provide them with this unique experience and empowers their voice and ignite their passion for learning.” – L. Copland, Grade 8 Teacher

Week 7 had Miss Copeland’s class at TCS.  This session was all about Courage and Integrity.  We brainstormed a bit and then launched into some improv and tableaux on doing the right thing, even if it’s hard or it hurts.  The first exersise was answering the question, What would you do? 

You see a group of kids picking on another kid…

Your friend tells you a secret (she’s being abused)…

Your Dad bumps into a car and leaves a scratch…

You catch your friend cheating off you or another student…

You found a loonie on the classroom floor…

The teacher leaves the answers open on their desks and leaves…

Someone offers you a copy of an exam, with all the answers provided…

Picture This

We then did a fun exercise using Tableaux.  Freeze frame scenes where they showed examples of courage or integrity or the lack of it.  Then we time warped 20 years and they did a second scene.

We ended it off with them role playing situations where one choose to do or say what’s right and other tried to talk him/her in the other direction.

Next week’s topic: PERSEVERANCE.

Week 6 had us diving back into our passions and mission and trying to flesh them out using metaphors and similes.

Similes and Metaphors

Comparison thinking using similes helps create connections that make what you’re trying to solve or describe better understood, which can then lead to solutions.

Metaphors

Thinking metaphorically opens your eyes to see the similarities between dissimilar things. This is a trait of creative thinking and can then lead to solutions.

1. To Solving Problems 

In small groups, with the glass top tables turned sideways as on-the-floor white boards, they dove in.

Write a problem in the middle of your table, white boards or sheet of paper.  Quickly draw lines out from the problem to new words.  Things associated, connect to it.  Start to infer ideas towards a possible solution or solutions (gut reaction).

2. To Realizing your Dreams

Individually in Journals:

If My Burden were a colour it would be….

If my skills were a vehicle or tool it would be…

If my MISSION were an animal it would be a….

Group Exercise - in circle

I’m Like a…

Grab a bag and place office/school related items (ruler, paperclip, marker, paper) or smaller nature items (rock, flower peddle, branch) into it (30 plus items). This activity is about sharing something about yourself.  It’s also a great way to help the kids to think metaphorically, which is a great exercise for the brain.  For example if a student pulls out a ruler, they might say, “I’m good at setting things straight when there’s an argument,”  or if they choose a coloured marker, “I am a good artist…”  An eraser, “I make bad feelings go away…”  “I’m like a paperclip ’cause I’m small but very helpful.”  Alternatively you could spread out the objects on the floor and have each choose one in their head.  When it’s their turn they go up and grab it and describe how it’s like them.

This worked really well!  We thought we could do this in so many ways.  Maybe next time, we could use the objects to voice something in our life we need to work on.

 Web of Affirmation

(Winning the battle of being alone means encouraging one another.)

Holding a ball of yarn, have everyone sit in a circle.  Hold the end of the yarn and whoever you throw the ball to, say something positive that you like about the person.

Skills, personality, character traits.

Each person who receives the ball and affirmation says, “Thanks.”

Everyone hangs on to the yarn with one hand and tosses the ball of yarn with the other. Soon you have a “spider web” of affirmation and gratefulness.

It’s when we recognize and celebrate the collective strength of each other that we will succeed.  When we build each other up instead of tear each other down we will see a better future.  Share about how a culture of encouragement creates STRENGTH. Like a web, our individual actions effect the whole.  Pull one strand  – many, if not all, will feel it.

Mr Wilson’s Class was back again for our fifth week of SPARK.  And our official unveiling of the new name and logo.  The kids all drew their ideas in class and then Rhubarb Media took their ideas and developed the logo.  We spent more time on the critical thinking journey and started with some “Would you rather…” questions.  

Here are a few samples:

Would you rather…

… be able to fly or read minds?

… always lose or never play?

… be forced to tell your best friend a lie or tell your parents the truth?

… be stranded on an island alone or with someone you hate?

… become uglier or become stupider?

… find true love or 10 million dollars?

… never use the internet again or never watch TV again?

We then did a version of the Shark Tank called the SparkTank.  The kids presented an idea to the panel (teachers) and others in the group can tag them out if they get stuck on the answers.

This week we’ll carry on with some more thinking exercises and journalling their thoughts.

Today we decided whether we were a ping-pong ball or the paddle.  A river or a pond.  A rock or a feather.  A Cadillac or a Volkswagen.  We experienced terrorism, homelessness, death in the family, poverty, shark attacks, drug addiction and football.  We told stories and came up with solutions. It was a great SPARK!

We focused on creative story telling using a photo and the five senses.  What do you see, hear, smell, taste and touch?  Then with the same photo – state the problem.  Using the framework of CAPES (Communicate, Analyze, Problem Solve, Evaluate, Synthesize) come up with solutions to the problem.  Good times!

Feb 14 – Today we met with Mr. Tim’s class.  The agenda for the day was to go over the Battles we face when trying to fullfill our life’s mission:

Battle 1: Be Normal vs Be Creative

Battle 2:  Be Famous vs Be Great

Today – I just finished a Skype video call into the art room of Holly Meadows ES.  All 90 kids were there awaiting the final choice of the names they selected to call this “thing.”  Drumroll……..  SPARK!

Jess, Rhubarb Media’s Graphic Designer then shared some steps to creating a great logo and they were each to draw a logo for the program.  Rhubarb will collect the artwork, choose the winner and turn it into the logo for the group.  Yaaaaa – branding!!

Next week: Critical Thinking

28 Grade 8′s from Holly Meadows converged on The Creative Space this afternoon.  They all bussed down on a city bus (some for the first time). We introduced them to Ignite presentations. Each student will put one together for a May evening event where the top 10 will be presented live.  Teacher, Mark Wilson challenged them with a video on Flying Cars to get them to think differently about a “problem.”  We set up the space to accommodate what I call Learning Postures.  Two large tables with chairs, one large standing table and two glass tops directly on the floor for the floor sitters/loungers.  They gravitated to their zones.  All tables were glass tops and they had access to multi-coloured dry-erase markers.  Let the doodling begin!  We brainstormed what to call this “gathering” and challenged them to continue to think differently.  They posted their name ideas on the wall and voted.  Four sticky dots each, four votes only.  Most dots on an idea moved it on to Round Two.  The other two classes did the same over at Holly Meadows Community Centre.  We hope to have a new name for next week!  If you are interested in helping, sponsoring, or whatever, let us know!  Who knows where this will lead!

Students figuring out their BPMs - Burdens+Passion=Mission. Great times!

TCS is not just a place for SMEs to find space to relate, collaborate and create.  It’s now a place for Jr High kids to get excited about changing the world!  Sandra, Caedda and I spent the latter half of the afternoon with 80+ Grade 8 students at Holly Meadows ES launching a new idea. (Name to be determined later.)  One of three Grade 8 classes will then come to The Creative Space for more activities, once a week, focused on creative thinking and learning.  Thanks to the three amazing teachers who formed this initial team. Thanks to Jan, a Principal with vision. Thanks to Bill Trayling who connected us all together. Thanks to the students who will take this journey. We hope to see more schools jump in. Now we REALLY need our loft glass wall – anyone want to sponsor?