This study investigated playground activity levels of children in grades K-4 and compared levels of use of traditional and creative playground apparatus. The traditional playground area consisted of climbing bars, slides, ladders, chin bars, swings, see saws, and a merry-go-round. The creative playground contained tire hurdles, tire walk, tire…

Eight sixth grade gifted students verbalized their thoughts as they worked on figural task drawings. Analysis of resulting data indicated that the process variables of Story Weaving, Association Shifting, and Vantage were more frequently evidenced by subjects producing more original products, whereas Content Bound Linking was associated with…

This article explores the use of improvisation (improv) as a lens for viewing and describing teacher-child interactions. The author describes the relationship between the principles of improv and the characteristics of responsive teaching, and how improv can be used as a lens for seeing relational activity. The author hypothesizes that improv…

Alex F. Osborn's group brainstorming treatment remains the most frequently applied procedure for the creative generation of ideas despite considerable evidence that demonstrates its ineffectiveness. This paper synthesizes many findings that challenge the premise that Osborn's traditional "group" brainstorming treatment is the optimal…

Information for this study was complied from teachers identified as creative to determine if, in their opinions, creativity can be developed or enhanced; and, if so, how it can be encouraged or developed in others. Subjects were 60 teachers seen as creative and interviewed by graduate students during the academic years of 1978-84. Teachers ranged…

Examines similarities between composition and programming processes, and reviews two studies that linked instruction in computer programming and freshman composition to help students understand writing as a design discipline. Projects at the University of Montana and Bryn Mawr College which improved students' writing abilities are described. (LRW)

Sixty kindergarten children were studied to determine the effect of age and sex on creativity. No significant difference was found between the girls' and boys' creativity scores, but, as expected, the 6-year olds scored higher than the 5-year olds. Recommends providing opportunities for creative activity for children at home and school. (TJQ)

Construction-based activity in schools is an essential part of the design and technology curriculum. Issues behind the evolution of construction kit-based activity are examined, with a focus on the early childhood and other influences that may have shaped the minds of those individuals who have invented construction kits in the last 200 years.…

Understanding how students make music in non-school settings can inform teaching practice in schools, making teaching more relevant to students' musical perspectives. This research study examined the musical processes of a three-member rock band, their roles within the group, and considered how they constructed musical meaning. The most salient…

Fourteen Native Canadian intermediate students identified as creatively gifted were assigned to experimental or control groups. Pre- and posttests of creative potential indicated significant gains in originality scores of the experimental groups, who received training in fluency, flexibility, and originality through formation of objects and…

This study used F. Fiedler's task structure analysis to probe emergence and maintenance of leadership in groups of gifted secondary students (N=122) engaged in unstructured, creative production. Results are discussed in terms of relationships between group perceptions of leadership effectiveness, group product creativity, and leadership style…

Introduction: Medical students often describe the gross anatomy course as both stressful and a rite of passage. Research differs as to whether the stress it engenders is significant or transitory. This qualitative study of first year anatomy student reports on the use of optional creative projects to promote reflection and reduce stress. Methods:…

A study surveyed creative directors of top United States advertising agencies to provide an idea of the expectations and hiring practices for both copywriters and art directors in creative departments of those agencies. Results revealed that two-thirds hire creative personnel "right out of school," but that little if any formal recruiting is…

This study was conducted to determine the effect that hands-on, creative activity using the Language Experience Approach would have on language usage in students' written stories. Twenty-five fifth grade students were randomly divided into three sample groups. Sample A received hands-on, creative stimulus and art materials; Sample B looked at and…

Spillover and compensation are two recurrent hypotheses concerning the relationship between work and nonwork. Spillover proposes a basic similarity between an individual's activities and feelings in both the world of work, and nonwork; compensation proposes fundamental dissimilarity between the individual's world of work and nonwork. To focus on…