OBJECTS & SYSTEMS

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage? 

An important part of creativity is recognizing how creative things around us are. This is often inspiring. Because we are too used to things, we do not appreciate their creativity. It is also often practical: we see better the limitations of things and how they might be improved. It’s also a good way of understanding things better, by looking into what they are for, how they work, and who their audiences are. Thus, this creativity routine has an understanding bonus. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

This routine makes thinking visible by helping students to find the creative thinking behind ordinary things — doorknobs, pencils, newspapers, toys. It can also be applied to more important things and more abstract things, like forms of government, hospitals, or schools. The routine helps students to appreciate creativity and be more alert to creative opportunities. The creativity hunt is a good way to awaken students to the creativity in ordinary objects around them. You can use it on everyday classroom objects, like a blackboard, a ballpoint pen, a paintbrush, or an article of clothing.You don’t have to stick to concrete physical objects. You can use it on more abstract things, like the 24- hour day, recess, a sport, or a game.

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage? 

This routine first encourages divergent thinking, as learners think of new possibilities for an object or system, and then encourages convergent thinking, as learners decide upon an effective approach to build, tinker, re/design, or hack an object or a system. Ultimately, this thinking routine is about finding opportunity and pursuing new ideas. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

This thinking routine can be used to explore the possibilities of improving, tinkering with, or tweaking any object or system. Though this routine can be used on its own, we strongly suggest that it be used in combination with other Agency by Design thinking routines in order to best inform learners of the ways in which they may improve upon a particular object or system.

Purpose: Why use this routine? 

This routine helps students flesh out an idea or proposition and eventually evaluate it. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

This routine works well to explore various sides and facets of a proposition or idea prior to taking a stand or expressing an opinion on it. For instance, the school may be considering the idea of a dress code, a teacher might present the class with idea of altering the room arrangement, a character in a book might be confronted with making a choice, a politician might be putting forth a new way of structuring taxes, and so on.

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage? 

This routine helps students connect new ideas to those they already have and encourages them to reflect upon how they have extended their thinking as a result of what they are learning about or experiencing. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

Use this routine when you want students to make explicit connections to something previously learned or experienced. Since it is designed to help students process new information actively, it works well as the conclusion to lessons in which students have been reading, watching videos, or otherwise taking in new information. Another approach is to use the routine to close the discussion of a topic or unit of study in order to help students synthesize the information. Some questions you might consider in your planning: Are there connections to be made between this content and what students already know? Will students be engaging with new information that they might find challenging? 

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage? 

This routine helps students to reflect on their thinking about a topic or issue and explore how and why that thinking has changed. It can be useful in consolidating new learning as students identify their new understandings, opinions, and beliefs. By examining and explaining how and why their thinking has changed, students are developing their reasoning abilities and recognizing causal relationships. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

This routine can be used whenever students’ initial thoughts, opinions, or beliefs are likely to have changed as a result of instruction or experience. For instance, after reading new information, watching a film, listening to a speaker, experiencing something new, having a class discussion, at the end of a unit of study, and so on.

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage?

 This routine encourages students to make careful observations and thoughtful interpretations. It helps stimulate curiosity and sets the stage for inquiry. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

Use this routine when you want students to think carefully about why something looks the way it does or is the way it is. Use the routine at the beginning of a new unit to motivate student interest or try it with an object that connects to a topic during the unit of study. Consider using the routine with an interesting object near the end of a unit to encourage students to further apply their knowledge and ideas.

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage?

 This routine encourages students to think about something, such as a problem, question or topic, and then articulate their thoughts. The Think, Pair, Share routine promotes understanding through active reasoning and explanation. Because students are listening to and sharing ideas, Think, Pair, Share encourages students to understand multiple perspectives. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

Think, Pair, Share can be applied at any given moment in the classroom. For example, when approaching a solution, solving a math problem, before a science experiment, or after reading a passage or chapter of a book you may ask students to take a moment to think about a particular question or issue and then turn to their neighbor and share their thoughts. Sharing can also be done in small groups. Some times you will want to have pairs or groups summarize their ideas for the whole class.

Purpose: What kind of thinking does this routine encourage? 

This routine activates prior knowledge, generates ideas and curiosity, and prepares students for deeper inquiry. 

Application: When and where can I use it? 

This routine works especially well when introducing a new topic, concept, or theme in the classroom. It helps students recall what they already think they know about the topic and then invites them to identify puzzling questions or areas of interest to pursue. This routine can help you gauge students’ current understanding of a topic and inform your subsequent lesson planning. You might return to this thinking routine throughout the study of a topic to surface changes in student conceptions.