How Long? How Long?

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/apps-for-creativity-diane-darrow

After reading the title of the article Creativity on the Run: 18 Apps that Support the Creative Process, I began to wonder how hard would it be for a teacher to create an environment where students can think creatively every single day? To answer the question, I looked deeper into the article.

Our first stop had the "Idea Catcher" apps. These are the apps that students should have on their iTouches or iPads where they can jot down ideas, or take notes. These help to capture the thoughts of students in a quick and convenient way.

Next we have apps that assist in the process of brainstorming. Within these apps, students can take private notes while a larger discussion is taking place. These apps give the student the freedom to take notes in a less structured way, so that they can revise and augment their notes with ease.

Then, the visual thinkers get their chance to create, edit, share, and save their ideas. Through apps like Paper by Fifty Three, or Whiteboard Pro, students can simultaneously edit ideas while collaborating with other students.

Finally, students can complete and connect their ideas through apps like Popplet or Idea Sketch. These apps will be especially useful for your visual students because it allows them to connect ideas with lines and arrows in order to show a continuous thought or cause and effect. With apps like these, students can design note pages that are functional in any subject.

To answer my question, it's not very hard to allow students to use their creativity in a useful way. The hard part would be taking the first step toward allowing your boldness as a teacher to positively affect your students. This article provides a list of apps that would work well in a classroom setting. Each app would speak to a different Multiple Intelligence and would have its strengths and weaknesses, but would be well worth the time to integrate them into your classroom.