Creative Activities

Every educator is familiar with Benjamin Bloom's 1956 Taxonomy.  Ben can't take all the credit, the Taxonomy of Learning Objectives was the result of several conferences and committees designed to help educators understand the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor dimensions of learning. Something many people don't know is that it has been revised.

http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/images/1/1e/Bloom_1.jpg

In the 1990's professionals from several fields of study came together to address 21st Century adaptations to the famous taxonomy.

The most important change is the highest level of thinking--creating.  Creating is define as "putting elements together to form a coherent or functional whole; reorganizing elements into a new pattern or structure through generating, planning, or producing". 

Its true that students must have the prerequisite levels to effectively create, but educators should make the creative level their focus for classroom activities.  When students create, they authentically demonstrate content knowledge.  In addition, creation develops more permanent memory anchors, which means students will internalize the content and remember it longer.  Creative projects also mean students must be authentic, so cheating isn't really a concern.  Creation also lends itself to collaboration--a 21st Century skill. Plus, students love to create. 

Obviously, technology lends itself to creation.  In fact, this is probably the main reason I am now an Apple computer advocate.  Garageband, iPhoto, and especially iMovie have unparallelled creative potential.  Similar web-based programs can be found such Prezi and SlideRocket. Regardless of the program, creation is the future.