My Birtthmonth Gift To Students From Grade School To Grad School – Creative Thinking

Guess my birthday? Yes, during that date, a whole town celebrates – including holding a beauty contest and public parade, the works! How lucky can you get? That town has been doing that since I can remember.

(On another angle: As a communicator for development, I am thinking of what gift can I give to PH Agriculture, especially to the millions of poor Filipino farmers?????)

The best personal gift I can give to students from Grade School to Grad School is to recommend that they learn how to do their “Creative Thinking” – which I added to the 9 in Howard Gardner’s list of “Multiple Intelligences” (list below):
(image from thehungryjpeg.com)

1. Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence (“Body Smart”)
2. Creative Intelligence (“Thinking Smart”), added by FAH
3. Existential Intelligence (“Life Smart”)
4. Interpersonal Intelligence (“People Smart”)
5. Intrapersonal Intelligence (“Self Smart”)
6. Mathematical-Logical Intelligence (“Number/Reasoning Smart”)
7. Musical Intelligence (“Music Smart”)
8. Naturalist Intelligence (“Nature Smart”)
9. Spatial Intelligence (“Image Smart”)
10. Verbal-Linguistic Intelligence (“Word Smart”).

1st Advice – study the “Po Technique” of Edward De Bono. If you cannot find a copy of his book “Mechanism Of Mind,” google for “Po Technique” (for a perfect search, type exactly like that, including the double quotes), and see what you can learn.

I don’t remember if I ever bought a copy of De Bono’s book, but I remember how the Po Technique works; these are in my own words:

When brainstorming alone or with a  group, listen to all the ideas that come up. Accept all, including the negatively worded or negative-sounding ones. Why? What for? Listen to the suggestion again, and try to come up with a positive idea from the negative one. “Po” must mean “Positive” even if the suggested idea sounds negative or contrarian – the bad idea may give you a good idea! (Besides, if you/your group are positive-minded, you will be richly rewarded in your brainstorming! I know.)

Alone: To help you think of more ideas when you need them, cultivate the habit of reading. Choose what you like, but read, read, read! No, you don’t have to memorize anything. The more you read, the better for you if you are a writer or someone who needs good ideas for your work or group. With your reading, your brain will then be full of ideas which you can make use of when brainstorming by yourself, trying to come out with ideas to write about or with.

Do you understand the images within the image shown above? Never mind. They are simply examples of how to think, or how to come up with your own thoughts about something.

There is something else. I have the habit of having a scratch notebook in several places around the house, right now 3 notebooks, each with a ballpen to write with. When an idea, I immediately write it down – if I don’t do that, that idea will disappear without a trace!

Yes, anyone can do creative thinking, experienced or not, young or old – I’m 84 years old, for God’s sake!@517

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