The Bottom of the Bag

I had not poked around in this particular bag for quite some time: the white mesh one we used to take to the beach when we lived in Chicago.  Having pretty young kids, it is easy to guess the objects within: small shovels, various sand castle molds, an assortment of dinosaurs and action figures. While we now live on a smaller lake with a little beach about 300 yards from our house, this particular bag has not seen much action. The kids are older, and this collection of toys no longer garners much attention.

Therefore, it was the perfect bag to dig through for the toyhack.

So what did I find?  A little dumptruck.  A rubber shark.  A small Cro-magnon-looking action figure. I can't even imagine how this last one found its way into the bunch.

But the bigger thing I found was a sense of challenge and purpose.  Add to this the fact that it was an engaging way to spend a couple of hours, and I had the three necessary ingredients for a creative endeavor.    As I worked with the toys and shopped through our tools and art supplies for needle nose pliers, Gorilla Glue, Sharpies, pipe cleaners, and more, I focused on the evolving vision and on my hands, breaking apart the objects and putting them back together.  Of course I wanted to make something in order to share it with the #clmooc.  But this became secondary to crafting something with which I would be satisfied.

And I was ultimately satisfied.  The end result was a bit goofy, but it made sense in some '70's cartoon universe way.

Thinking more about the white mesh bag, I have to admit that the first time I looked through it I felt unimpressed with the materials. Nothing grabbed me. I actually put the bag down and started to pick around  in the garage. Before long, however, I decided to challenge myself with an obstruction: I had to use this rejected material.

So, here comes the educational payoff.

Digging to the bottom of the bag and using the less obvious materials:  How many times have I implored my students to do exactly this?  To move past initial ideas?  To resist their first thoughts, which are usually obvious and reactionary?  To embrace ideas that are only partially formed, a bit jumbled, possibly confusing?  So often it is in the murkier recesses that we find the makings for more compelling creations.  The toyhack proved to be an excellent reminder of what it is like to practice these directions instead of just saying them.  And how much easier it is to do so when interested in the task.