QTM: Student? Teacher? Creator!

Austin Kleon is best known for his newspaper blackout poetry: using material completely uninterested in poetry to craft funny, irreverent, and poignant poems.

Austin Kleon

I have tried to make my own and find them endlessly challenging, enjoyable, and mentally stimulating. Sometimes they work out. Often times they do not. When a poem does not turn out well, that's okay. As Kleon says:

And the process is where growth happens and interesting ideas are born. What it really comes down to is the act of creation. Whether it is writing poetry, strumming a guitar, tinkering with electronics, pounding some nails, or taking some photographs, creating allows us time and space to penetrate deeper into who we are. In creating, we become thinkers, learners, and doers. 

So here is an important question: to what degree does school afford students (and teachers) opportunities to be creators? And here is a follow-up question: to what degree should the creative process be school's focus?

Creativity brings life. Rejoice!
Inside you'll find enough power.
You'll find ability
Good for a big heart.