This document discusses nurturing critical and creative thinking skills in students. It defines these skills as complex thinking abilities that are often used collaboratively. The document recommends encouraging independent thinking and metacognition in children. Fostering these skills is important because it improves brain development, cognitive growth, and helps engage all students, including those with challenges. A thinking classroom provides opportunities to solve problems in different ways and values diverse ideas. Creative children are described as imaginative, curious, and risk-takers who enjoy challenges. The document provides suggestions for setting up an environment and activities to develop these skills, such as open-ended activities and reflection.

1. Nurturing Critical and
Creative Thinking Skills
Erin Healy
St Joseph’s Kununurra

2. What are Critical and
Creative Thinking Skills?
• Thinking is complex, a variety of skills
that we often use in collaboration with
each other
• Encouraging children to think for
themselves
• Metacognition

4. Why?
• We want our students to become
independent thinkers
• Improves neuroplasticity of the brain
• Improves cognitive growth
• General capabilities
• Early Years Learning Framework
• Engage all children, especially those
with FASD and trauma in new ways

5. A thinking classroom
Is a classroom where;
 Opportunities to solve different types
of problems
Different ways of thinking are valued
Practice is provided
Ideas and demonstrations of thinking
are valued, acknowledged and
encouraged

6. How do you identify creative
kids?
☺They are imaginative, respectful and
uninhibited
☺They are open to new idea and see
things in a different way
☺They are curious, alert and adventurous
☺They are risk takers

7. ☺They are independent in their thinking
and social behaviours
☺They are inventive
☺They are good at solving problems
☺They love challenges and can be easily
bored with routine and mundane tasks

8. How?
• Classroom set up
• Classroom management
• Language of instruction
• Open ended activities
• Reflections

9. Getting started
• Use strategies and provide experiences
that;
- honor the thinking process
-recognise the possibility that there is
more than one answer
- value alternative views
- promote attentive listening
- foster whole group engagement
- support problem solving, creative and
flexible thinking

10. Getting started
• Select a challenge
• Present it to the whole group
• Every child provides a response
• Answers can be real or fanciful
• Support those who need it

11. The St Joey’s Context
• Kindergarten
• Pre Primary
• Kindy and Year 4 Buddy class

12. There was an old lady…

13. Stepping Stones Visit

14. Melbourne Cup

15. Melbourne Cup

16. Melbourne Cup

17. Melbourne Cup

18. Melbourne Cup

20. What pets do we have?

21. What pets do we have?

22. What pets do we have?

23. What pets do we have?

24. What pets do we have?

25. What would be a good/bad pet
for the Pigeon?

26. What would be a good/bad pet
for the Pigeon?

27. What would be a good/bad pet
for the Pigeon?

28. Transition Questions
Something that is an animal
Something that is soft
Something that could be invisible
Something that is scary
Something that you are not having for
lunch
• Something that you find at home
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