Developed for a workshop Idea Couture created for student teachers, this deck aims to not teach a full process that's difficult to integrate but share mindsets that can be unleashed anywhere in your teaching practice. Visit this link for an accompanying worksheet: https://www.dropbox.com/s/x5w598qkit97dwo/Design%20Thinking%20Final%20Worksheet.pdf?dl=0

1. design thinking mindsets to bring to your classroom
innovative
educators

2. This deck
will teach you
a new way to
approach how
you teach.
It’s about thinking
of teaching as a
form of designing.

3. so what is
design thinking?
design thinking
is an approach to
problem solving
that invites us to
prioritize the needs
and experiences of
the people we’re
designing for.

4. Often, design thinking is a
multistep process that bridges
the entire design process from
problem to solution.

5. In this guide, we’re
sharing some key concepts
to assist you anywhere in
your teaching practice.

6. student-
centered

7. Design is about keeping one thing
top of mind: who you’re designing
for. Whether it’s a tangible product
like a scooter, or something more
ephemeral, like an experience—
who it’s for frames every decision.
As teachers, often what needs to
be covered takes precedence over
ensuring the class understands
the material. Student engagement
increases when curriculum is
student- centered and engaging.

8. The next time you create a lesson, activity,
or project that your students will work on,
consider some of these practices:
Self Prior Knowledge
Reflect on your life as
a student while you’re
preparing your lesson—
where did you find yourself
most engaged? Where did you
find yourself getting bored?
Adapt your lesson with
those learnings.
Reflect Forward
Make a habit of using exit
cards at the end of key
lessons to gauge where
students felt engaged and
where they felt disengaged.

9. reframe
assumptions

10. Design is an exploratory process.
A designer’s work is divergent, often
asking ‘what if?’ more than ‘what’s been
done?’. Sometimes in the act of asking
‘what if’, you might realize that how the
task at hand has been framed isn’t what’s
really needed to solve the problem.
A better solution would be to reframe
the problem. The ability to reframe
assumptions lies at the heart of design
thinking. Reframing your thinking is a
critical design thinking practice that can
push your pedagogy forward.

11. Consider these activities
and questions to guide you:
Assumption Mapping + Reflecting
Before you teach
your next lesson
write down what you
think will work in it.
Teach the lesson then reflect:
we’re you right?
If not— what should
Pinpointing Possible Barriers
Predict what each of your
students might need help with.
Ask them to write
down exactly what
help them need.
Did this fit your prediction?
How will this inform planning
the next lesson?

12. prototype

13. We’re conditioned to constantly be
working on a final product. We’re
used to working on something with
intensity, waiting to finally unveil it.
Designers do something different.
They prototype. The final product is
definitely being created, yet along
the way they’re creating versions of
the work and testing them out. Their
early versions aren’t hidden away—
they’re purposefully displayed to
make the final output stronger.

14. Consider these activities to put prototyping
into play in your classroom:
Non-repetitive Exercises
If your subject requires
repetitive drill, consider
finding new ways to have
students practice these
skills whenever you teach
it. Observe and record
which methods work best with
each student. Technology is
particularly suited
to this task. Think of
how to deploy it.
Group Work Labs
If you’re having students
work in groups, consider
giving each group a different
approach to mastering the
learning at hand— see which
one helps them understand
the material best.

15. think of
your
classroom
as a studio