CREATE in the College Classroom

Find out how future teachers plan to cultivate creative thinking in their classrooms.

This summer, the Arizona K12 Center offered educators a unique hands-on learning experience at the Arizona Science Center’s Makerspace — a place where science, design, and engineering come together in “a 6,500 square-foot community hub for turning dreams into reality.”

We caught up with a group of Arizona State University’s pre-service educators in attendance to learn how our future Arizona teachers plan to use their experience in their classrooms.

Critical Creative Thinking

“The maker movement is critical to today's students because the rise in technology has also led students to expect this instant gratification without understanding the process that goes into the creation of everything,” says ASU senior Natasha O’Connell, who is interning in a seventh-grade science classroom.

“Understanding the design process helps them understand the world around them as well as their own learning process. If we can teach students that they have the tools they need to make anything they can think of, we can cultivate students who are engaged, think critically, and are willing to put in the work that goes into creating instead of being spoon-fed information.” O’Connell plans on bringing the concepts of creative thinking, quick prototyping, and allowing students to make something physical to take home into her future classroom.

Lessons in Action

In Michael Cooke’s graduate classes, he’s focused on Inquiry Based lesson planning. “CREATE has shown me what that looks like in action. I like the emphasis on creativity and collaboration.” This upcoming school year, Cooke is working with seventh-grade science and high school chemistry students.

Understanding the Past and Future

“Being exposed to different project-based learning, situations, and scenarios shed some light on the project-based learning I’ve incorporated in past classrooms,” says senior Keely Franklin, who is student teaching eighth-grade math students. “I hope to hone in on this skill and create more unique and successful plans.”

Implementing Project-Based Learning

This year, senior Angela Fu is in the classroom with sixth-grade math students. “We’ve always talked about using project-based learning in our classes, so it was nice to explore more ways to implement it.”

Students Becoming Master Makers

Senior Kimberlee Franco is interning in a sixth grade science classroom. “As a science teacher, CREATE has allowed me to think about allowing my students to become makers. The more you allow students to explore and create, the more engaged and interested they are in the lesson. I will definitely take this and apply it to my teaching career.”

Use Your Tools

Senior Anne Chung’s CREATE takeaway? “There are so many tools available for teachers to use in the classroom to make learning more fun and interactive.” This school year, she’s been placed in a middle school science classroom.

Want to know more? Head over here to read more about the Maker Movement, or click here to check out upcoming Arizona K12 Center events.

CREATE in the College Classroom

Find out how future teachers plan to cultivate creative thinking in their classrooms.

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