Support for Schools to Promote Creativity, Critical Thinking and Design Thinking

School Without Walls

School Without Walls began life as a collaboration between the egg, Theatre Royal Bath, House of Imagination (formerly 5×5×5=creativity), and St Andrews Primary School in Bath, and was inspired by a school residency at the Southbank Centre, London.

A class of children take up residence at the egg for 5-7 weeks over the summer term. They co-design a creative curriculum supported and scaffolded by their teachers, TAs, House of Imagination artists, mentors and egg creative learning team.

The content is largely directed by the children through a process of noticing, reflecting and responsive planning. Artists provide ‘provocations’ which help the children explore themes and ideas.

School Without Walls (SWW) now invites other schools to get involved and run their own SWW programmes. More information about the practical characteristics of a SWW programme and how to apply is found at http://www.schoolwithoutwalls.org.uk/the-process/to-call-your-project-school-without-walls/.

School Without Walls embodies a philosophy that places the children at the centre of their own learning. By transplanting them into a cultural setting, the conventions, behaviours and habits associated with the ‘classroom’ start to fall away.

The project is underpinned by the Reggio Emilia approach of allowing children to find and follow their fascinations with the adults facilitating this and scaffolding the learning though a method of co-enquiry.

Glittering Minds

Glittering Minds was formed to set children and adults up for success today and in the future. They have designed a special programme for primary schools all over the world which helps children develop 21st century skills and an innovator mindset.

“We know that the most important thing for any school is to develop great thinkers.

With Glittering Minds, you can achieve academic excellence and drive better behaviour, all while developing 21st-century skills. Our powerful program helps you create a community where people learn, share, grow, and take learning to the next level.”

​These short videos give you an idea of the kinds of activities Glittering Minds could help you do with your students:

House of Imagination

House of Imagination (HOI) provides a range of spaces for children and young people to collaborate with creative professionals. HOI is a research organisation with a focus on children’s and young people’s creative and critical thinking.

In practice HOI uses action research to plan and deliver innovative programmes that enable children to shape their lives through creative activity and schools to change their practices through professional development and school-based activity. At its heart is co-enquiry between children, teachers and creative professionals. HOI is driven by a desire for change in both children’s lives and in schools, focusing on an exploration of the possibilities that creativity offers.

HOI says that children need more opportunities to develop their creativity and to experiment, and teachers need more support to integrate these skills. Through research and dissemination HOI provides evidence for change and helps to build a strong cultural ecology that in turn supports children, schools and creative professionals.

Through creative education workshops and events, CPDL, public dissemination and partnership work, and as part of their wider approach to education across and beyond the curriculum, HOI aims to enhance the lives of children and young people, as well as those of teachers, creative artists, audiences and other participants, aiming to increase:

• Creativity
• Wellbeing
• Resilience and self-confdence
• Courage and creative risk-taking
• Innovative and critical thinking”

STEAM Co.

STEAM Co. works to champion, inspire and ignite creativity in our schools, work and lives. Inspired by Sir Ken Robinson and Prof Guy Claxton, STEAM Co. was founded in 2011 and they are now running STEAM activity days for schools across the UK. They say:

“STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) is a well established area and focus for education, but isn’t enough. To inspire the innovators of tomorrow we need to inject creativity via the ARTS – all of them from drawing and music to dance and thinking.”

On a STEAM Co. Day, children get to choose from up to 20 activities like coding, the science of music, spin painting, joining the global cardboard challenge or designing and creating dream roomsets in shoe boxes. Find out more by watching the short film below:

If you want to run a STEAM Co. day in your school, you can contact them via their website at www.SteamCo.org.uk.