Grade Transformation Blog

Grade Transformation Blog

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Starting Y10 – What lies ahead and how to tackle it

Moving up to the next year group can feel like a big deal and can be pretty daunting (whether students choose to show it, or not).

There might be butterflies of excitement (‘Yesssss – Year 10 always sounded so cool’).

Or butterflies of anxiety or worry (in an ‘Eek! Y10! OMG – Things are gonna start getting tough!’ kinda way).

So, here’s what your teen can expect and should be ready to look out for as they embark on Year 10 – so they’re not only feeling cool and calm about what lies ahead, but can also really make the most of the opportunities to show their best work.

Okay, so your teen’s going into Year 10

A couple of important details to look out for; one more obvious and one much less so (and is actually what catches many students out).

First of all, things that won’t change too much for your teen…

The amount of homework and independent work they get set probably won’t feel too different from Year 9. And also the subjects they’re studying are likely pretty much the same, both in terms of the compulsory ones and their electives.

But what that means is the subject content and the standard of it is going to increase, as they’ll be building on the foundations laid in year 9 and earlier.

 

Here’s what that actually looks like:

Your teen will be set more questions or tasks that have higher level commands built in.

Command words are also known as cognitive verbs (and if you’re not sure what I mean by them, then be sure to come to my upcoming Term 1 Parent Online Info Event – I’ll be emailing out details soon!).

 

In particular they’ll see ‘analysis’ level questions a lot more this year.

These either explicitly state ‘analyse’ in the question, or have it more subtly woven in by using phrases like ‘Explain how the author achieves or shows something’ or ‘Discuss the effect of x, y, or z’.

These and many other wordings of questions, tasks or assignments all require an analytical response, so your teen needs to be able to recognise when this is being asked AND know how to write analytically with detail but also whilst avoiding the dreaded waffle.

 

And finally, if your teen hasn’t already been set any essays yet in Year 9, then they’re very likely to get their first one in Year 10.

Being clear on not only the basic structure – intro, 3 body paragraphs and conclusion, and using a PEEL or TEEL structure within each paragraph – is a given.

Being able to construct an essay that flows and builds throughout, whilst also being focused on the command, not just the topic is really going to make the difference. Not just to their grades, but also to how efficiently they are able to write the essay as opposed to struggle through it for hours upon hours.

I train students on these elements in detail (and much more!) in my Write Like an A-Grader Training,

but for a quick and free tip, also check out my blog post ‘Write the Intro last‘, where I explain the ‘backwards solution’ to essay struggles 🙂

 

So to sum up!… Not too much change in subjects and content, but rather, a notable levelling-up in terms of the standard of their writing and depth of understanding, most likely showing up as the higher level commands, such as analyse, assess and justify.

 

I really hope that helps with any pre-Term 1 nerves or anxieties, as well as giving you some go-to tips and strategies.

Leave me a comment or drop me an email and let me know… What’s the thing your teen’s most concerned about for the next school year, or the thing they’re most looking forward to?

And look out for my Term 1 parent information event coming up very soon.

(Totally free and with a new twist for 2019! Woop woop!).

Here’s to a SUPER- happy and successful year ahead and until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!

Katie ?

 

 

 

 

 

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Stop Studying Harder! (Figure THIS out instead)

When you were a kid, did you ever do that thing at the shopping centre, where you try running up the down escalator?

 

And at first it works, you make the first few steps pretty easily, but then as you get further up, like somewhere in the middle, you’re like, “Oh man, this is actually getting pretty hard now”, right?

And you’re still moving, still pumping your legs, but you’re not actually moving.

So what do you do?

You try to go faster, keep working harder.

And if you haven’t done it, then I’m sure you’ve SEEN a kid do this.

 

So what if I told you that this is kinda how many students are studying.

Even though they’re working harder than ever before, they’re not making the progress they want.

Here’s why (and how to END that downward momentum)!

 

So… the goal is to get to the top of the escalator.

Whatever that is in real life, a certain grade or set of results, or getting into a particular uni or course, or just getting a particular assignment or essay written!

 

We have the goal, and we’re working hard to achieve it, taking action.

But there might just be something that’s actually stopping us making the progress we want or feel we should.

Or something that’s just making it a LOT harder than it should be.

 

I’m doing things, I’m working, but I’m just not getting anywhere.

Whether that’s doing tons of revision, but still not getting the exam results you want.

Whether it’s doing tons of research for an inquiry, but going round and round in circles not knowing what to actually focus on or how to use it.

Or perhaps it’s struggling on where to start with an essay, just waffling around the topic, but having no real flow or direction through the writing, so that it just doesn’t feel like you’re making any real progress.

 

Well, wouldn’t it be easier if we turned off the escalator and they just became normal stairs. Now that means it does still take work and effort to get to the top.

But there’s no wasted energy and effort.

So what is that downward force?

How does your teen turn off the escalator?

Well, it’s different for everyone, it could be that they’re not clear on how mark schemes and success criteria work and how to use them to their advantage.

It could be that your teen isn’t accurately identifying both the topic and focus – separately identifying those two things – in essay titles, so they aren’t clear on how to plan or write their response. I

t could be that they’re missing one or more of the 6 elements of exam technique. It could be that they’re revising hard, but not using methods that are effective.

(In fact MOST students are using revision techniques that don’t work. Sad, but true).

It could be another factor that’s dragging down their results and performance in assessments and of course their confidence.

 

The key point here is about understanding what’s going on and then taking action to identify it.

 

So let me know… Is your teen trying the climb the down escalator at the moment?

Or, is there someone you know who’d benefit from hearing this? In which case, please – pass the link to this blog on to them 🙂

And until next week – let’s make this a fantastic week 🙂

Katie

 

 

 

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Why this student dropped from a B to a D grade

Student true story time.

This Year 12 student had worked for hours and hours (and hours) preparing, drafting and perfecting the short story creative task they’d been set in Y12 English.

They submitted their story and they got a B grade.

The next week, they sat their exam, which covered the exact same task and content.

(Don’t get me started on this type of assessment – I’ll save that for another time! But as you can probably tell I’m not a fan – for a variety of reasons).

Anyway, they did what they thought was a good job.

BUT. Cue results…

They got… a D.

Whaaaat?!

(That’s what they were asking too).

But there WAS a clear reason.

This week, I’m explaining why this happened and exactly what we did to turn things around.

 

This Year 12 student had worked for hours and hours (and hours) preparing, drafting and perfecting the short story creative task they’d been set in Y12 English.

Because this was in preparation for real assessment of writing the short story under exam conditions, they’d been given the scaffold and all the requirements of what had to go in there. So that stage of practice and preparation and prpducing their narrative had mainly been about coming up with a good story line and then making sure all the specified elements were there and worked well together.

 

They submitted their story they’d worked on in class and for homework and the teacher marked it and they got a B grade.
They were pretty happy with that as creative writing was not one their natural strengths or something they particularly enjoyed. In fact, it was something they struggled with and would rather do the dishes every night for a month than have to come up with and write a story!

 

Anyhow, the next week, they sat the exam, where they had to write that story in exam conditions.

(Don’t get me started on this type of assessment – I’ll save that for another time! But as you can probably tell I’m not a fan – for a variety of reasons).

Anyway, they did what they thought was a good job. Of course they didn’t remember everything word for word. They left a couple of things out that they forgot, and changed or adapted a couple of parts , but they were confident they’d do pretty well.

 

Cue results and they got… a D.
As you can imagine they were pretty disappointed, but more than that, they were confused and disheartened. They didn’t understand why their mark had dropped so much.

 

They’d re-told the same story. It had the same beginning, middle and end. They’d got the same characters and setting.

 

So, I offered to take a look.

From the first reading I could see why they’d got a D.

 

And I knew the likely reason and situation that had led to this.

Because I’ve seen it so many times in different subjects and different types of tasks.

 

The reason they’d got a much lower mark was because the little bits that they’d missed out or forgotten to include, were the elements that were going to earn them marks!

 

In this case it was the specific literary techniques.

Things like using metaphors, onomatopoeia and imagery in their writing.

Using emotive language.

Also, the more mechanical elements, like including direct speech and formatting that correctly with accurate punctuation and line breaks.

And having a variety of sentence structures that enhance the events in the story at particular moments.

 

In other words they HADN’T REALISED WHICH WERE THE MOST IMPORTANT bits in their writing.

This student wasn’t clear on what was actually going to earn them marks in the exam.

 

And they didn’t know that the word-y syllabus criteria – that are so often an additional task in themselves to decipher and de-code – meant that these super-specific items are the things that markers are looking for.

 

They, like most students, thought it was more about the storyline, the events and the characters.

 

And that would make sense, right?
The task is to write a short story. So you’d be forgiven for thinking that the marking criteria would be centred around your storyline, setting, events and characters.

It’s not.

And the more students I can help to realise this, the more students are going to focus on the elements and techniques WITHIN the story, rather than the story itself.

 

You can get a better mark with great techniques but poor story, than with a great storyline but no techniques that the marker can tick off the checklist.

Which was what this Y12 student had ended up with in their exam. A great story that had virtually no specific literary techniques.

 

But this is ACTUALLY a true story with a happy ending. Because of course the good news is that armed with that checklist and then and run with it in their finals.

AND by sharing this story, I’m hoping that more students can live happily ever after in each and every creative writing or narrative task they do from now on.

Until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week.

Yours,

Katie 🙂

 

 

 

 

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Building lego without the instructions

Ever tried putting together flat-pack furniture without using the instructions?

Nope – me neither – partly because I’ve heard too many horror stories, and partly because I’m too much of a ‘follow the rules’ type-a-gal for that ?

But I do remember as a kid challenging myself to put together a lego-model without the instructions, just the pic on the box.

(Must’ve been having a rebellious moment, or just extremely bored on a wet English afternoon. Most likely the latter)*

Did I manage it?…

 

 

It was a pirate ship and me and my sister had made it plenty of times before, WITH the step-by-step instructions.

And how did this ‘no instructions’ version of said pirate ship work out?

Well I did it.

Eventually.

It wasn’t perfect, but it was pretty good. Let’s say it was a B grade pirate ship.

But it also took a lot longer of course.

A few false starts and quite a few episodes of taking bits apart and re-doing sections where I’d used a part I then realised I needed somewhere else.

Just like when students try to write an essay or complete an assignment without a clear set of steps, a template, a checklist or a clear plan to help them move step by step towards a clear end result.

 

In fact I see many students fumbling their way through an extended task, with no real idea of what they’re even aiming for, what it should do or say or look like at the end.

They’re working without even having the picture of the pirate ship from the box!

Let alone having any instructions for all the pieces.

 

So to take this a step further – let’s call the picture of the finished model, the ‘Model Response’ (geddit) 😉

Or the A-grade exemplar.

Sometimes students will be shown a model response for a similar task or question

and in exams, these are printed in the retrospectives and marking guides.

 

And they can be reeeeally helpful, for sure.

Just like putting together the pirate ship was a hell of a lot easier with the picture to look at.

 

BUT –

(yep, there’s always a ‘but’, right?!) 

Being given a model response isn’t enough if students are going to be able to work confidently and efficiently on their own task.

Because they don’t necessarily know WHY that’s an A-grade response, or what process the other student went through to create it, or what elements in there specifically make it an A-grade response.

 

That’s why they need to be clear on all the components AND the ways they’re put together AND how to do that for themselves.

 

That’s why I’m such a fan of giving students resources and trainings that are what I call ‘universal’.

Not spoon-fed ‘fill in the gaps’ type scaffolds that can only be applied to one particular task , but proven systems or blueprints if you like, that can be applied to a particular type of task across all different subjects and topics.

Like:

A checklist and system that can be used to proofread any piece of writing effectively.

Or:

A template that can be used to construct a response to any type of evaluation level essay.

And:

Proven steps to brainstorming and then selecting an A-grade idea or topic for an open-ended task.

 

So that they’re not just haphazardly trying to piece together whatever knowledge they have and aren’t having to re-do or re-draft or edit multiple times before they come out with a great pirate ship.

Sorry, I mean great essay/assignment 😉

 

Let me know your thoughts on this!

Does your teen love steps and clear instructions?

Or perhaps they’re the more creative type who is capable of crafting a ship that’s even better than the box cover (not me at all by the way. I’m not the creative type, but I play to my strengths – structure and systems)!

Whatever your feedback, let me know in the comments below.

Let’s make this a fantastic week.

Katie 🙂

*Definitely the latter. Rebel was not in my vocabulary. Still isn’t to be honest. Unless you count the time last week I jumped the take-out queue at a coffee kiosk. I’d never been to it before and I hadn’t realised there was a queue the other side… til I was stood waiting for my cuppa and saw the four people around the other end of the counter – oops!  So I guess even that doesn’t count, and I’m good with that ?

 

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Try this ‘No Fail’ New Yr Resolution

You may know that I’m not a fan of New Years Resolutions.

You know… The type that are usually broken within a week – so are not only useless but also make us feel like a failure too.

Nope, not a great system in my book.

But there is a system that I like.

I shared it last year, and with New Year upon us here’s an update and review on it this year too.

 

Okay – so the idea is to have two words – one that reflects on and sums up the year just gone, and one that sets your intention or goal for next year.

 

This way, there’s not a specific moment or thing you do or don’t do that means you broken this promise or intention, but still gives you some direction, drive and focus.

 

So, my word for last year was ‘step-up’.

(And yes – I know that’s technically 2 words, but there’s no mark scheme for this task) 😉

Do I feel I achieved that?

Yes and no.

 

Ways that I did:

Well one of the goals – a big thing was working with and in schools.

And I definitely did that.

Definitely started the ball rolling on being able to help and impact more students in that way through in school student workshops and resources for schools.

However, in focusing on that, I didn’t do as well with spreading my word and reach throughout Australia as a whole.

Growing my reach through optimising my hundreds of videos on Youtube and speaking to more different media, I have to admit, has taken a back seat.

On the other hand, I have stepped up with providing even more support to my community of parents and students.

I ran a free Facebook Pop-Up group for 3 months throughout exam season, with plenty of support and additional exam-specific tips, and I’ve also introduced a ‘Next Level’ coaching opportunity for graduates of the 10WGT.

So, still a couple of things to take forward and work on and also some proud achievements too.

 

So, what’s my goal for next year?

Or I should say my word for next year.

Brave.

 

Because the plans I have for 2019 involve now not only working with students in schools through workshops, but also with schools at a higher level, through teachers and leadership too.

And to be totally honest, that is gonna take some bravery, to tackle this issue of integrating exam preparation, developing exam technique, actively teaching study strategies, essay strategy and more into an already crammed curriculum and bulging lesson plans.

 

But it’s a goal I’m setting myself so that these skills, tools and techniques aren’t limited to just the students who undertake the 10WGT, or whose school I’m delivering a workshop to.

I want to get as many students as possible happy, smart and successful in their study so that they confidently tackle the tasks and assessments they’re given and achieve the grades they’re truly capable of.

 

So, I’d love to know, what are your two words?

Can you use this as a conversation starter with your teen and have them consider theirs too?

Drop me a comment below this video to let me know 🙂

And whatever your plans and goals, I wish you and your family a SUPER Happy New Year.

Let’s make it an AMAZING year in 2019!

 

 

 

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Successful study is like a Christmas tree :) (Yep, really) ;)

I do love a Christmas Special Blog each year, and this is one of those!

Yay!

I also love a good analogy, so here’s my version of
‘Study success is like a Christmas tree’

 

‘Study success is like a Christmas tree’

Yep – Really :0)

 

The tree itself – the trunk and the branches:

That’s having full knowledge and understanding of command words.

Knowing precisely what they all mean, what any questions are specifically asking for, and having the skills and tools to know exactly how to respond to them.

Why?… Because this is what pretty much everything else hangs on.

 

The ornaments and tinsel and other glittery stuff:

This is students’ subject knowledge.

Because remember… without the trunk and branches of the tree, i.e. the ability to APPLY their subject knowledge in the way the Q requires – then students could have all the ornaments in the world, but they aren’t going to be able to do much with em.

They’re just gonna stay in the box with nowhere to show off their knowledge/glittery gorgeousness 😉

 

And the star on the top:

This is QWC – quality of written communication.

It’s what makes their writing ‘shine bright’ (see what I did there) and stand out.

And again if there’s no tree to hold this up high,

then it doesn’t matter how well they write if it isn’t actually answering what the question’s really asking,

or isn’t at the right level of response.

 

I hope you enjoy that as much as I did coming up with it.

#gettingintothechristmasspirit

(Seriously, this is about as creative as I get. But I made a special effort – because, well, it’s Christmas of course…) 🙂

And with that, I want to say a huge thank you for being a part of the Rock Solid Study Community and letting me into your inbox each week. I truly appreciate it and hope that you’ve got a ton of value.

 

I wish you and your family a VERY happy, safe and fun-filled Christmas with wonderful people

(and a very pretty and very sturdy Christmas tree!).

Katie

 

P.S. I just learnt this Christmas joke. I’m terrible at remembering jokes… and at telling them. Just watch the video and you’ll see 🙂

What’s the first thing elves learn in school?

The elf-a-bet!

Okay that’s really it now – Merry Christmas! ?

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Use this Little-Known Resource for Researching and Referencing

Many students struggle at times with researching, finding valid sources (i.e. NOT Wikipedia) and referencing.

Yet one of the best resources for this very task is in schools and just waiting to help!

The problem is that few students even realise this ‘resource’ is there or on offer, and even fewer use them.

Here’s a message I got from a Y10 student back in the middle of Term 4.

She said:

“Hi Katie, I’m trying to do research for my science assignment and I’m really struggling to find good resources. I’ve found a bit of info about the different compounds in laundry detergents but it’s not very scientific and I can find hardly anything on the effects of how it pollutes the rivers and water. I’ve used Google Scholar like you said, but I’m not sure about how to find any journals like you suggested in school. Do you have any other advice?”

I replied to Eliza at the time and she took my advice, and I’m going to share with you in just a moment exactly what I told her to do.

Because she emailed me again a couple of weeks ago to tell me her assignment result and how happy she was with it…  aaaannnd how brilliant that piece of advice was and how well it worked for her.

#happydance

 

So, this wasn’t something I specifically ended up helping her with – which is awesome news because that means ANY student can go do this 🙂

(And I know from experience that there are a lot of students out there who struggle with this, hence this blog video).

 

So, here’s the I advice I gave Eliza, and what any student can do to get extra help with their researching and referencing:

Go see the school’s Teacher-Librarian.

In my experience, they are one of the most under-used ‘resources’ (people!) in schools.

In most cases they are a qualified teacher and qualified librarian who therefore just loves helping students find info whilst also having a knowledge of how assignments and assessments work.

Perfect Combo!

*spreading fingers of both hands and inter-locking them together*

 

What’s more, because they work in the library, chances are they spend most of their time, with books and a lot of jobs that involve managing new orders, organising and admin.

Which is all good, but isn’t necessarily using all their skills and experience.

Which meeeeeans that when an actual real student – and a keen student at that – comes up to them asking for their expertise and assistance in the things they absolutely love to talk about and teach and work on, then chances are they’ll go all out to help them!

In fact – don’t tell them I said this and don’t get your hopes up too much, but I’ve even seen it happen where the teacher-librarian almost sits and does it all for the student, because they got so into it all. Not that that’s a totally perfect situation of course, but the student I saw this happen to, did thankfully sit and watch and listen avidly, following along with them so they could definitely do it themselves again next time.

 

But anyway, my point is, these staff are skilled in the exact thing students are struggling with and can’t wait to share everything and help those who ask for it.

So be sure to have your teen give this a go next time they have to research for an assignment or inquiry, and let me know how it goes when the time comes 🙂

 

Yours,

Katie

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The Two Words I’ll Never Say Again (and why)

There’s been a TON of awesome stuff happening in the Exam Pop-Up Group I’ve been running over the past couple of months, but there’s also been something missing.

Two words that are super-common around exam time, but you won’t find me saying or writing anywhere.
It’s something I’ve found myself consciously avoiding saying or writing or typing more and more over the past year or so.
(You know, when something hits you and then kinda becomes a bit of a ‘thing’).

Here’s what it is, and most importantly WHY.

I’ve come to believe over the years, through both my work with students and in life in general, that we create our own luck.

So much so, that you won’t ever hear me say or see me write anywhere any more, the words:

“Good Luck!”.

It’s the most natural thing to say to someone as they go into an exam.
But I actively and consciously find alternative ways to send good wishes and positivity to students, and let them and their parents know that I’m thinking of them and sending them awesome vibes through the airwaves.

(Sometimes, that ain’t that easy! For someone like me who definitely isn’t a natural writer and doesn’t  just have a way with words!)

Here’s why…

Unless something comes down to the flip of a coin or roll of a die, then it’s never about ‘luck’.
It’s about the choices and decisions we make.

It’s about the actions we take.

It’s about the skills we choose to build, the ways we decide to work, and the strategies we choose to enact.

 

Let’s apply this to exams…

The questions on the exam paper will be pre-determined many weeks or even months previously to exam day.

They’ve been strategically written and selected and scrutinised.

It’s not about the ‘luck of the draw’ as to what Qs are on that exam paper as students open up that front page.

How well each student answers and responds to each question is dependent on their skills and abilities in:

  • dissecting the different elements of the question to understand what is required
  • how actively they revised and to what extent they prioritised the content the question’s covering
  • how skilled they are in constructing an effective and efficient response.

And each of those is a result of a series of conscious actions taken over the years, months, weeks and days leading up to that point.

In case you hadn’t already realised, I’m a big fan of being pro-active.

Of taking control of life’s situations (or doing my best to!) and not leaving things to chance.

Chance is ‘luck’ and ‘hoping’ and ‘wishing’.

I believe we can all take steps and actions to tip the odds (massively) in our favour.

 

Katie

P.S. I’d love to get your take on this! Let me know whether you ‘believe’ in luck or not in the comments!
And until next week, let’s MAKE this a fantastic week!
(See what I did there) 😉 

 

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How to come up with ideas (when you’re not naturally creative!)

If you didn’t already know…

I’m definitely *not* naturally creative.

I’m don’t like open-ended tasks.

But they come up often for students (and for me too in my first ever teaching interview!)

So, now I LOVE training non-creative students (like me!) to BECOME creative using the beauty of non-creative, hard and fast, checklists, steps and systems!

 

I’m not naturally great with open-ended tasks or any writing where you have to be imaginative.

(My husband always says I have zero-imagination! He’s quite into movies and I’m just like – well *that* wouldn’t happen).

So imagine my horror, when in my invitation to interview for my first ever teaching job I was asked to prepare to teach:

– a Geography lesson to a class of Year 9’s (no problem)

– that would be observed by the principle (bit nerve-wracking, but again, no problem –  this is what all teaching interviews involve back in the UK).

 

So. Teach a Y9 Geography lesson on the topic of…

ANY-thing!!!!

Whaaaatttt!!!!?!

 

I was like, come-on!

Please, give me something to go on!

 

Maybe they thought they were being kind, but for me, that was the worst possible type of lesson to plan.

I honestly would’ve preferred them to tell me to teach an interesting lesson about watching paint dry.

That would’ve felt like less of a challenge, because at least I’d have had somewhere to start with that. Some guidelines.

 

Because I like direction and instructions and steps.
(You’ve got that by now, right?!) 😉

 

And that’s why, over time, I’ve found ways to make the open >>>> structured.

The fuzzy >>>> clear.

And devised strategies to transform the downright confusing into steps, checklists and templates.
(Ahhhh. Those words are music to my ears)?

 

For a long time, this was just to help me get to grips with certain tasks or concepts myself.

But over time I’ve realised that it’s actually super-helpful to any teens whose brains work (even a little bit!) similarly to mine.

And here’s what I’ve found:

Often it’s best to start at the end and work backwards.

 

And for that, students need to start at the marking criteria and break down, in detail, exactly what the marker is going to be looking for in their work BEFORE they pick their topic or decide on their choice of – whatever options they can choose from!

 

Here’s an example:

If it’s a type of narrative, like a short story perhaps, then when students go through the mark scheme, they’ll realise that their marks and grades are less about the actual story or characters and more about their ability to use a variety of sophisticated literary devices, like imagery and symbolism for example.

So a setting or character that allows them to use plenty of those will be beneficial. Perhaps the story needs to involve some sort of theme or message that comes through and therefore they need to think about making that weave through the plot and/or characters.

 

And that brings us nicely then to the planning. They don’t want to be planning from the point of “hmmm, I wonder what’s going to happen in my story?”, but from the point of,

“OKAY – what sort of story will easily allow me to incorporate a variety of writing techniques like personification, metaphor, alliteration?”

“What sort of character would allow me to give some really interesting and detailed descriptions?”

“What sort of setting would I be able to adapt my writing to in terms of style and vocab?” – like using tech-y words for sci-fi, or lots of extravagant details for a romance.

 

And then they can start to consider what their story could be about.

Plus, now they also have a kind of checklist to work with.
Bonus! (Yay! A checklist!)

 

 

So really, it’s not about pondering on the main task,

like,

“Ooooh, what country should I investigate for my geography project?”

or

“Hmmm, what historical leader should I choose for my inquiry?”
or…

“What on EARTH should I write a story about?!”

 

Students need to figure out what needs to be in the finished product and then, asking themselves ‘What topic will give me the easiest AND most effective way to produce that?’

Or

‘What will give me the most and highest quality opportunities to convey those skills?’.

 

This is what I call the science behind creativity.

 

And it’s not *just* for students who aren’t particularly creative.

For those students who ARE the creative types, then it’ll provide them with that trusty checklist to see which of their wonderful and creative ideas is going to serve them best when it comes to the marking of their work.

#win-win

🙂

Let me know – is your teen naturally creative?

Have they ever struggled to come up with great ideas? (And if so, could this help them?).
I’d love your feedback! 🙂
Scroll down leave me a comment, give this post a ‘like’ or, just as useful – tell me what you didn’t like, or what else you’d like to hear about 🙂

Also, I’d really appreciate it (and so would they!) if you share this with anyone else who’d find it useful.

 

Until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!
Katie 🙂

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