GATEWAYS

Recently, a group of selected SKiPPS students from Years 1 to 6 had the opportunity to take part in a GATEWAYS Ignite program, spending the day exploring writing, creativity and critical thinking. Students participated in two different programs, one designed for Years 1–3 and another for Years 4–6, with each group completing a half day writing workshop and a half day critical and creative thinking workshop.

During the writing sessions, students explored some of the techniques authors use to make their writing more engaging. They investigated different forms of figurative language and had lots of opportunities to experiment with these techniques by writing short examples of their own. Our younger students also explored some of the building blocks of stories and characters, including archetypes and the difference between round and flat characters. They drew on books and movies they already knew and loved to identify examples, before having a go at creating characters and short pieces of writing of their own.

The other half of the day focused on critical and creative thinking through art and problem solving. Years 1–3 students explored how artists can communicate feelings and ideas visually, creating their own sculptures to express an emotion. They looked at optical illusions and discussed how different people’s brains can interpret the same image in different ways. They also explored the picture storybook Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellis and had a go at creating their very own bug language. For our Years 4–6 students, the focus was on the idea that creativity doesn’t always require endless choices and resources. Through a series of challenges, they discovered that having limitations, boundaries and restricted materials can actually encourage us to think differently, experiment and come up with unexpected creative solutions.

One highlight was writing poetry with the unusual limitation of not being able to use words containing a selected vowel. You can imagine how deeply students had to delve into their vocabularies when trying to write a poem about the ocean without using the letter ‘a’, ruling out useful words such as water, sand and beach!

Students also explored the work and ideas of artists including Andy Goldsworthy, considering the different ways artists use materials, repetition, the environment and creative constraints to develop their work. Their GATEWAYS teacher, Layla, was particularly impressed by the students’ knowledge of famous artists, with many students recognising works by Henri Matisse and Yayoi Kusama and confidently sharing what they already knew about the artists and their work.

An important part of the day was also learning to be comfortable with challenge. The students who approached the workshops with curiosity, an open mind and a willingness to try something unfamiliar were able to get the most from the experience. Some activities were deliberately designed to push students beyond their first ideas or usual ways of thinking, and this wasn’t always easy! Those who were prepared to take creative risks, persist when an activity felt challenging and accept that their first attempt didn’t need to be perfect often produced some of the most interesting and inventive responses of the day.

It was a valuable reminder that creative and critical thinking isn’t only about what we already know or can do. It also involves the way we approach new experiences: being curious, giving things a go, listening to different perspectives and being willing to make mistakes along the way.

Thank you to all the families who registered their children and supported their participation in the day. We appreciate families making the financial commitment to provide their children with opportunities such as GATEWAYS, and hope the experience encouraged students to challenge themselves, take creative risks and discover some new ways of thinking and learning.

Thanks,

Chantel