Dr. Stephen Brand, Executive Director of Global Learning and Development at Bay Path University, visited BCD last week to talk about his research on fostering creativity and innovation in children. Open to the community at large, this PA Speaker event attracted a diverse audience, including educators from area schools, parents from public and private schools, and parents who are home-schooling their kids. Dr. Brand shared insights from his many conversations with innovators from all walks of life into how parents and educators can provide experiences that spark innovative thinking in children. Some of the takeaways from Dr. Brand’s presentation include:
1) Immerse children in a wide range of experiences and environments that spark their imaginations.
2) Don’t define kids by their grades; many successful innovators struggled with grades in school.
3) Time spent outside of school is often more inspiring than time spent in school. Children will often take responsibility for their own learning when they are on their own time.
4) Follow a child’s lead. Support a child’s innate sense of curiosity and exploration.
To learn more about this fascinating topic, please check out Dr. Brand’s TED talk.
The Innovators Journey – https://youtu.be/fB1a7-Z7lAM
Some participant insights and questions from the evening include:
“Childhood moments inspire lifetime innovations.”
“Knowledge should be preparing kids to create for the future.”
“Kids need to feel uncomfortable, take risks!”
“[The] ability to see meaning in details can lead to innovation.”
“Innovators surround themselves with all kinds of books.”
“How do we help kids learn how to ask the right questions?”
The PA would like to thank Dr. Brand for sharing his insights with us, the many BCD parents and staff who organized this event, and the community members from BCD and around the Berkshires who participated in making this such an engaging and enlightening experience.
Natacha Dockery Livak and Andrea Gerber, PA Co-Chairs