Pat Mora - Zing! Seven Creativity Practices for Educators and Students

zing!

seven Creativity Practices for Educators and Students

To the authors whose books have taught and delighted me through the years and to the bold, creative educators who inspire me by their commitment to the underserved

zing!

seven Creativity Practices for Educators and Students PAT MORA

Copyright 2010 by Pat Mora

All rights reserved. When forms and sample documents are included, their use is authorized only by educators, local school sites, and/or noncommercial or nonprofit entities that have purchased the book. Except for that usage, no part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mora, Pat.
Zing! : seven creativity practices for educators and students / Pat Mora.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-1-4129-7839-2 (pbk.)
1. Creative teaching. 2. Creative ability. 3. Motivation in education. I. Title.

LB1025.3.M663 2010
371.102dc22 2009053744

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

10 11 12 13 14 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

1. Value Your Creative Self
Value Each Students Creative Talents

2. Enjoy Quiet
Create Quiet Spaces for Students

3. Gather Your Materials
Motivate Students to Gather Their Materials

4. Begin Your Project
Assist Students to Begin Their Projects

5. Revise
Support Students in Their Revision

6. Share Your Creations
Create Sharing Opportunities for Students

7. Steadily Persist in Your Creative Work
Motivate Students to Persevere

M y sincere thanks to my editor Dan Alpert; to production editor Amy Schroller and the staff at Corwin; to the manuscript reviewers; to my agent Elizabeth Harding and her colleague Anna Webman; to Deborah Chasman, who suggested such a book years ago; and to Ellen McIntyre, who believed in the concept. I also wish to express my gratitude to my friends Father Murray Bodo, Kay and Dan Moore, Elizabeth Mills, Carolyn Trela, and Joseph Rodriquez for their love and support; to the inspiring teachers and librarians I mention in these letters; and to all educators who have taught and teach me through their dedicated example. A special thanks to Patricia Armendariz and to Sylvia Vardell for their faith, friendship, and quick willingness to make suggestions on the manuscript and to Linda Weston for her steady, cheerful assistance. I also am indebted to three past fellowships: a National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Fellowship, a Kellogg National Leadership Fellowship, and a Civitella Ranieri Fellowship. A special thanks to the staff who administers these gifts.

Thank-you hugs to my children, Bill, Libby, and Cissy; to my supportive family, especially my sister Stella Mora Henry; and my husband, Vern Scarborough.

Finally, deep thanks to the Spirit who unites us all.

Pat Mora, a popular presenter across the country at conferences, campuses, libraries, and schools, speaks and offers workshops on literacy, creativity, leadership, the writing process, and serving diverse populations. Sharing Bookjoy: Creative Literacy Leaders and ZING! Seven Creativity Practices for Educators and Students are among her more popular themes.

The author of award-winning books of nonfiction and poetry for adults and of many childrens books, Pat received honorary doctorates in letters from North Carolina State University and SUNY Buffalo and is an honorary member of the American Library Association. Among her other awards are the 2006 National Hispanic Cultural Center Literary Award, a Civitella Ranieri Fellowship, a Visiting Carruthers Chair at the University of New Mexico, a Poetry Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, and a Kellogg National Leadership Fellowship.

A former teacher, university administrator, and consultant, Pat is the founder of the family literacy initiative El da de los nios/El da de los libros, Childrens Day/Book Day (known as Da), now housed at the American Library Association. The yearlong commitment to linking all children to books, languages, and cultures and of sharing what Pat calls bookjoy culminates in national celebrations in April.

The mother of three adult children, Pat lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. For further information, visit www.patmora.com.

W arm greetings! Im writing you from my home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and am looking out at the pion-and-juniper-covered hills. How I wish you were here and that we were chatting face-to-face. Because good educators are creative, adept at the art of teaching, its not surprising that some of you confide your interest in writing, painting, or photography. You ask about how I began writing. Whats my process?

Your questions prompted me to think and now to write about my life and habits as a writer, speaker, educator, and advocate, to write about the zing of creating. Zing? Ive long loved the sound and energy of this word that sings, which means zest, vitality, energy. In these letters to you, I want to share some stories and strategies and to propose seven practices Ive learned that can assist us to develop our personal creativity and professional inventiveness. The letter about each practice is followed by a companion letter on nurturing the same habit in our students, suggestions for imaginative teaching.

During my school years, I grumbled about book reports, tests, and writing assignments (about memorizing prepositions and diagramming compound-complex sentences!), but early in life, I discovered