Every student has creative potential. But most of them think creativity is a gift, not a skill.
Students often limit themselves by believing they’re “just not creative.”
The truth? Creativity a muscle – the more you use it, the stronger it gets.
Here’s how to help your students build their creative strength step by step…
Teaching Creativity In the Classroom
Do your students at a blank page, frozen by the fear of coming up with “bad ideas”? Or do they pick the first solution that comes to mind, avoiding the messy process of creative thinking? Or do they stay quiet during brainstorming, convinced they have nothing original to contribute? These reactions stem from the myth that creativity is a natural talent some people have and others don’t.
Research tells us something different – creativity is a skill that can be developed through practice and the right guidance.
The real challenge in teaching creativity is helping students:
- Move past their fear of judgment
- Build confidence in their creative abilities
- Learn techniques for generating fresh ideas
- Transform abstract concepts into practical solutions
Breaking Through Creative Blocks
The Solution Ideation exercise is a structured way of teaching creativity so students push past their creative comfort zones. Here’s why it works:
- It removes the pressure of finding “perfect” solutions by encouraging wild ideas first
- Students learn that quantity leads to quality – the more ideas they generate, the better their final solutions become
- The exercise creates a playful environment where unusual thinking is celebrated, not judged
- Working in groups helps students build on each other’s ideas and see creativity as a collaborative process
Best of all?
This approach to teaching creativity works for students across all creativity confidence levels.
Help Students Navigate The Creative Thinking Process
The Solution Ideation exercise takes students through four key phases. Before beginning, share these two rules for the exercise with your students:
Phase 1: Warm-Up (10 minutes)
- Students start with quick, low-stakes creative exercises
- They learn to suspend judgment and embrace unusual ideas
- The focus is on quantity over quality
Phase 2: Wild Ideas (15 minutes)
- Groups brainstorm solutions with specific constraints like “must be free” or “must be impossible”
- These limitations push thinking beyond obvious answers
- Students learn that “bad” ideas often lead to innovative solutions
Phase 3: Refinement (10 minutes)
- Teams select promising elements from their wild ideas
- They transform unrealistic solutions into practical ones
- Students learn to find value in seemingly unusable ideas
Phase 4: Action Plan (10 minutes)
- Groups develop concrete next steps for their best solutions
- They identify resources needed and potential obstacles
- The focus shifts from ideation to implementation
A Framework for Teaching Creativity
To get the most out of this exercise:
Set the Right Tone
- Create a judgment-free zone where all ideas are welcome
- Share examples of how “bad” ideas led to breakthrough innovations
- Celebrate unique thinking and unexpected connections
Guide the Process
- Keep groups moving through each phase
- Ask questions that push thinking in new directions
- Help students see patterns and possibilities in their ideas
Build on Success
- Document successful solutions to share with future classes
- Connect creative thinking to real-world innovation examples
- Help students apply these techniques to other challenges
Get the “Solution Ideation” Lesson Plan
We’ve created a detailed lesson plan for the “Solution Ideation” exercise to walk you, and your students, through the process, step-by-step.
It’s free for any/all entrepreneurship teachers, so you’re welcome to share it.
The 45-minute Solution Ideation exercise pushes students to generate ideas that are:
- Against current rules (questions existing limitations)
- Free (forces thinking beyond money-based solutions)
- Physically impossible (removes real-world constraints)
- Using only existing resources (sparks resourceful thinking)
- Involving unlikely partnerships (creates unexpected connections)
These constraints might seem limiting. But they actually free students to think more creatively.
By removing the pressure to be “realistic,” students access more innovative ideas that can then be adapted into practical solutions.
Ready to Build Creative Confidence?
Download the complete lesson plan and give your students the tools they need to think more creatively.
