1: Creativity and Creative Thinking

Synergy and Serendipity

Creative thinkers often discover connections between seemingly unrelated concepts. Their thought processes can be synergistic, merging existing ideas and experiences in new ways. They may also experience serendipity, making unexpected discoveries while searching for something else. Both processes can contribute to creativity.

While exploring with watercolor paints and large brushes, Xiao begins experimenting with how colors blend on wet paper. As he paints, he notices that yellow and blue mix to make green and deliberately overlaps different colors to see what happens. This is synergy in action. Xiao is combining his previous experiences with color and movement in new, self-directed ways, resulting in a unique and evolving process.

While 5-year-old Gabriela is painting with watercolors, a drop from her brush spills onto a crayon drawing she made earlier on the same page. She notices that the watercolor resists the crayon marks rather than covering them. Surprised, Gabriela starts drawing with crayons again, then brushes over the marks with watercolor to see what else might happen. This is serendipity: an unexpected discovery that leads to further exploration and wonder.

Imagine preparing a movement activity for young children. You have recently been learning about child development in one class and rhythm and music in another. While planning, you suddenly realize you can combine ideas from both areas. You create a movement experience in which children hop, spin, and dance in time with music, supporting both gross motor development and rhythmic awareness. This is creative synergy. You are merging knowledge from different areas of your studies to create a richer, more meaningful experience for children. What began as two separate areas of learning, one focused on motor skills and the other on music, becomes something new when combined with intention and insight.

Great Thinkers who Taught us how to THINK!

“The creative mind breaks new ground. But the truly creative individual is the one whose innovations are accepted and adopted by others.”— Gardner, H. (2007).

Harvard researcher Howard Gardner (1943–2024) explores creativity through the lives of seven influential figures in his book Creating Minds (Gardner, 2011). He describes creative individuals as those who regularly solve problems, create products, or pose new questions within a domain that are initially considered novel but eventually become accepted as standard practice. For example, when Sigmund Freud first presented his concept of the subconscious mind to colleagues, he was ridiculed for suggesting that an immeasurable force (the subconscious mind) influenced human behavior. Today, however, most people readily accept the once-unimaginable idea that subconscious processes guide or repress many of our thoughts and actions.

Gardner argues that genuine creativity must contribute something of value to society. In his later book Five Minds for the Future (Gardner, 2007), he expands on this idea by emphasizing that creativity should serve a constructive purpose, particularly by helping humanity adapt to new challenges and an ever-changing world.

“Creativity is the production of novel and appropriate ideas in any realm of human activity.”  Teresa Amabile, 1996 

In her book, Creativity in Context (1996), Dr. Teresa Amabile, a leading contemporary theorist who speaks prolifically on creative development as it relates to education and childhood, says, “Creativity is the production of novel and appropriate ideas in any realm of human activity.”  She states that creative ideas must be both new and valuable in their context, not just original for the sake of originality, and provides guidance on how to nurture creativity through intrinsic motivation, autonomy, and rich environments, which are all key components in Early Childhood Education. 

“Most of the things that are interesting, important, and human are the results of creativity” - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Creativity: The Psychology of Discovery and Invention, 1997).

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: Creativity, Flow, and Human Potential

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1934-2021) (pronounced cheek-sent-me-high) challenged the popular belief that creativity appears as a sudden flash of inspiration. Instead, he argued that creativity usually develops through years of curiosity, hard work, and deep involvement in a particular field, such as science, literature, music, art, or architecture (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997).

Csikszentmihalyi also reminded us that humans share approximately 98% of our genes with chimpanzees. What makes us unique is our extraordinary capacity for creativity. Humans can invent new technologies, create works of art, compose music, write stories, develop scientific theories, and imagine solutions to problems that have never been solved before. Creativity allows each generation to build upon the discoveries of those who came before, shaping cultures and advancing civilization.

However, Csikszentmihalyi believed that creativity is more than simply having a good idea. One of his most important contributions was his Systems Model of Creativity, which explains that creativity does not exist only inside an individual. Instead, it emerges through the interaction of three parts:

Example 1.1  Csikszentmihalyi's Systems Model 

Image created by Donna King using OpenAI's ChatGPT (June 2026).

• The individual, who develops a novel idea.
• The domain, the body of knowledge to which the idea belongs (such as mathematics, music, engineering, or art).
• The field, the community of experts who determine whether the contribution is valuable enough to become part of the domain.

In other words, creativity is both personal and social. A new idea becomes truly creative when it is recognized as valuable by others within that field. Most psychologists therefore define creativity as producing something that is both novel and valuable, whether it is useful, beautiful, meaningful, or all three.

Csikszentmihalyi is perhaps best known for his research on flow, a psychological state in which people become completely absorbed in an activity. During flow, individuals are so engaged that they often lose track of time because the activity itself is deeply satisfying. Artists, musicians, scientists, athletes, writers, and even young children can experience flow when the challenge of a task matches their abilities.

Early childhood educators frequently witness flow during children's play. A child who spends twenty minutes constructing an elaborate block tower, becomes completely immersed in finger painting, or enthusiastically invents a pretend world is experiencing the kind of focused engagement that supports learning and creativity. Rather than interrupting these moments, skilled teachers recognize their value and protect uninterrupted time for children to explore, experiment, and discover.

Although young children are not expected to create world-changing inventions or masterpieces, they are developing the habits of mind that make creativity possible later in life. Every time children ask questions, solve problems, invent games, tell stories, test ideas, or imagine new possibilities, they are strengthening the thinking processes that underlie future creative achievement.

Researchers sometimes distinguish between "little-c" creativity and "Big-C" creativity. Little-c creativity refers to the everyday creativity we all use to solve problems, invent games, tell stories, or discover new ways of doing things. Big-C creativity refers to groundbreaking contributions that transform a field or society, such as a scientific breakthrough, an influential work of art, or a revolutionary invention. Early childhood education focuses on nurturing little-c creativity because these everyday experiences provide the foundation upon which later innovation can grow.

For early childhood educators, Csikszentmihalyi's message is both encouraging and practical. Children do not need to produce extraordinary works to be considered creative. Through play, exploration, experimentation, and sustained engagement, they are practicing the very processes that support creativity throughout life. Today's imaginative block structure, invented game, or original story may not change the world, but it is helping build the creative thinking that just might someday.

J.P. Guilford (1897–1987)

Regarding divergent thinking, J.P. Guilford was a notable figure in the field of creativity studies. He believed that divergent thinking is key to being creative.

In 1950, Guilford addressed the American Psychological Association and urged educators and psychologists to take creativity seriously. He presented a model called the Structure of Intellect, which explained two types of thinking: convergent thinking, which focuses on finding a single correct answer, such as in math problems, and divergent thinking, which involves generating multiple possible answers or ideas. For example, one of these creativity test questions was, “What can you do with a paperclip, besides the obvious?”

Guilford argued that young children are naturally good at divergent thinking, but traditional schooling often limits this ability. He identified four crucial parts of divergent thinking:

1. Fluency – the number of ideas a person can generate.
2. Flexibility – the variety of ideas produced.
3. Originality – the uniqueness of the ideas.
4. Elaboration – adding richness and detail to the ideas.

Together, these parts show how complex creativity is—something Guilford wanted us to understand better. (Guilford, 1950)

Another notable figure in the field of creativity was E. Paul Torrance (1915- 2003). Torrance gave us a measurable way to see what it looks like. He believed that we can nurture, support, and measure creativity. In the 1960s, he developed the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT), which are still in use today. (Torrance, 1974)

He defined creativity as a process of becoming sensitive to problems, deficiencies, gaps in knowledge, missing elements, disharmonies, and so on; identifying the difficulty; searching for solutions; making guesses or formulating hypotheses about the deficiencies; testing and retesting these hypotheses and possibly modifying and retesting them; and finally communicating the results.

Torrance emphasized the importance of divergent thinking for children. He saw it as key to solving problems creatively. He observed that young children naturally show original thoughts, but standardized schooling often limits their responses as they grow. To help maintain their creativity, Torrance encouraged creative education, including storytelling, imaginative play, and open-ended questions.

His work also suggests that creating an emotionally and psychologically safe environment and offering encouragement is essential for children to express their creativity. (Torrance, 1962)

Lateral Thinking

Lateral thinking refers to solving problems by approaching them in new or unexpected ways. In early childhood, this often appears naturally in play: a child may turn a sock into a puppet or use a hairbrush as a pretend microphone. In adulthood, the same kind of thinking is often described as “thinking outside the box,” meaning stepping beyond familiar or conventional approaches to find creative solutions. This idea was developed by Edward de Bono, who argued that creativity is not an innate talent limited to a few people, but a skill that can be taught and strengthened, even in young children. He described lateral thinking as a way of solving problems by shifting perspective rather than following a single logical sequence. Unlike vertical or logical thinking, which proceeds step-by-step in a linear direction, lateral thinking explores possibilities, often leading to unexpected insights.

De Bono believed that children are especially strong in lateral thinking because they have not yet been shaped by rigid rules of conventional reasoning. They tend to experiment freely, play with ideas, and explore multiple possibilities without worrying about correctness. As he noted, “Children are excellent at lateral thinking because they haven't yet been trained to think in straight lines” (de Bono, 1970).

You can nurture this capacity in children by using structured approaches to teaching thinking skills, including de Bono's CoRT Thinking Program and the Six Thinking Hats method. While these tools are often used with older students, simplified versions can be adapted for early childhood settings. His goal was to help learners practice shifting perspectives, questioning assumptions, and generating multiple alternatives when faced with a problem (de Bono, 1991).

In our classrooms, de Bono encourages us to intentionally support lateral thinking through everyday interactions. This includes asking open-ended questions such as “What else could this be?” and using imaginative play or role-play to explore different viewpoints. He also emphasized valuing unusual or unexpected ideas, even when they seem impractical at first. Finally, he highlighted the importance of “thinking about thinking,” or metacognition, introduced in developmentally appropriate ways so that young children can begin to notice and reflect on their own thinking processes (de Bono, 1992).

Creativity as a Process

Regardless of age, art and creativity begin as a process.  Few have picked up a paintbrush, handled a mound of clay, written a majestic poem, or created a work of fiction without first engaging in some process.  Process, as used in this sense, refers to all the sensory exploration that occurs before one becomes familiar with a medium, such as clay, paint, or dance.  We must first come to know what this “stuff” can do, so we play.    Here’s an example:

3-year-old Kobe is at his new preschool for the first week, and today he has shown interest in the easel situated near the front door of the room.  He first looks at the colored paint made available on the easel tray, then tentatively plucks up a paintbrush thick with orange paint.  He adds a little blob of color to the paper and notices the drips of color running down the page.  He then uses his fingers to catch the drips and seems surprised at the resulting color left on his hand.  He looks toward his teacher, who is setting up an art table covered in collage items (sequins, tissue squares, and flower petals).  He seems to be expecting disapproval, but instead he hears an encouraging:  “Kobe, I see that you are exploring the orange paint.  What does it feel like on your fingers?”  You see, Kobe needs to find out what the paint is all about, capable of and what his impact on it can be before making thoughtful decisions about what to do with it next. 

Young children need many opportunities to explore and engage in process learning before progressing to more representational stages (as you will see in chapter two).

Contrast the child’s process of discovery with a common practice among well-meaning teachers: Product orientation.  In this case, a teacher has an idea of what the final product will be and lets the children know this by providing a model for them to copy.  In your early years, you may have a memory of such a teacher who asked you to complete an “art project” or “craft” by following directions to complete a finished product.  If so, how did that contribute to your creative development?

The term “craft” is not used much in early childhood settings because it connotes a vision of skipping the process and going directly to predetermined outcomes that have little to do with how young children interact with creative materials.

Creativity as an Attitude

For young children, viewing creativity as a way of identifying and solving problems may be helpful. Creativity is a different way of viewing the world, with no right or wrong answers, only possibilities. Think of creativity as an attitude rather than an aptitude. Children demonstrate a creative attitude when experimenting with new ideas and diverse problem-solving approaches.  They challenge boundaries and explore new possibilities by manipulating and reshaping concepts and materials. Children with a creative attitude may take apart and reassemble objects in innovative ways.  If you want to cultivate a childlike, creative attitude, allow yourself to imagine and daydream as you solve problems or figure things out. Do not hesitate to ask questions and challenge conventional thinking and acting. There is a refreshing quality to the thinking of these children—a kind of unstoppable thirst for doing, knowing, and creating.

Creativity as a Skill

Although all children are creative, the potential to create remains dormant without practice. With practice, the potential to create becomes a reality. For example, the skill of playing tennis is quickly lost without practice. The skill of creativity also requires exercise to grow. Without practice, the ability to write, make music, sing, dance, and paint would be lost. Creativity as a potential and a skill requires exercise. Sternberg and Lubart (1995) believe that creativity, like intelligence, is something that everyone possesses in some amount. Moreover, creativity is not a fixed attribute.

It is something almost anyone can develop to varying degrees. In discussions of creativity, many adults will often state, "I'm just not creative." Everyone knows someone creative, but not everyone believes they are creative. Still, all people exhibit some degree of creativity, whether in writing, sewing, cooking, crafting, decorating, or even teaching. It is crucial to find a creative outlet and practice the skills involved.

Still, why do some adults feel themselves uncreative when, by contrast, young children are considered highly creative? What has happened between early childhood and adulthood? Research suggests that children reach a peak of creative functioning during the early childhood years. Torrance (1965) plots the degree of creative functioning versus age. Creativity often peaks during the fourth year of life and then declines sharply upon entering elementary school. In only a few adults do levels of creativity ever return to what they were in early childhood. The push for conformity and academics in elementary school explains this drop. Yet it’s not inevitable. Environmental conditions and practice can keep creativity alive.

Creativity as a Set of Personality Traits

The personality approach identifies the personality profile of highly creative individuals. Researchers have identified personality traits that highly creative individuals commonly share. Many of them are open to the new and unexpected, and they embrace change. These individuals tend to have a high tolerance for ambiguity, allowing them to navigate uncertain situations easily. They are usually willing to experiment and take risks, which fosters creativity and innovation in their pursuits. This willingness is often accompanied by a sense of impulsivity and an innate curiosity that drives them to explore the unknown.

They prefer complexity, often finding beauty in intricate details and multifaceted challenges. Their highly intuitive and sensitive nature allows them to connect deeply with their surroundings and the experiences they encounter. Flexibility is another hallmark of such individuals; they can adapt to new situations with grace and ease.

Individualism, independence, and introversion often define their character, as they value their unique perspectives and the freedom to pursue their interests. A tendency towards nonconformity is noticeable, as societal norms do not easily sway them. Playfulness and a sense of humor often enrich their interactions, allowing them to maintain a light-hearted approach to life. Ultimately, they possess a heightened sensory awareness, which sharpens their perception of the world around them (Gelineau, 2004).

Creativity as a Set of Environmental Conditions

If creativity is an inherent potential, there must be conditions or experiences that enhance or hamper its development. Environmental conditions include people, places, objects, and experiences. Children do not create out of a vacuum. Children need rich experiences to create meaning. Their imagination is fueled by what they see, hear, and feel in the world around them. Just as gardeners need seeds and musicians need instruments, children need experiences to shape their ideas and creativity. They build stories from the world we offer them.

For example, a child who has never visited an airport or been aboard a plane will have difficulty incorporating these concepts into play, movement, art, and other creative activities. By contrast, a child who has visited an airport and flown on a plane will be able to use them as pivots for creative expression. The greater one's background of experiences with people, places, and objects, the greater the range of possibilities to draw from in creative activity. Children's creative acts will incorporate what was previously learned and experienced, as well as new ways of expressing those experiences (Matlock & Hornstein, 2004).