Creative Citizenship Response

Different ideas exist of what it means to be creative or to think creatively. However,

students are most often primed to think logically and analytically, following a more objective

approach to writing. And so, when asked to be creative, it is difficult to grasp what is and isn't

creative. Although creativity cannot be taught, different realms in which creativity is expressed

can be.

This was precisely our goal when we visited Starpoint Elementary School on the morning

of November 13th. Students at Starpoint have a variety of learning differences and/or attention

deficits that change their rate of development as compared to their mainstream peers. For this

reason, students are put into groups based on their specific needs rather than general grades; this

ensures that children work within learning peer groups, making them feel included, and

supported.

At Starpoint, we worked with a 4th level class during their Arts and Crafts block. We

developed an activity where we would say a phrase, like TCU, Christmas, etc., and the students

would draw whatever came to mind. The simplicity of this project assured that every student

would be able to participate at their own rate. The students loved drawing, so it was easy to get

their attention and to provide instructions.

“Draw what you think of when you hear the word Christmas.” Upon hearing the word,

there was this “aha” moment, where they remembered a particular person, place, thing, or

experience that correlated with the word. The kids had to use their creativity to portray their

thoughts on paper. Their work showcased how they could each be creative and how the same

word could evoke so many different things. The drawings, symbols, and colors used were

drastically different from student to student, especially, when across gender.

 The biggest challenge of this activity was controlling the extent we let creativity flourish.

Although we used words and phrases with common symbolic references, I found that students

were drawing all sorts of things. For example, my group asked the students to draw what they

thought of when they heard, TCU. I was expecting children to draw the logo, a frog, a football,

or quite frankly anything representative of TCU. However, their creativity got the best of them as

they decided to draw pictures of the Ol’ South Pancake House, University of Texas, and other

things unrelated to TCU. At first, I was frustrated that they were not drawing the correct

symbols. However, I realized that this was the exact point of the activity. The drawings weren't

meant to be looked at as correct or incorrect, but merely a representation of their imagination. I

found that the biggest challenge of this activity was, therefore, my own limitations on

expression.

Because of this, I came to realize how important the creative process is, especially to

precocious children. Creativity in all of its forms is how they can relate to their world without the

limitations or judgments of language. While I watched the children draw what came to their

mind when they heard the word family, I saw a variety of pictures. One kid ascribed fortnight to

family, because that is what he and his brothers play every day after school. Another child

decided to draw their house and their family standing outside of it. One girl drew her family

holding hands, while another girl drew her family apart from each other. After drawing their

families, the students shared their pictures. They laughed and smiled. Full self-expression, vis-à-

vis the creativity, is something that can build a community from a dynamic group of people as

with the student body here at TCU.

Although I had not visited Starpoint before this project, I had a general idea of what to

expect from having tutored children ages 6-12 three times a week in high school. However, my
experience at Starpoint was vastly different. Rather than helping the children understand math or

another subject, I was actually teaching them ways to process and relay information.

One statement that evoked an interesting response was when we asked the children to

draw what they thought of when they heard the color red. The students had done several

drawings by now, so we strategically placed this phrase at the end. With other topics, they had

their pen to paper within five seconds, but upon hearing the color red, students froze like a deer

in headlights. Some reached for the color red, but we told them that when drawing the color red,

you don’t necessarily have to use the red crayon itself. This concept was hard for them to grasp

at first, but eventually, students came up with a variety of drawings that were both creative and

personal. I saw black colored roses, blue colored hearts, and yellow colored fire trucks. I was in

awe of the students’ ability to think beyond the literal terms of the color red.

Throughout the activity, while the children quarreled over crayon colors and drew, I got

the privilege of getting to know Julie Hulce. Julie was their teacher. She has a daughter of her

own, who years ago went through Starpoint as well, and has now gone on to study writing at

TCU. I found that this is not uncommon. The connection students at Starpoint have to TCU, and

the Fort Worth community as a whole is extraordinary. Our community is the backbone of

Starpoints, without our support they would not have the ability to function as an educational

system. Volunteers from TCU fill the roles of P.E. teachers, storytellers, and a variety of other

parts. The connection between those students and the volunteers far exceed surface level.

Through talking with Julie and working with her class, I found that those kids expect just as

much from us, as we do from them.