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*This lesson coincides with section 6, that’s not my area, from A Whack on the Side of the Head by Roger von Oech. [all page numbers referenced in the lesson are from this text]

Lesson written by: Tina Schilling and Mary Hunter

Grade level range: 4-12   

Length of time to teach lesson: 8 minutes+

Overview of lesson:  Students will understand the importance of being “led astray” to expand their knowledge and abilities. Understanding the importance of specialization and the effects of over specializing. Encourage the willingness to see great ideas around them and having the ability to build on others ideas.

Objective (Learning target) of this lesson:  Students will understand the benefit of specialization through creativity and taking basic ideas of one situation or experience and applying it to another.

Resources/supplies/handouts needed to teach this lesson: paper for making airplanes, Concept map / notetaker, activity: if these people went to lunch what can they learn from each other page 139

Step-by-step teaching instructions for the lesson:  

1)  Game: build a paper airplane. First by themselves, then, try assembly line each with a specialization (fold paper in middle, triangle flaps, wings)
2)  Time each what is faster? Think of other assembly lines. Why are they faster?
3)  Start with story “The Solar Cell” → have somebody else read it!
4)  What happened? “ recognizing the basic idea of one situation and applying it to another. Transferring knowledge from one area to another” That’s CREATIVE→ debrief
5)  Problem? → Specialization, specialization is managing information (it’s impossible to pay attention to everything)
6) Concept map / handout → applying to their own life
7)  Cross-Fertilization exercise p. 139