The postman

Why?

This energizer helps the students to cultivate their creativity in problem solving, as it forces them to use their imagination. This is crucial in the divergent phase as the student’s imagination is the catalyst for turning knowledge into ideas.

How?

Students should be grouped in pairs. Then ask them to take turns at delivering an imaginary parcel from the postman. The receiving student should create a clear picture in his or her mind of the object inside the parcel and describe it to their fellow student, before they switch places. The exercise continues for a few minutes.

Tips

Ask the students to sketch the objects that they imagine to be inside the parcel. During this exercise the fellow student needs to guess what the sketch represents. This exercise stimulates the students’ ability to think visually, which is an important competence in creative problem solving.

Literature

Seelig, T. (2012). Ingenius. Croydon, UK: Hay House.

Bager, T. (2011). The camp model2 for entrepreneurship teaching. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 7(2), 279-296.