Used in over 1,700 districts.

KAS ELA Standard: C.2.2.b

Introduce the topic.

Order to Chaos: Dominoes or Dam?

Order to Chaos: Dominoes or Dam?

Sometimes outside forces turn order into chaos. But sometimes chaos comes from within.

Order and Chaos Hide Inside Each Other

Order and Chaos Hide Inside Each Other

Chaos can contain order. Order can contain chaos! Is chaos ever truly random?

Chaos Can Be Positive or Negative

Chaos Can Be Positive or Negative

Sometimes we want order, but sometimes we need chaos!

Introducing Order and Chaos

Introducing Order and Chaos

Introduce Order by exploring “written” vs “unwritten” rules.

Power can be Visible or Invisible

Power can be Visible or Invisible

What are examples of unseen Power? And can invisible power be more powerful than visible power?

How to Reset Your Brain When You’re Flooded

How to Reset Your Brain When You’re Flooded

Allison Edwards explains how changing your senses can reset your brain.

What If… Unreliable Water?

What If… Unreliable Water?

What would the consequences be if a town’s tap water became… unreliable?

What If… Long Life?

What If… Long Life?

What would the consequences be if all people lived much, much longer?

Create A Civ: Capital City

Create A Civ: Capital City

Every great capital is part geography, part human design. Research real ones, then build your own from scratch.

Introducing Universal Theme of Conflict

Introducing Universal Theme of Conflict

So what could you do with a Universal Theme of Conflict? Well, here’s an introduction that will get your students’ brains sweating.

Introducing Universal Theme of Change

Introducing Universal Theme of Change

Everything changes. But how does it change? Students brainstorm dozens of examples and boil them down to one big idea.

Introducing Universal Theme of Power

Introducing Universal Theme of Power

So what could you do with a Universal Theme of Power? Well, here’s an introduction that will get your students’ brains sweating.

Drawing An Impossible Triangle

Drawing An Impossible Triangle

Here’s how you can draw The Penrose Triangle, an example of an impossible shape.

Horde Chess Variant

Horde Chess Variant

What if one player had, say, 32 pawns?

Ultimate (or Inception) Tic Tac Toe

Ultimate (or Inception) Tic Tac Toe

What if each square on a Tic-Tac-Toe board had another Tic-Tac-Toe board inside of it?

Cram

Cram

Try this a simple (but surprisingly strategic) grid-filling game!

Math Game: Heaps

Math Game: Heaps

Try this a simple (but surprisingly strategic) subtraction game!

Impostor Syndrome

Impostor Syndrome

How high-performing students can often feel like they aren’t really that great.

Change Leads to More Change

Change Leads to More Change

Can you think of a time in your life when “Change lead to more change?”

Generalization: Systems Are Made up of Other Systems

Generalization: Systems Are Made up of Other Systems

A clock is a system. So is a rainforest. So is your school. Once you see systems inside systems, you can’t unsee it.

SCAMPER: Scaffolding Creativity

SCAMPER: Scaffolding Creativity

Asking students to “think creatively” won’t get you far. They won’t know how to start, they’ll get stuck with simple ideas, or they’ll just go completely wild. SCAMPER is a tool for scaffolding the process of creativity.

Create A Civilization: A Change In Government

Create A Civilization: A Change In Government

It’s a great moment for your civilization! Power is moving from the hands of a few to a more democratic government.

Game: Order and Chaos

Game: Order and Chaos

Imagine Tic-Tac-Toe if both players could play as both Xs and Os!

Student Introductions with Complexity and Frames

Student Introductions with Complexity and Frames

How have you changed over time? Students introduce themselves through the lens of change — and learn a Depth and Complexity tool in the process.

Student Introductions With Depth and Frames

Student Introductions With Depth and Frames

Want to introduce the tools of Depth and Complexity and learn more about your students and introduce the Frame graphic organizer? Have I got the activity for you!

Col – A Strategy Game

Col – A Strategy Game

The first person to run out of regions loses in this strategy game.

The Thinking Hats

The Thinking Hats

So… do your students moan when forced to work in a group? Part of the problem is that lack the structure to work well with peers. Edward de Bono’s Thinking Hats are a perfect tool to help with this problem.

Improving Presentations 3: The Storyboard and Slides

Improving Presentations 3: The Storyboard and Slides

It’s time to turn that outline into a storyboard and then some actual slides.

Improving Presentations 2: Planning The Outline

Improving Presentations 2: Planning The Outline

After watching some great presenters, let’s outline your presentation!

Create A Civilization: From Hunter Gatherers to Farmers

Create A Civilization: From Hunter Gatherers to Farmers

What happens when your civilization suddenly has a surplus of food? Think of the possibilities!

Create A Civilization Introduction

Create A Civilization Introduction

Your students build a civilization from scratch — rivers, flags, calendars, currency, government. Social studies, science, and writing woven into one year-long project.

How to Play Go

How to Play Go

Ready to learn a 2,500-year-old Chinese board game? Let’s… Go!

Reduce Anxiety: Brain Plate (Tool 3)

Reduce Anxiety: Brain Plate (Tool 3)

When a student’s brain is full of worries, everything feels urgent. Brain Plate helps them sort what’s real from what’s noise — and actually do something about it.

Better Stories Part 1: The Big Idea

Better Stories Part 1: The Big Idea

We open our unit on narrative writing with a big idea: “structure increases creativity.” I show how this is true by bringing in examples from across all disciplines.