First Survivor challenge of Term 4!

This week, we introduced a brainstorming twist called the Worst Idea Race, inspired by the 'Worst Possible Idea' method. This idea is completely counterintuitive: instead of asking students to come up with the best solution right away, we challenge them to think of the worst possibnle solutions first; ridiculous, impractical, bizarre ideas. The prompt was: 'How might we provide housing for every person in Aotearoa New Zealand'. Why do this? Because it lowers the pressure, removes the fear of being wrong, and helps kids relax into creative thinking. When kids suggest 'horrible' ideas like 'build houses out of jelly', they begin to expose assumptions about what a building must be, or how a problem should be solved. From those 'terrible' ideas, we explore the underlying logic (what makes this idea bad?) and then flip them, what if instead of jelly, we choose a flexible material that can self-repair and is sustainable to build? In doing this activity, the kids are practising critical thinking and creativity. We also see a lot of collaboration as Survivor teams build on each other's wild ideas, challenge one another and refine concepts together.