Unit Eight Creativity

Part I Preparation

1. What is creativity?

creativity usually refers to man’s ability to cause something to exist or make something new or original. Then “being creative” has several meanings: one can think of things which other people can’t; one can deal with a problem with an original and simple method; one can do things in a way very different from that of common people. Not only scientists or inventors are creative but also the ordinary people. For example, man’s dream of flying has a very long history. In ancient times, people tried all kinds of mans to fly. Some of them equipped themselves with a pair of large wings, which looked like those of a real bird. Although these tries ended with failure, man still stuck to his ideal. Later, driven by this idea, the Wright brothers invented the first aeroplanes, which for the first time realized man’s old dream. From this example, we can say man’s first tries were creative, without these creative ideas, man would not have realized his dreams.

2. Creativity and Inventions.Directions: Discuss in groups the following list of inventions and

describe how they represent creative ways of doing everyday things. In your discussion, you might consider first the things they replaced.

1. Typewriter: Before the invention of a typewriter, people had to write by hand, which was slow and not so neat. Today, with this machine, people can raise the writing speed, and write more neatly.

2. Calculator: the invention of the calculator made it possible for us to discard the traditional abacus. With it, we can get a more accurate figure. It has made the complex calculations become easy and quick.

3. Lightbulb: the invention of the lightbulb signals the ending of people’s depending on sunlight and candles. It is much brighter than candles at night. It really helps people a lot.

4. Ballpoint pen: It helps people write more conveniently, and can last a longer time compared with pen and pencil.

5. Refrigerator: before the invention of the refrigerator, people were not able to keep food which went bad easily. Now, people can keep vegetables ad other foods fresh for a comparatively long period.

3. What is my line?Directions: The following drawings are composed of English letters which spell the names of the six occupations listed below. Look closely at the drawings and match them with their appropriate occupations.

actress waiter artist

butcher banker actor

Part II

Listening-centered activities

Listening I

Directions: Listen to the passage and fill in the following table.

Proceed, track, the finish line, wander, participant, proficient, original

Education in China Education in America

1. Education is considered as a race.

2. Students have to begin as early as possible and proceed as quickly as possible along the education track.

3. The Americans think students should have a chance to wander. By doing this some of them may have more to offer by the end of the race.

Advantage:

4. More students become proficient and reach the finish line.

Disadvantage:

5. They may have less to say or to show once they get there.

Disadvantage:

6. Many students never finish the race.

Advantage:

7. Students who reach the finish line may have very interesting and original things to say when they get there.

Exercise II.

Directions: listen to the passage again and discuss the following question.

Do you agree with what the passage says about Chinese education and American education? Why or why not?

Answer: Yes, I agree. In China, there are so many people taking part in the race, and it is not possible to allow students to follow their own paths. Everyone has to take the same examination, so they want the best preparation possible. The size of the population, the limited number of universities, and the examination system are the causes of the differences between American and Chinese educations.

Exercise I. Directions: listen to the passage and fill in the blanks. Many people mistakenly think that creativity is the ability to think

thoughts that no one else has ever thought. In fact, creativity is just a way of looking at the ordinary in a different way. Alex Osborn, one of the pioneers in the study of creativity and imagination, discovered that almost everyone is more creative than he thinks. E usually don’t recognize our good ideas as creativity in action. For example, in a large mid-western city a group of thieves had invented a very efficient system. They could go into a clothing store, take all the clothes away and be out of the store before the police arrived. Then a young man had an idea. He told stores to change the way they hung the clothes. He told them to place some hangers with the hook facing in and some with the hooks facing out. The next time the police arrived, they found the young thieves removing the clothes one at a time. everyday creativity is just looking at things from a new point of view.

Mistakenly, creativity, Alex Osborn, efficient, hanger, book

Exercise II.

Directions: Listen to the passage again and discuss the following questions.

1. What do you think of the young man’s solution?

It was simple and did not require any money. He made a clever observation: the thieves were able to grab many clothes at one because it was easy. So he thought of something that made it more difficult for them.

2. What do you think more conventional solutions would be?

Adding extra cameras; hiring more staff; hiring men to watch the store at night; putting bars on the doors and windows to prevent burglaries.

Part III

Reading-centered activities

In-class Reading

Cultural Background Knowledge

Before the 1960’s, the traditional teaching methodology laid an emphasis on teachers centered model of teaching. This meant in class, it was the teacher who was in an active position rather than the students. The students merely received knowledge passively. One of the drawbacks of this teaching method is that it prevents students form being creative. Since the 1960’s, in USA, Canada, Australia, people started a reform in the field of teaching. They integrated strategies into an educational system which helped children learn “by doing”, by “hand-on” class work and by special “projects”. These activities are called students-centered activities whose purpose is to let the students gain knowledge from their won observation. In this way, the students are more active in class than in the past. They show more interests in learning and a lot of creativity.

Vocabulary

automatically

adv. 1. self-actively; unconsciously.

e.g. When the teacher comes into the classroom, the students take out their books automatically.

2. (of a machine) worked by itself without human control; self-regulatingly.

e.g. The air-conditioner can regulate the temperature of the room automatically.

automatic a. automation n. automate v. automat n. automobile n.

boundary

n. 1. line that marks a limit; dividing line.

e.g. The fence marks the boundary between my land and hers.

2. (pl) limit or extent

e.g. Scientists continue to push back the boundaries of knowledge.

bound v. Boundless a.

creativity

n. The ability of inventing and developing new idea.

e.g. Parents can encourage children’s creativity by various means.

create v. Creative a. Creation n.

dismiss

v. 1. remove sb. (esp. an employee) from a position.

e.g. The workers were unfairly dismissed.

2. consider sb / sthg not worth thinking or talking about.

e.g. The court dismissed my case.

3. send sb away; allow sb to leave.

e.g. Dismiss the soldiers.

4. put (thoughts, feelings, etc.) out of one’s mind.

e.g. He tried without success to dismiss her memory from his thoughts.

dismissal n.

dismiss from

mask

n. Covering for the face, or part of it, worn as a disguise.

e.g. The bank was robbed by a man wearing a mask.

v. Cover the face with a mask.

e.g. The thief masked his face with a stocking.

Throw off one’s mask.

do sthg under the mask of friendship.

motivation

n. inspiration. e.g. They lack the motivation to study.

motivate v. motivated a. motiveless a.

put something in motion

practically

adv. 1. almost; nearly.

e.g. The hall was practically empty.

2. in a practical manner

e.g. The owner’s brother has practically controlled the firm for years.

Practice n. practical a. Practicable a.

in practice.

sacrifice

n. The giving up of something, usually in return for something more important or valuable.

e.g. Getting rich isn’t worth the sacrifice of your principles.

v. Give up sthg as a sacrifice.

e.g. the car’s designers have sacrificed comfort in order to sell it at a low price.

Sacred a.

Sacrifice sthg to ; sacrifice sthg for

scorn

v. Feel or show strong contempt for (sb/ sthg)

e.g. Some young people scorn traditional methods.

n. Strong contempt.

e.g. He has nothing but scorn for my ideas.

laugh sb/ sthg to scorn

vital

adj. 1. essential to the existence, success, or operation of sthg.

e.g. It is vital to keep an accurate record of every transaction.

2. connected with or essential to life

e.g. The heart performs a vital bodily function.

vitally ad. vitality n.

involve……in: make somebody take part in

e.g. Don’t involve me in solving our problems.

e.g. How many children are involved in preparing for the concert?

sacrifice……for

e.g. Many women sacrificed their careers for their family.

e.g. The boy’s parents sacrificed much rest time for his education.

Sacrifice to sb.

Sacrifice sthg to sb

Make a sacrifice of something to sb.

(be) up to…..

1. be the responsibility of sb.

e.g. It’s up to us to help those in need.

2. Decide by someone.

e.g. It’s not up to you to tell me how to do my job.

apply ……to

1. Put something into use.

e.g. We should apply theory to practice.

2. Be concentrated on doing something; be absorbed in doing sthg.

e.g. We must apply our minds to finding a solution.

3. Attach

e.g. Apply the glue to both surfaces.

be known as

e.g. He is known as a great artist.

be known to

be known for

be famous as

be famous to

be famous for

Difficult sentences

If Dick Drew had listened to his boss in 1925, we might not have a product that we now think of as practically essential: masking tape. (L. 3-4)

Think of ……as= regard……as

e.g. He is thought of as a successful businessman.

In fact, Dick Drew didn't listen to his boss who advised him to give up his new idea to invent a sticky-sided substance. At last, he succeeded. Now, we are using this substance everywhere.

如果当时迪克 .克鲁听了他老板的话 , 也许我们今天就不会有这种片刻难离的必需品 -------遮蔽胶带 .

Creativity is not something one is just born with, nor is it necessarily a characteristic of high intelligence. (L.16 -17)

When a sentence started with a word of negative meaning, the subject and the predict verb must be diverted.

e.g. Never have I been to Beijing.

e.g. I’m not a teacher, nor is my sister.

Nobody is born with creativity, it is not a characteristic of high intelligence, either.

具有创造力不是天生就有的 , 也不一定是高智商的标志 .

The result is that children can give back information but can’t recognize ways to apply it to new situations. (L. 22-23)

Give back: allow sb to have or enjoy something again.

e.g. The operation gave him back the use of his leg.

This result in children’s reuse of this information, but they are unable to learn ways to put this information to practical use.

这样做的结果是孩子们只会对信息知识再使用 ,但是却不会在新的形式下在应用它 .

Teachers feel that even if the answers seem silly, it’s OK, that sometimes being silly is an essential step towards creativity. (L32.-33)

Even if: even though

e.g. Even if you don’t like him, try to get along with him.

e.g. Even if we are defeated in this match, we should not lose our self-confidence.

Teachers think although the answers may seem to be silly, they will not laugh at or scorn these answers. Sometimes, that may be a good way to creativity.

老师们认为 ,即使答案是愚蠢的 ,那也无妨 ,有时可笑的事情正是通往创造力的第一步 .

In the classroom as well as at home, children must have the right to have crazy thoughts, experts say. (L. 33-34)

As well as: besides; in addition to

e.g. He as well as his brother tool part in the match.

e.g. The child is lively as well as clever.

Have the right to (do) something.

e.g. Children have to right to receive education/ to education.

Besides at home, children should also be allowed to have crazy ideas in the classroom, experts say.

在家与在教室一样 , 专家们认为孩子们有权拥有一些疯狂的想法 .

As children grow older, parents should let their children decide how to use their time or spend their money, but not automatically help them too much if they make the wrong decision. (L. 52-54)

When children become older, parents should let their children decide how to deal with their time or how to spend their money by themselves, when children decide wrongly, parents should not give them help immediately without careful thinking.

随着孩子逐渐长大 , 父母应该让孩子自己决定如何支配时间与金钱 ;当孩子们作出错误的决定时 , 也不要毫不思索的立即给予帮助 .

An Abstract of the Text

The text mainly tells us the importance of creativity during the course of children’s development, and school and parents can learn various methods to encourage the skill in children. Some schools don’t pay much attention to the development of children’s creativity, but some other schools have accepted the educators’ advice to encourage children to develop their creativity. When at home, children can be encouraged by their parents to do some things helpful to the skill.

After-class Reading A Long Match to Creativity

Cultural Background Knowledge

In western countries, such as the U.S.A, children are encouraged to do some things independently, which is considered a good way to develop their creativity. Sometimes even if children do something in a wrong way, parents don’t intervene immediately or directly tell them what to do. Instead, they encourage children to overcome difficulties by themselves. Unlike American parents, Chinese parents take too much care of their children, the result of which is that children are cultivated in such a dependent easy that they are unable to compete with others in society when they grow up. Chinese educators have realized this and they do call on Chinese parents to learn from foreign on children’s education.

Vocabulary

appoint

v. 1. fix or decide on sthg.

e.g. Appoint a date to meet/ for meeting.

2. choose sb for a job or position.

e.g. He was appointed as chairman.

3. to create sthg by choosing members.

e.g. Appoint a committee.

appointment n. Appointee n.

awkward

adj. 1. (of living thing) clumsy; leaving little skill.

e.g. The child was awkward with his knife and fork.

e.g. Some animals are awkward on land but able to move easily in the water.

2. (of objects, places) not well designed for use; (of circumstances, etc.) likely to cause inconvenience for difficulty.

e.g. This is an awkward corner, there have been several road accidents here.

awkwardly ad. awkwardness n.

encounter

vt. 1. meet (a friend, etc.) unexpectedly.

e.g. Yesterday, I encountered an old friend in the street.

2. find oneself faced by (danger, difficulties, etc.)

e.g. They encountered dangers in pursuit of the Antarctic exploration.

n. sudden or unexpected meeting.

e.g. I still remember my first encounter with Mary.

hesitation

n. Instance of hesitation; state of hesitating.

e.g. She agreed without the slight hesitation.

hesitate v. Hesitant adj.

intervene

v. 1. (of person) interfere so as to prevent sthg or change the result.

e.g. I feel I couldn’t intervene in a family dispute.

2. (of events, circumstances) come between (others) in time.

e.g. I shall leave on Sunday if nothing intervenes.

intervention

intervene in.

manual

adj. Of, done with the hand. e.g. manual labor

n. hand-book o textbook

e.g. A shorthand textbook.

e.g. Read this instruction manual carefully before operating this machine.

manufacture.

rear

v. Bring up; cause or help to grow.

e.g. He rears a large family.

n. Back part.

e.g. The kitchen is in the rear of the house.

withdraw

v. 1. pull or draw back; take out or away.

e.g. withdraw money from the bank.

2. to cause to move back or away.

e.g. They are prepared to withdraw troops from this area.

3. take back (a statement, accusation, an offer)

e.g. The chairman has withdrawn his statement.

withdrawal n. Withdrawn a.

withdraw sb/sthg from

for the sake of

I will help you for your sister’s sake.

He argues for the sake of arguing, only because he likes arguing.

not in the least

It doesn’t matter in the least.

I don’t understand in the least what the author is trying to say.

turn in

When you leave the army, you must turn in the equipment.

The thief was turned in by the man who caught him.

on occasion

He comes to visit me on occasion

on the occasion of : when

on the occasion of his daughter’s wedding, something unpleasant happened.

cultivation

n. 1. making (the mind, feelings, etc.) more educated and refined.

e.g. Cultivation of mind can bring a lot of happiness.

2. preparing or using (land, soil, etc) for growing crops.

e.g. This land has been under cultivation for many years.

cultivate.

be under cultivation.

desirable

adj. Worth having; to be wished for

e.g. It’s most desirable that they should both come.

desire n.

desirous a.

desire for/ to do sthg.

discern

v. See sthg clearly, esp. with an effort.

e.g. In the gloom I could only discern the outline of the building.

discernible a.

discernment n.

enhance

v. Increase the good qualities of sb/ sthg : make sb or sthg look better.

synonym : increase; improve; promote; add.

e.g. Her beauty was enhanced by make-up.

enhancement n.

enhance the reputation of sb.

enhance the position of sb.

primary

adj. 1. most important.

e.g. To cultivate children’s creativity is of primary importance.

2. of or for fundamental education.

e.g. My primary school life was very wonderful.

3. earliest in time or order of development.

e.g. The disease is till in its primary stage.

primarily adv.

primary color; primary education

principal

adj. chief; main; first in rank or importance.

e.g. the principal aim of the policy is to bring peace to the area.

n. 1. (title of the ) person with the highest authority in an organization, esp. in certain schools and colleges.

e.g. Can you tell me where the office of the principal is?

2. person directly responsible for a crime.

e.g. The principal was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment.

relevant

adj. Connected with what is being discussed, what is happening.

e.g. supply the facts relevant to the case.

relevance n.

be relevant to sthg/ sb.

stimulation

n. Making sb/ sthg more active or alert.

e.g. Lazy children need stimulation to make them industrious.

stimulate v.

stimulant n.

stimulating a.

stimulus n.

stimulate sb/ sthg to do sthg.

subsequent

adj. following; later

e.g. Subsequent events proved me wrong.

subsequent to

previous to

date back to

The church dates back to the 13th century.

The custom dates from the 17th century.

in the hope that

I called in the hope that I can find her at home.

proceed to

Having said how much she liked it, she then proceeded to criticize the way I’d done it.

Let’s proceed to next problem.

Difficult sentences

The key to our room was attached to a large plastic block with the room number pointed on it. (L. 4-5)

1. attach…… to

a. fasten or join sthg to sthg.

e.g. Attach a label to each piece of luggage.

b. connect sthg with sthg; attribute sthg to sthg.

e.g. Do you attach any importance to what he said?

2. with+ n + v-ing / v-ed / prep. Phrase

e.g. The little child stood there with an apple on his head.

e.g. Tom returned home after a full day’s play, with his dog running after him.

e.g. They feel very happy with the problem solved.

3. The key to our was tied on a large plastic block on which the number of our room was printed.

4. 我们的房间钥匙系在一个印有房间号的大塑料牌上 .

When leaving the hotel, a guest was encouraged to turn in the key, either by handing it to an attendant or by dropping it through a slot into a container. (L.5-7)

1. hand……to…: give ….to

e.g. please hand a glass of water to me.

2. Either……or

e.g. either you or I am wrong.

e.g. you can have either milk, orange juice or tea.

3. The hotel hoped all the guests would give back the keys to their rooms when they leave the hotel, the guests had tow choices, they could give the key to an attendant or drop it through a long narrow hole into a box.

4. 饭店希望客人在外出时将房间的钥匙交换 ,客人既可以交给服务员也可以通过窄孔投到盒子里 .

Because of his young age, lack of manual dexterity, and incomplete understanding of the need to orient the key “just so”, he would usually fail. (L. 12-13)

Orient v. direct sthg towards a particular direction.

e.g. The course was oriented towards foreign students.

direct the interest of sb to sthg.

e.g. Our firm is oriented towards the export side of business.

Because he was very young, his hands were not nimble, and he didn’t completely understand that in order to insert the key he must place it in a certain way for it to go right through the slot. He seldom succeeded in dropping it into the box.

由于本杰明年龄小 ,手不够灵活 ,也不太懂的必须先把钥匙对准细孔 ,所以他很少能把钥匙投进盒子里 .

He loved to band the key on the slot and probably got as mush pleasure out of the sounds it made, and the physical feelings it gave him, as he did those few times when the key actually found its way into the slot. (L. 14-16)

The child enjoyed striking the key on the slot and he felt happy and interested. When the key was inserted right through the slot into the box, he felt equally happy.

他喜欢将钥匙在细孔上敲打 , 或许他从敲打的声音以及自己所体会到的正是感觉中所获得到的乐趣 , 不次于钥匙在极少情况下真的进入窄孔时所体验到的乐趣 .

She would then simile somewhat expectedly at Ellen or me, as if awaiting a thank you-and on occasion, would frown slightly, as if to criticize us as parents. (L.25-27)

1. As if + v-ed.

e.g. The boy acts as if he were a grown-up.

2. As if + had + v-ed.

e.g. She talked about London as if she had been there.

3. As if + should/ would/ could/ might + v.

e.g. It seems as if it would rain.

4. The attendant or passer-by smiled slightly at us, hoping that we would say “thank you” to her, sometimes she looked at us as if we should be blamed as parents.

5. 然后 ,他带着期待的目光对我或艾伦笑笑 , 好像等待我们对她表示感谢 -----或者有时 ,会稍稍皱眉 ,好像在责备我们这些做父母的 .

Spend a good deal of time with a baby in China, we had plenty of opportunity to compare Benjamin with Chinese babies and to observe the relationship that generally occurs between adults and young children. (L. 34-36)

1. Compare ……with…: examine people or things to see how they are alike and how they are different.e.g. If you compare her work with yours, you will find hers much better.

2. Compare ….to …: show the likeness between sthg.e.g. Poets have compared sleep to death.

3. observe.1. see and notice. e.g. She likes observing the behaviors of birds.2. obey rules, laws, etc. e.g. Observe the law of land.3. celebrate. e.g. Do they observe Christmas Day in that country?

4. By staying with a baby for much time in China, we had many chances to find out the similarity and difference between Benjamin and Chinese babies, also we saw the relationship which usually existed between adults and young children.

5. 在中国 ,我们花了很多时间与婴儿在一起 ,有很多机会将本杰明与中国孩子进行比较 ,并观察到大人与孩子之间通常存在的那种关系 .

An abstract of the text(I)

This text mainly tells us the writer and his family’s experiences in China. During their stay in China, the writer found there was a great difference between Westerners and Chinese on the education of their children. Also the relationship between parents and Chinese on the education of their children. Also the relationship between parents and children varies greatly. Chinese people always give children some instructions according to their own wishes, they intervene in their children’s action, seldom encourage them to think over independently and creatively. The writer just wants to tell us people still have a long way to go to develop children’s creativity.

An Abstract of the Text (II)

The passage mainly illustrate the quite different attitudes towards children’s education of Chinese and American educators. The Chinese, when they cultivate their children, like to give them direct help, but Americans do in a very different way, what they value is the development of children's creativity. In their opinion, children should learn to solve problems by themselves, think independently. At the last part of the passage, the author introduces two approaches to educational issues------the “mimetic” and the “transformative”. According to the author, he is in favor of the latter one.