Practice Problems for Creative Problem Solving

Grades 3-8

Donald J. Treffinger

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• eBook ISBN: 9781000495249
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education Theory & Practice

This book includes 50 situations that present interesting opportunities and challenges to stimulate students' creative and critical thinking. The brief, practical, everyday situations provide motivating starting points for practicing Creative Problem Solving with groups of many ages.

These problems were designed to represent a variety of different tasks or challenges in an open-ended, invitational format that we describe informally as a "Messy Situation." These Messy Situations, like many of life's everyday opportunities and challenges, take a variety of forms, sizes, and shapes. They might concern a variety of situations in which people find themselves day in and day out. Thus, some of the Messy Situations in this book are people tasks (that is, situations involving the interactions or relationships among people). Others are planning tasks (that is, concerning more effective ways of organizing or managing a situation), and yet others are product tasks (that is, challenges that call for designing, inventing, or producing a new product of some kind).

Each of these one-page problems can help students learn and apply CPS components, stages, and tools in an engaging and enjoyable way. Choose the problems that are best suited to your group's interests and needs. The challenges in Practice Problems for Creative Problem Solving and several helpful worksheets are reproducible for classroom use.

Grades 3-8

SECTION III:
THE CPS PRACTICE PROBLEMS

DOI: 10.4324/9781003237211-3

The CPS practice problems included in this book are:

• Always Starting
• Baby-Sitting Brats
• Bored
• Bowling
• Broken Eggs
• Bus Ride
• Business Sense
• But I Didn’t
• Chew Stop
• Chores
• Food, Food, Food
• Fort
• Gone Fishing
• Gourmet
• Hockey Sticks
• Homesick
• Homework Helper
• Jars
• Keep It Cool
• Leaves
• Messy Lockers
• A MONOPOLY®
• More $$$
• New Bike
• New Club
• New Games
• New Holidays
• Nursery Rhymes
• Old Toys
• Paint
• Paper
• Party!
• Pet Exerciser
• Playground
• The Popular Vote
• Privacy!
• Responsible
• Sitcom
• Sleepy
• Smoke Out
• Snow
• Something Special
• Super Popular Toy
• Time Conflict
• TV Executive
• Twins
• Uniquely You
• We’re Musical!
• Will It Fly?
• The Winner

ALWAYS STARTING

Messy Situation

Many people, young and old, have sometimes had a problem finishing a project they have started. Some people have more trouble finishing things than others. It is common for these people to begin many projects, but to finish none or only a few of them. Do you know anyone like this?

Your challenge is to plan a rehabilitation course (a helpful plan or program) that will turn these “starters” into “finishers.”

What kinds of incentives or rewards would help them finish projects?

What type of organization or structure would help them finish?

Can you create any practice exercises or activities that would help them become better finishers?

Find out all you can about “starters” and plan a program that will turn a “starter” into a “finisher.” A person would be considered a “starter” if he or she finishes less than half of the projects started. People would be considered “finishers” if at least 75% of their projects are finished within a reasonable time.

(Don’t forget to consider how you will determine whether or not your program or plan is successful.)

BABY-SITTING BRATS

Messy Situation

You have just started baby-sitting this month. It seemed like a good idea because you need more spending money of your own, and you live in a neighborhood where there are lots of children, so there are plenty of baby-sitting opportunities.

The place where you are supposed to work tonight is a five-minute walk from your home. The parents of the children go out quite often, so you know they could really become good customers for you. There are three children in the family: a girl 7 years old and twin boys who are 4 years old. You know the children are supposed to be in bed by 8 p.m., and the parents said they will give you the phone number and address where they can be reached in case of an emergency. However, you’ve already heard from several of your friends that these children are very difficult to handle. Throughout the neighborhood, they have the reputation of being real brats.

One of your friends told you about some really terrible experiences with these children: They kicked, yelled, screamed, and refused to go to bed when they were supposed to. They held on to chairs and other pieces of furniture when your friend tried to carry them and really made a mess of the house. The boys ran around the house, screaming and knocking into furniture, and their sister told her parents, untruthfully, that your friend hit the boys and caused the bruises that they got by running into things.

You want to take the job because you really need the money. Since these people go out often, they pay top rates. But, you’re certainly worried and nervous about the terrible time these children might give you. You want to do a good job so you will make a good impression and have them call you again.

What might you do about this Mess?

BORED

Messy Situation

Each year you look forward to your summer vacation. You plan good times with your friends, with lots of time for sports and hobbies, time to swim and lie on the beach, and just have a great time without thinking about schoolwork at all for the whole summer.

The trouble is: it’s now just two weeks since summer vacation started, and you have already seen all your friends, played all those great summer sports, swam, and basked in the sun on the beach, and run out of ideas for new hobbies.

As happens each year at this time, you are already totally bored with summer fun. You have done all the things that you planned to do, and it wasn’t nearly as wonderful as you imagined. You’ve completely run out of ideas for things to do.

You don’t know why this happens every year, but it does, regardless of your plans and enthusiasm before vacation begins. Once you have been to the beach, or played softball or volleyball a few dozen times, they just don’t seem to be much fun anymore. What might be done about this Mess? There are eight more weeks of vacation left, and you don’t want to spend them being bored.

Develop a plan to deal with summer boredom. You might consider ways to prevent this problem from happening, or new and interesting ways to deal with it when it does happen.

BOWLING

Messy Situation

You enjoy going bowling on Saturdays with your friends. You belong to a team, and you’re one of the better bowlers on it. It took a lot of practice for you to learn this sport, and you are proud of your bowling skill. Some of the other members on the team look up to you as a good bowler and an asset to the team.

One Saturday during the championship tournament, when your team particularly needs a strike or a spare, you are the one on whom they are depending. It is all up to you. You are very nervous because the whole team depends on you and they really need to win this game in the tournament. Your hands begin to sweat because of your nervousness. You wipe them again and again, but they keep getting sweaty. You do not get a good grip on the ball because of the sweat and, as you release it, the ball bounces on the alley and goes into the gutter.

You hear the astonished groans of your teammates as they realize you have thrown a gutte...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of Figures
• Acknowledgements
• Section I: Introduction
• Section II: How to Use the CPS Practice Problems
• Section III: The CPS Practice Problems
• References