π‘·π’“π’π’ƒπ’π’†π’Ž π’”π’π’π’—π’Šπ’π’ˆ

(Again you don’t need a group to do this exercise…just one or more children!)

I like to do this by crafting a story and seeing where their solutions might take us. Sometimes I’ll use a prop to hold their attention. For example, in one school a boy had come into my session with a toy car that was causing a distraction. As well as confiscating it, I made it my prop!

I told them to imagine that we were all in the car together, going on a road trip. I asked where we were going and why (we were going to Las Vegas to hunt aliens apparently!) I rolled the car along the table in front of them and said β€œUh-Oh!

We’ve got a problem. The tyre has exploded, and I forgot to get RAC cover before we left. What are we going to do?”

The boys in the group started coming up with all sort of solutions. I picked one (not always the most sensible sounding as the silly ones can sometimes make a good point too) which was

β€œWe’ll have to push the car.”

I described this and how, being in the desert we all started to get tired. One child in the group had a sore knee that day and as he was in our fictional story too, I said we had to push the car with him in it so it was really hard work. Then someone suggested putting on the spare tyre. I talked them through jacking up the car and then realising the spare tyre was ripped and useless, and so it went on with me throwing challenges at them, and them coming up with ways to overcome the
problem. I’d then integrate their solution into the story, then throw them another twist.

Have fun.