Optional Classroom Games
In addition to using some of the Starter Kata routines to practice everyday scientific thinking, the popular activities below can help you tie scientific-thinking concepts together. These games are easy to run, and can be modified to suit your goals and context.
Consider sharing how you are using them, by
posting your experiences on LinkedIn, hashtag #KIC.
The Prediction Pause
It takes only a minute, and you can do it almost anywhere.
This tiny, fun add-on can help make our thinking a little more curious, evidence-based, and scientific. Add it to almost any activity simply by cheerfully asking: "Wait, before we do this, what do you predict will happen?"
Download the brief instructions below and try it today. It's easy and fun to do.
The KiC Card Sort
A 50-minute activity that gives students a feeling for the scientific, four-step Improvement Kata pattern.
Using a standard deck of playing cards, student teams take part in a fast-paced, hands-on activity that involves striving for a goal. The Card Sort takes students through the four steps of the Improvement Kata, and also illustrates that no matter how confident we are about an idea, it still needs to be tested. In this activity students practice some key skills:
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Scientific & Creative Thinking - Generating and refining solutions to obstacles, by learning from experiments.
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Collaboration - Working as a team to accomplish a goal.
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Communication - Organizing/sharing thoughts, data, and learnings, to develop a common scientific language.
The Clicker Challenge
A one-week activity to help you and your students see the unexpected in a positive light.
It’s natural to view the unexpected as something negative—but with a little practice, that mindset can shift. This fun routine helps you and your students reframe surprises as opportunities, rather than setbacks. By practicing for just one week, your team will start to see the unexpected more like discovering a hidden treasure.
Looking for the classic KiC "Puzzle" and "Catapult" exercises? Click here.