Dream On

Engaging Students in the Making of Good New Ideas

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Module Fifteen-- Dream On

“He got in trouble with the teacher for daydreaming again. He was given a hundred lines . . .

I must not daydream in class.
I must not daydream in class.

Australian novelist Tim Winton describes in his book Blueback what happens when a young boy is caught daydreaming in school.

The Oxford American Writer's Thesaurus presents a pretty negative list for daydream:

daydream, daydreaming, trance, musing; inattention, inattentiveness, woolgathering, preoccupation, absorption, abstraction, lack of concentration.

While daydreaming is generally frowned upon in school and elsewhere, it is closely associated with reverie, incubation, exploration and discovery.

Some cultures place special importance upon what they call "Dream Time."

“Desert art has given everyone a chance to learn about Aboriginal Dreaming,” says Australian Aboriginal artist Jagamarra. “Our art reflects not just the land but its mythology, song and dance.”

His painting of the Milky way points our eyes to the heavens as a source of dreams and inspiration.

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly

Langston Hughes

Take a look at this magical book about dreaming and consider whether it would work well with your students. An Awesome Book.

Michalko devotes a chapter he calls "Dreamscape" to the cultivation of daydreaming and night dreams. He suggests that we write down questions about the challenges facing us before we begin the night's sleep. He urges us to write down what we can remember of our dreams and consider how they might cast light on the issues we face, no matter how far fetched or fantastic they might seem. Keep a diary or journal filled with dreams.

You will find Dreamscape on pages 258-262 of Thinkertoys.

Please do not move to next module until instructed to do so by the facilitator.