In Idea Lab, we’ve been focusing on how we think and how we talk to ourselves as learners. Social-emotional learning is a big part of what we do—especially for gifted students who sometimes struggle with perfectionism or fear of failure. We’ve discussed taking risks, reframing negative thoughts, and using positive self-talk through the ABRA strategy from Jim Kwik: Acknowledge the thought, Breathe, Release, and Align with something positive.
We’ve also been strengthening our brains through hands-on thinking games—no screens needed!
Visual-Spatial Thinking
These activities help students visualize, reason, and problem-solve:
Tangrams – arranging geometric pieces to form specific designs.
Blokus – placing tiles strategically to fit shapes while blocking others.
Kanoodle – fitting 2D and 3D puzzle pieces together in hundreds of possible combinations.
Secret Code Messages – taking turns encoding and decoding messages using symbols
Q-bitz – recreating visual patterns with cubes to test memory and perception.
Puzzles – a mix of logic and visual challenges that stretch our thinking.
Katamino– a hands-on puzzle game where players fit geometric pieces together to fill a space, building spatial reasoning and problem-solving skills.
Convergent Thinking
These thinking activities focus on logic, reasoning, and finding one best solution:
Rush Hour – sliding cars in the right sequence to free the red car.
SET– finding groups of cards that all share (or all have different) attributes.Mastermind – cracking a hidden color code using clues.
Color Sudoku – using logic to arrange pieces by color and position.
Shape Sudoku – using logic to arrange pieces by shape and position.
Qwirkle – matching colors and shapes to build patterns.
We recently welcomed some new members to the Idea Lab!
We’re learning that a strong mind grows through creative challenges and kind self-talk.
Idea Lab students are really getting great at both!
Keep up the excellent work!
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