Tinkering begins with.....

http://themindunleashed.org/2015/01/teaching-children-think-instead-think.html

Here is a quote from the above link:  "Real learning is achieved through the investigative process. Children have to be encouraged to search for the answers themselves. It is up to the teachers to provide the tools and resources necessary for the children to conduct these inquiries and make meaningful discoveries. One well-formed question will do more to inspire than any number of answers. In every facet of our educational pursuits, it becomes crucial to begin an open dialogue with our students, to encourage healthy debate and to have them form their own conclusions."

The quote says so much about the way we view children and education.  As teachers,  providing opportunities for children to play with their own ideas and thoughts will lead them to be masters of their own learning.  Education is not about right answers but about giving opportunities to create their own questions and problems in order for them to dig deep and find the solutions themselves - this is empowerment.

Albert Einstein said, "Creativity is intelligence having fun."

Nathan Mikaere-Wallis said, "Intelligence is really problem solving and at the heart of 

problem solving is creativity."

It makes sense then to think about ways in which we are nurturing children's ability to tinker with their own ideas in order to allow the creative juices to flow.  Learning is not about right answers it is about the processes of finding solutions. "Tinkering begins with this kind of problem solving and a curiosity about how something works.  When children are encouraged to solve problems on their own, they learn a great deal though the questions and hands on experiments that lead to a solution."Rachelle Doorley