How Might We?

How Might We?  This is the question at the forefront of my mind these days.  A friend tells me she is deciding how to decorate a study area for the kids, I think...How might we redesign this space?  I notice that San Fransisco is WAY more environmentally conscious than Atlanta, and I think...How might we reduce our waste better where I live?   My children are complaining they are bored, and I think...How might we find something fun to do?

Not only am I looking at my life through a "How Might We?" lens, I also began thinking about everything we teach at a Jewish Day School, and how we can incorporate the design thinking process into our already existing curriculum.  First and foremost I am thinking of the question, How Might We Repair the World?  Tikun Olam is at the heart of Judaism.  Often times we think about repairing the world in a physical sense, but the How Might We question opens this idea up to how we treat each other, and how we interact with the world on a daily basis.  By involving students in the design thinking process, and having them interview others about how they would like to see the world as a better place, I can only imagine what they might come up with to the question of "How might we repair the world?"

Here's a few more to think about...
How might we build a 21st century tabernacle?
How might we design a Hanukkiah for a friend, family member, ourselves?
How might we restructure the way kids say Birkat Hamazon after lunch?
How might we hang our favorite fruit in the Sukkah?

Before I attended The Ethical Creativity Institute, I had been exposed to the design thinking process, but now that I attended several workshops on the subject, I see the bigger picture.  I see how we can use Design Thinking as a tool, both at school, and in our everyday lives, to help us solve problems and help us understand how to relate to real people with real problems.   I also see how you can take curriculum you are already teaching, and create an experience that gets everybody thinking.

Now I am thinking...How might we get everyone to see problems as opportunities for invention?