We want our students to be innovators, but what does that really mean?  What many fail to understand is that innovation is actually a process.

Idea.

Innovation starts as an idea, usually one outside of the box and many times outside of a comfort zone. Identifying an idea as innovative is easy, it's different.

Try.

Innovative ideas are usually the most difficult to act on.  Is this idea wrong? What if it doesn't work? What are others going to think? Definitely the hardest part in being innovative is taking the first step to try and follow through with an idea.  Fear of failure is the greatest barrier to success.

Fail.

Failure is an essential component of the innovation and learning process.  Thomas Edison discovered over 1,000 ways a light bulb doesn't work. He has been quoted, "The light bulb was an invention with over 1,000 steps."  This is your permission to fail!

Reflect.

If you had to isolate learning in a lesson, you would find it in the reflection and revision process.  Learning embodies critical thinking not simply remembering.

Succeed.

Not measured on a grading scale or evaluation, success is overcoming a challenge.  For a teacher it can be the collective groan when engaged students told they are out of time.  It may just not giving up.  Winston Churchill was quotes "Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm." For a child it can be a student achieving success on only the 4th try!

Repeat

Innovation is endless and ever changing.  Success is addictive and contagious. Share your successes and find your next "different".