Lifelong Kindergarten: Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play

by Mitchel Resnick, Ken Robinson

In kindergartens these days, children spend more time with math worksheets and phonics flashcards than building blocks and finger paint. Kindergarten is becoming more like the rest of school. In Lifelong Kindergarten, learning expert Mitchel Resnick argues for exactly the opposite: the rest of school (even the rest of life) should be more like kindergarten. To thrive in today's fast-changing world, people of all ages must learn to think and act creatively -- and the best way to do that is by focusing more on imagining, creating, playing, sharing, and reflecting, just as children do in traditional kindergartens.Drawing on experiences from more than thirty years at MIT's Media Lab, Resnick discusses new technologies and strategies for engaging young people in creative learning experiences. He tells stories of how children are programming their own games, stories, and inventions (for example, a diary security system, created by a twelve-year-old girl), and collaborating through remixing, crowdsourcing, and large-scale group projects (such as a Halloween-themed game called Night at Dreary Castle, produced by more than twenty kids scattered around the world). By providing young people with opportunities to work on projects, based on their passions, in collaboration with peers, in a playful spirit, we can help them prepare for a world where creative thinking is more important than ever before.

Genres: Education, Nonfiction, Parenting, Teaching, Design, Academic, Psychology

204 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 25, 2017

About the author

Mitchel Resnick, Professor of Learning Research at the MIT Media Lab, develops new technologies and activities to engage people (especially children) in creative learning experiences. His Lifelong Kindergarten research group develops the Scratch programming software and online community, the world’s largest coding platform for kids. His group also collaborates with the LEGO company on the development of new educational ideas and products, including the LEGO Mindstorms robotics kits. Resnick co-founded the Computer Clubhouse project, an international network of 100 after-school learning centers, where youth from low-income communities learn to express themselves creatively with new technologies. Resnick earned an undergraduate degree in physics from Princeton, and a Masters and PhD degrees in computer science from MIT. He was awarded the McGraw Prize in Education in 2011 and the AACE EdMedia Pioneer Award in 2013.

Reviews

[Stacia · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I wish the book was not specifically about Scratch (online learning community and programming language) https://scratch.mit.edu/, I LOVE so many ideas and points brought up through each chapter. I kept thinking, Yes! Yes! Yes!, to myself as I was reading.

I am intrigued to look more into Scratch and try it out for myself… but I would have liked the cover and book’s summary to have made this major focus of the book more apparent.

[Note to self – the first and last chapters are my FAVS.]

[Kin · Rating 4 out of 5]

เราชอบหนังสือกลุ่มนี้เรื่องหนึ่งคือมันคุยกันคนอ่านตลอด ต่างจากพวกงานวิชาการหนักหัวจำนวนมากที่กลายเป็นว่าคนอ่านต้องพยายามเข้าใจว่าจะเสนออะไร

หลักๆ เรสนิกเสนอว่าการเรียนรู้แบบโรงเรียนอนุบาล คือผ่านการลงมือทำด้วยความหลงใหล สนุกสนาน และกล้าลองผิดลองถูกคือหัวใจของการเรียนรู้ตลอดชีวิต

เรสนิกเอาไอเดียนี้ไปใช้ใน MIT Media Lab ซึ่งเราชอบแทบทุกกลุ่มวิจัยที่นั่นเลย ความเป็น anti-disciplinary มันเปิดโอกาสให้ creativity มันไปได้สุดกว่าการเรียนและทำวิจัยในสถาบันทั่วๆ ไป ที่ชอบอีกอย่างคือตอนท้ายที่ทิ้งคำแนะนำสำหรับผู้เรียน ผู้ปกครอง และนักออกแบบการเรียนรู้ว่าจะทำอย่างไรจึงจะสามารถเรียนรู้อย่างสร้างสรรค์ในความหมายนี้ได้

ที่สำคัญคือเรสนิกไม่ได้พยายามเรียกร้องเอาจากครูและนักเรียนให้สร้างสรรค์ แต่ค่อนข้างเข้าใจด้วยว่าการสร้างบรรยากาศหรือสังคมที่เอื้อให้คนกล้าคิดกล้าทดลองเป็นสิ่งสำคัญมาก เสียดายที่ประสบการณ์ส่วนใหญ่ในหนังสือมันจำกัดอยู่กับบริบทของอเมริกามาก มันเลยไม่ค่อยเห็นว่าในสังคมที่โครงสร้างมันเข้มงวดมากๆ การสร้างการเรียนรู้อย่างสร้างสรรค์มันต้องเผชิญอุปสรรคยังไงและเราจะดีลกับมันยังไงดี

[Greg Jarmiolowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love it. The ideas behind the lifelong learning program at MIT are very interesting but the author seemed to just keep going back to Scratch as if it is the only project worth talking about.

[Maria · Rating 2 out of 5]

Основная мысль этой книги - переходите на сайт Scratch и учитесь программировать, воплощая в жизнь проекты, которые вам нравятся. По моему мнению, вся книга это рассказ о методике, которая лежит в основе сайта Scratch. В лучших традициях американской нон-фикшн литературы даются примеры, забавные и поучительные истории, интервью с ребятами, которые в какой-то момент жизни оказались в дружной тусовке Scratch, но все так или иначе крутится вокруг Scratch.

Книга описывает методику 4П, на которых построено сообщество Scratch - проекты, пылкая увлеченность, партнеры и процесс игры. И очень подробно рассказывает, как эти принципы воплощаются в сообществе. Но если вы хотите эти же принципы применить к другим сферам жизни, то вам придется подумать над этим. В книги вы не найдете примеров. Хотя, возможно столько подробный разбор принципов, на которых построен Scratch даст хороший пример, как эти принципы реализуются на практике.

Исходя из названия книги, я надеялась получить немного другого рода информацию: что это за принципы развития, что в них интересного/нового, как я могу их применить в своей жизни. Но, в итоге, все, что я читала было посвящено тому, насколько классный Scratch и как много могут добиться люди, им увлекающиеся.

Я ни в коем случае не умаляю заслуги разработчиков этого языка и этой платформы. В свое время я тоже пробовала Scratch и это было действительно увлекательно. И я рекомендую вам попробовать протестировать этот сайт и/или показать его детям, пусть повеселятся!

Я думаю, что эта книга будет интересна тем, кто работает с детьми, организует их досуг или планирует это сделать. Но моих ожиданий она не оправдала.

[Carolyn Kost · Rating 2 out of 5]

In The Chronicle of Higher Education, the interview with the author, a prof at MIT, was promising enough to prompt me to acquire the book. Resnick attempts to answer the question, “How can we help young people develop as creative thinkers so that they’re prepared for life in this ever-changing world?” but there isn't anything particularly new or engaging here. The structure of the book is based on the theory that Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play are the foundation for creative learning. Do not expect to find data to support his thesis, for “Rather than just trying to measure what children learn (through numbers), we also need to document what children learn (through compelling examples).” The “compelling examples” Resnick provides are related to the ways his projects with LEGO and Scratch, “a programming language and online community” positively impact young people. He is justifiably proud of Scratch as one of his crowning achievements, but drawing so exclusively on his own projects as the lens through which he views creative learning teeters on academic narcissism. I learned quickly to barely skim each chapter’s final pages, which featured interviews with Scratch users. I did not find them to be the "compelling examples" he intended.

Nevertheless, Resnick has some important points to make. One of my favorites: just because a toy is creative doesn’t mean it teaches the child to be creative. Don’t “buy a toy for what it can do for your child,” but for “the type of play it supports and encourages.” He recommends caution with the computerized learning that is sweeping schools, for “computers can’t assess the creativity of a design, the beauty of a poem, or the ethics of an argument.”

Readers who wonder about the efficacy of lifelong kindergarten for ensuring their children’s or students’ “success” are not likely to be convinced by this book. Ardent fans of project-based learning will not find anything ground-breaking here and those who need convincing are unlikely to find the evidence they seek. There are other sources that are more helpful on the themes of creativity in education, project and inquiry based education, and design thinking.

[Rachel Bayles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hopeful. Positive. Some ideas are more hopeful than others. I think the author occasionally engages in overreach, but he's clearly a man who is doing a lot of good in the world, and he gets much more right than he gets wrong.

[Suzanne Gibbs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved his ideas. Did not like how he kept presenting his own businesses and work as the only back-up for the ideas he presented. Possibly could have been an excellent long article or essay, instead of an entire book.

[Nelson Zagalo · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Lifelong Kindergarten" (2017) é o mais recente livro de Mitchel Resnick, professor do MIT Media Lab e criador do Scratch, sobre o qual devo começar por dizer que não é um livro de ciência, é um livro de divulgação de ciência. Neste sentido, e apesar de ter o selo da MIT Press, vem juntar-se ao livro “Whiplash” (2016) de Joi Ito (diretor do MIT Media Lab), que também se foca mais no dar a conhecer e menos nos fundamentos. Seguem ambos um mesmo padrão: escrita leve, escorreita, sintética, que podemos ler muito rapidamente para conhecer contornos gerais. Contudo, se tive críticas a apontar a Joi Ito, Resnick não passa incólume, não por seguir a mesma abordagem de divulgação, mas antes pela filosofia de base que suporta o que dizem, e que apresentam ambos, como se fossem caminhos únicos, sem alternativa, que todos deveríamos seguir.

O resto da análise pode ser lida no Virtual Illusion em: https://virtual-illusion.blogspot.pt/...

[Laela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw Mitch speak at a Scratch conference... and I had watched his Tedtalk, so I know what I was getting into when I started this book. YES, it is Scratch heavy, but this is his lifelong work. The thing is he has some interesting ideas about breaking down the current education model. He has big ideas like not having teachers dictate curriculum to students; and small ideas like putting tables together in pods with chairs on wheels. I found things to think about and things I could do now in this book.

I know that I will go back and re-read this book to keep these ideas fresh in my mind.

[Lindsey Day · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will make you want to buy all of the legos, magnatiles, and wikkistix! It felt a bit like a commercial for Scratch, but I also knew very little about coding before reading the book. And honestly, he sold me on it!

[Corinne · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author makes good points, but the writing style wasn't for me, nor was the emphasis on Scratch. I can't say I learned much, but I agreed with a lot of what I read.

[Rhea · Rating 4 out of 5]

lifelong kindergarten centers a lot on how we can design effective learning experiences for all ages that are based on experimentation & grounded in interest. we should treat our activities + work as play in order to learn the most and to generate the most novel ideas.

this book was a good reminder to me about how to approach the things that I do. oftentimes I get discouraged easily recently when doing tasks, but that's because I'm seeing them as too linear rather than playgrounds. sometimes f*ck around + find out is the best approach.

also resonated a lot w/ discussions about creativity being more about a mindset ('creative thinking'). it's more of an incremental ongoing process, rather than just the aha moments -- similar to scientific research. thought the idea that creativity is as much about the hands as the head was particularly insightful; recently I've been super into air dry clay and I feel like playing around with my hands is a fast track to new ideas. (feel similar about handwriting + typing code)

[Drew Forster · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful accounting of the impactful work of Mitch Resnick. Every bit as genuine, inquisitive, creative, and kind as this book demonstrates, I am privileged to call him a colleague at MIT. Low floors, high ceilings, wide walls should be the ethos of every classroom. Sadly, too much of education and work life are about boundaries, walls, the way we’ve always done it. This book is as disruptive as it is sweet.

Personal collection. I was a LOGO kid who used a turtle (not a mouse) to do my first graphic design on a Franklin computer that was rolled into my Manchester, NH elementary school classroom.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

It definitely leaned heavily into his Scratch community, but the concepts were sound. a lot of overlap with best practices we implement in children's museums around divergent thinking and master learners. in particular, I liked the emphasis of adults modeling how to not know things as well as how to learn new things. so many adults would benefit from this approach

[Alex Linschoten · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful exploration of learning, creativity and the structure that allows for all of that to happen. Lots of responses / thoughts generated while reading this short book.

[Andrew Lobanov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Добротная книга. рассказывающая про философию MIT Media Lab, где разрабатывается самый популярный детский язык программирования Scratch. 4 спирали обучения для комплексного развития ребенка.
Будет интересна всем образованцам )

[Brooke Raymond · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really encouraged me to start finding creative avenues in my everyday life. It also gave some really insightful strategies to note when I become a parent someday and how to help children play creatively. Would have been a 5 star, but it felt self promotional for a lot of the book and used a few too many anecdotes to get the point across. Overall I loved this book and it was a great first read to kick off my 2026!

[Cornell Raab · Rating 5 out of 5]

Niedrigschwelliger leserfreundlicher Einstieg der als Anreiz für einen anderen Umgang mit Kreativität, Lernen und kreativem Lernen führen sollte.

[Dhwani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully simple but elegant description of the thinking behind Scratch and LLK's approach to creative learning. The compare and contrast between the different ways people encourage creativity and motivation in children was fascinating.

[Connor Osborn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I discovered the book after reading (and feeling completely changed by) Seymour Papert's Mindstorms. Mitchel Resnick was influenced by Papert, and I was curious what I could gleam from his life's work.

I found myself nodding to much of the sentiment: that learners construct knowledge rather than receive knowledge, that structured teaching and play is low risk and more importantly low reward, that you cannot unilaterally push for increased student performance and expect creative learning.

The latter half of the book is principally about the Scratch platform (developed by Resnick's research group), reasoning behind its design and various student anecdotes.

Per its design, Resnick refused to gamify the platform. Users don't get badges or achievements and users are not tricked into artificial engagement. In Scratch, the value proposition is simple: it will help you make whatever you want. The act of creating is the achievement.

Scratch is uniquely designed to foster collaboration. In Scratch all public projects (code and art) can be reused by anyone. Per the terms of service, authors cede their typical rights as the sole distributors of their work. Resnick concedes that this is controversial.

Prior to reading, I anticipated that there would be many personal accounts of students and their successes with Scratch. I was hoping that it would strive for more than a showcase of exceptional children being exceptional. I belive it was at fault to this partly. However, it's a small criticism and Scratch itself is impartial. In the mire of uninspiring educational contexts for programming (conveyer belts guiding students by the droves to the insatible hiring demands of the software sector), Scratch stands apart. Making an animation, story, or gory action game are all valid uses.

The book left me feeling convinced about a particular idea. When the incentives align, children achieve more than can be expected.

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked exploring the author’s research and ideas about creative learning, but this book did not explore kindergarten principles and apply them to lifelong learning, but rather summarized kindergarten as creative and play-based and then went on to explore creativity solely through the lens of the Scratch program. It was interesting, and I’ll definitely encourage the use of Scratch for my kids when they’re old enough (we do use Scratch Jr.), but I felt misled about the content of the book. At least all of the proceeds went towards supporting their mission, which made me less annoyed by the misdirection.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who has taught Scratch through an educational outreach program, I enjoyed learning how the Scratch programming language and online community support Mitch Resnick’s belief that creativity can be cultivated through the creation of passion projects, sharing and collaborating with peers, and dedicating time to constructive play.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was super excited about this book. I love the idea of encouraging creativity in learning rather than rote-learning. But, this book’s main focus was on a computer program called Scratch. That part really fell flat! It felt like a sales pitch for this software and less a book encouraging creative learning methods.

[Angel Grimalt · Rating 5 out of 5]

An inspiring book that discusses the importance of building the environment and mindset needed to foster creativity in children and adults alike. The concept of the Creative Society, as a next step after the Knowledge Society, is discussed in this book. It is a must-read for our future, where knowledge will be catalogued, brief, and accessed faster and more easily thanks to technology (AI)

[Vi · Rating 3 out of 5]

so much scratch that i had to learn to scratch.

[Hots Hartley · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first, I felt like the book spent too much time harping Scratch, the programming language and online learning platform/community for programming that the author developed at MIT Media Lab. He likes to write opposing educational viewpoints and debate them in the early chapters.

However, the tide slowly turned as the later chapters got into the Computer Clubhouse and project-based learning, showing key insight about how different types of kids learn. The analysis peaked with his division of children into two types of learners: patterners and dramatists.

Patterners like building and applying their learnings to solving problems, like coding a clever algorithm, building a ferris wheel, even designing a picture-perfect UI. Dramatists derive their motivation from the story behind something; instead of building the ferris wheel when told to do so, they need to know the reasons for building it before feeling motivated enough to move forward, so they might come up with a guest persona to know whom they're serving, so they can design the best ferris wheel for them. Both types of learners, and everyone in between, gets validity and techniques in this book.

Mitchel Resnick has clearly thought through different ways to motivate kids in the classroom and outside, through project-based learning and free play. He strikes a balance between guidance/instruction and autonomy, i.e. letting the kids explore and experiment after giving them some basic structure and examples to stimulate their imagination about what's possible. He shares countless classic quotes about what teachers and even product developers (LEGO) have observed, and suggests how we might apply it to classes and products in the future.

The only real thing missing from the book is a discussion of economics and marketing. Too often, he interviews children or their mentors that call it a success if a child learns enough to join a company like IBM or get into a good college or internship. No mention is made of children developing a sense for how they can tailor what they create to an audience, or market what they make, so they can earn enough money or funding to support themselves during or after school. Of course, money should not be the motivation driving education or growth -- creation in itself is a joy! -- but too often, children cede to their parents or the system because they don't learn the skills they need to profit off their own products. Or maybe they learn the hard skills, but not the soft ones like teamwork, marketing, and financials. As Dr. Resnick writes repeatedly throughout, creation is great, and that joy of learning can and should persist into adulthood; early childhood education can support teamwork through communities and projects. But the success of education shouldn't be measured by whether or not they joined a big company or got into a school; while those are steps, the discussion should also consider whether or not we can prepare children to survive from their own creativity, without needing the support of a big corporation or 9-5 job.

Still a great book, from which I'll share some of my favorite quotes! Highly recommended, not only for the insight into childhood educatino but also the ideas applicable to developing future curricula, lesson/product plans, a healthy creative environment, and products to motivate learning.

[Jao Bautista · Rating 5 out of 5]

For July, my #1bookAmonth takes me to Learning Sciences. I admit that the initial reason why I bought this book was because it has a foreword by Sir Ken Robinson—featured speaker in the most watched Ted Talk video where he spoke about how the existing education system kills creativity. But the other reason why I’m reading this non-fic is because I’m curious about the outcome of the author Mitchel Resnick’s partnership with MIT Media Lab. Resnick is an expert in educational technologies while the Media Lab focuses on anticipating and creating technologies to make our lives better – together, they work on unlocking the expansion of human creative capacity. This led to Lifelong Kindergarten:

“In kindergartens these days, children spend more time with math worksheets and phonics flashcards than building blocks and finger paint. Kindergarten is becoming more like the rest of school. Learning expert Mitchel Resnick argues for exactly the opposite: the rest of school (even the rest of life) should be more like kindergarten. To thrive in today's fast-changing world, people of all ages must learn to think and act creatively—and the best way to do that is by focusing more on imagining, creating, playing, sharing, and reflecting, just as children do in traditional kindergartens.”

Many business journals argue that as we move to the next decades of AI and robotics, a lot of jobs will be obsolete, but the most valuable asset will be creative thinking. As I continue with my self-imposed learning spree into finding and trying out new ways to make the work better, I am also discovering that in order for our Philippine society to be more productive and more progressive, we must first unlearn the “hindi naman ako creative e” thinking – the belief that creativity is a talent that’s monopolized by the “creative people” or a responsibility that’s relegated to the “creative department” or a badge that’s solely owned by the “creative industries.” Instead, as a society we must start owning up to our individual roles as creative thinkers, creative problem-solvers, creative doers - embracing the fact that creativity is a way of life.

#LifelongKindergarten
#MitchelResnick

[Eden Silverstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is well written and engaging. Resnick's writing is very approachable. I think the book is intended to be read from start to finish. (If you're specifically looking for actionable tips for cultivating creativity as a student, a parent/educator, or a designer/developer, you could skip to Chapter 6. Creative Society, pages 162-179, Ten Tips for Learners, Ten Tips for Parents and Teachers, Ten Tips for Designers and Developers. Skipping to Chapter 6 doesn't lessen the digestibility of the tips.)

After reading the book from cover to cover, the next time I pick it up, I'd start with Chapter 6 as scaffolding for what the author shares in relation to Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play. (The book layout isn't designed for easy skimming, for example, only chapter titles are included in the table of contents. The chapter title and first-level heading are the same font and treatment.)

Resnick does a good job of peppering relevant studies throughout the book. He also compiles a list of additional resources for further study. The approach to learning--a creativity learning spiral is introduced early on: Imagine. Create. Play. Share. Reflect. Imagine. The how creativity learning happens is layered onto this approach with projects, passion, peers, and play. Examples outside of the author's direct experience with Lego Mindstorms and Scratch are given as they apply to the Four P's. Two of the examples are Brightworks (K-12) and Reggio Emilia-inspired Schools (primarily preschool). When I purchased the book I missed that the context was kids education. The tips and insights apply to learners of all ages; the examples though are all kids-related.

[Patricia Kidder · Rating 3 out of 5]

I selected this book as one of the titles for our faculty summer reading. Based on its title, I thought it would be much more focused on "old school" play ala Richard Louv and "Last Child in the Woods" and I anticipated there would be some techno-bashing. Boy was I wrong. While there are many good ideas/messages inherent in the book, I thought it was one big promo for the MIT developed Scratch (https://scratch.mit.edu/). The book discusses techno-enthusiasts and techno-skeptics, with little suggestion that many peoples' techno-philosophy lies somewhere in-between. The book puts forth many good principles on helping children develop and flex their creativity muscles - projects, peers, passions, play - balance between freedom and structure, creating a culture of caring, promoting reflection and immersion. One analogy I particularly enjoyed was the "playpens" versus "playgrounds" - we as adults, and in my case as an educator, must be aware of providing room to explore, move, experiment, collaborate. Celebrate imagination and creativity, no matter what the venue (disclaimer - while I try hard to embrace and be enthusiastic about new technologies, I am, at heart, more of a techno-skeptic - let's just be aware of both the QUALITY as well as the quantity of the screen time today's children are devouring...

[Sarah Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Resnick is co-founder of the Computer Clubhouse Project, an international network of afterschool programs which encourage young people to make creative projects with computers. He lead the team which developed Scratch programming software and the extensive online community which has grown out of this, users learning from other users and collaborating with one another. His point in the book is that young people (and others, I suppose) learn best by engaging in open ended projects which interest them and pull in the necessity of acquiring knowledge along the way. The Clubhouse Project has mentors (supportive, not directive) and the Scratch community does have a sufficient number of moderators, to ensure things stay civil, mainly. But he says the community is inclined to stay civil, and supportive. Each member can access (and even claim as their own and modify) projects, as they have no copyright. This last is capable of arousing a certain amount of anguish in some members.
As far as the clubhouses go, the young people do create physical things, enabled by technology. Thus one girl want to know how fast she can go rollerblading, and works it out. Another boy combines photographs of his parents, who were never photographed together. Resnick argues that the chief thing the clubhouses are valued for is diversity of projects.