How might we let the student track the progress of their course in an engaging, informative, and motivating way?

Brainstorm rules

Defer judgment

You never know where a good idea is going to come from. The key is make everyone feel like they can say the idea on their mind and allow others to build on it.

Wild ideas are welcome

Wild ideas can often give rise to creative leaps. In thinking about ideas that are wacky or out there we tend to think about what we really want without the constraints of technology or materials.

Stay focused on the topic

Try to keep the discussion on target, otherwise you can diverge beyond the scope of what you’re trying to design for.

One conversation at a time

Your team is far more likely to build on an idea and make a creative leap if everyone is paying full attention to whoever is sharing a new idea.

Be visual

In live brainstorms it’s good to write down on Post-its and then put them on a wall. Nothing gets an idea across faster than drawing it.

Go for quantity

Aim for as many new ideas as possible. In a good session, up to 100 ideas are generated in 60 minutes. Crank the ideas out quickly and build on the best ones.

Agenda

Intro

Rules of brainstorming

Goal: 30 ideas — Stretch goal: 40 ideas

The problem — User Stories

See how others are doing it

Work

Take notes (5 minutes)

Crazy Eights (5 minutes)

Storyboards (10 minutes)

Let’s put up the ideas (5 minutes)

Discuss

Voting (5 minutes)

Let’s talk about the ideas (1 min / idea)

Conclusion!