Promoting Curiosity

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Practice generating divergent perspectives on a given issue using four structured curiosity prompts.

Use it when: Use when a team is stuck in analytical critique, repetitive complaints, or narrow problem definitions on an issue.

Skip it when: Skip when the session requires immediate triage, technical evaluation of established options, or urgent crisis action.

Group arrangement: Small groups of 3 to 5 participants, plus whole-group sharing.

Timing: Derived from the Collaborative Discussion Project standard 60-minute run time (10m intro, 20m practice, 20m questions, 10m debrief), redistributed into concrete steps.

Materials and tools

• 1 printed scenario card or headline per small group
• 1 curiosity prompt worksheet or large chart paper per small group
• 1 marker or pen per participant
• Digital collaborative document (for remote or hybrid delivery)

Before participants arrive

1. Print copies of the Curiosity Prompts Worksheet for each small group, or create digital copies in your shared workspace.
2. Arrange seating into tables of 3 to 5 seats.

Say this to open

Welcome. Curiosity is a habit we can build like a physical routine. Today we will take an everyday headline and explore it using four specific prompts: 'What if...', 'Think about...', 'Can we imagine...', and 'Why is that true?' The goal is not to debate or critique ideas right now, but to expand the possibilities we see.

How to run it

1. Introduce the practice 5 minutes

   State the purpose of the activity. Read the opening script and hand out the Curiosity Prompts Worksheet with the selected headline. Assign or have each table choose a recorder.

2. Brainstorm 'What if' 10 minutes

   Direct small groups to focus only on the prompt 'What if...'. Members call out or write ideas that build on the headline. The recorder captures every idea without evaluation or critique.

3. Work through remaining prompts 15 minutes

   Direct groups to repeat the process for the remaining three prompts: 'Think about...', 'Can we imagine...', and 'Why is that true?'. Spend roughly 5 minutes per prompt. Maintain the rule of no criticism.

4. Synthesize curiosity questions 15 minutes

   Instruct groups to look across all four completed lists. Members combine ideas to draft at least three curiosity questions, beginning with phrases like 'Would it be possible to...' or 'Wouldn't it be amazing if...'.

5. Share highlights 5 minutes

   Ask each group to read aloud their single most surprising curiosity question. Do not open general debate; listen to each group in sequence.

6. Debrief the exercise 10 minutes

   Lead the room through two selected debrief questions to reflect on the prompt exercise and collaboration. Take 3 to 4 comments from across the room.

Debrief questions

• Which curiosity prompt was easiest to use, and which was hardest?
• What common themes emerged across the combined curiosity questions?
• How did hearing other people's prompts alter the way you viewed the original headline?

Finished output: A list of divergent ideas under four prompts, culminating in at least three synthesized curiosity questions per group.

Remote

Form breakout rooms of 3 to 5 people. Supply each room with a pre-formatted online document containing the headline and prompt categories. One participant types while members speak or post ideas in chat.

Hybrid

Each small group includes an in-room tablet or laptop acting as a dedicated group station, or remote attendees form their own breakout rooms. Shared recording occurs in a live collaborative document accessible to all participants simultaneously.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may pass on speaking during group generation rounds and simply record notes.
• Written submissions can be anonymous on the shared recording sheet.
• Participants can review the prompt card silently instead of reading aloud.

If the session gets stuck

Participants begin arguing about whether an idea is realistic or practical.

Remind the room that evaluation is suspended during generation; instruct recorders to capture statements as raw possibilities without discussion.

A group struggles to move past standard complaints about the headline topic.

Point them directly to the 'Can we imagine...' prompt and ask them to name an extreme opposite condition.

Terms used here

• Curiosity prompt: A sentence starter designed to spark divergent thinking without critique.
• Curiosity question: A new speculative query formed by connecting two different prompt outputs.