Treasure and spinner dolphins: STRATEGIC THINKING for 5-YEAR-OLDS

Strategic thinking can sound quite dry and intimidating. But, it’s just thinking about:

⭐where you are

⭐where you want to go

⭐how you’re going to get there.

While also considering:

🦈 what the risks might be

🚀what resources can help you

We do strategic thinking all the time. We do it when we consider our careers and professional development, we do it with our teams, and we do it in our personal lives.

Yesterday, my 5-year-old reminded me how instinctive strategic thinking is when she created this treasure map. She came bounding into the room, enthusiastically telling me that she was going to go on a boat to find some treasure. (I promise you, I did not guide her thinking at all. It was Sunday evening, and I was in Sunday-evening-half-asleep mode).

She drew the boat that she was going to take (you might be able to make it out in the top centre of the picture. It has stairs going down below deck, and a unicorn horn on the flag).

Then she added an X to the left-hand side of the picture.

”X marks the spot!” she exclaimed delightedly, then drew a magical palm tree and a mysterious cave where the treasure was hidden.

In the ocean, she started to create dangers. There was a whirlpool and Shark Teeth Reef (which, incidentally, is NOT a reef made of sharks’ teeth because that would be ridiculous. No, it is where 3 terrifying sharks live - Sparkle, Thunder, and Lightning. And if you go near them, they will eat you up.) There was also a ferocious tiger called Stripy, who was prowling around the ocean ready to attack.

My daughter had set the scene. She had worked out where she was, where she wanted to go, and what the potential dangers could be. Now she needed to work out how to get there.

She realised she needed a map to show her where to go, so she added that to her boat. Then she drew her route. At first, her route took her around the whirlwind and through Shark Teeth Reef. But then she stopped and said, “I don't need to do that. I can just go straight across from where I am!”

And she drew one neat, short line from her boat to the X. She cut out all the danger and found the best route to her treasure.

Not only that, but she also enlisted the help of a friendly spinner dolphin along the way.

Now, I know this is over-simplified. But it’s a pretty great example of strategic thinking and how it can be fun, motivating, and creative.

I mean, who doesn’t want a spinner dolphin on their side?