A short list of things that are simultaneously fun and valuable: Crossword puzzles, children, techniques for creative problem-solving, and SXSW’s first-ever-of-all-time SketchCamp! If you find yourself at SXSW Interactive this year, you are officially invited to join us for the first session of its kind at this conference. SketchCamp – an open-space form of unconferencing designed for interactive learning – is now a global phenomenon. It was inspired by BarCamp and is one of those rare opportunities to have an immersive learning experience without all the cerebral struggle. My team designed SketchCamp with the user very specifically in mind, so here’s what’s in store for you: visual social networking, graphic mad libs, rapid prototyping, robots, happiness devices and beer. (I’m not sure what else you need other than a bratwurst.) So whether you’re a visual thinking expert or a nervous newbie, there is a place for all of you at SketchCamp.

SKETCHCAMP NEED-TO-KNOWS:

• There is no hard start- or end-time. You can come and go as you please and stay as long as you’d like.

• Location: The Palm Door (here’s a map, it’s very close to the Austin Convention Center).

• Date and Time: Sunday, March 11 / 9:30 am – 3:30 pm.

• Your incentive to come: A respite from the insanity of SXSW, a superbly fun opportunity for visual-thinking and ambient learning and……beer tickets.

• If you miss SketchCamp, all is not lost. You can still learn great visual-thinking techniques at our “Shut Up and Draw” panel the next day. Jessica Hagy, Dan Roam and Yours Truly will never steer you wrong on being a viz whiz.

In closing, a big thank-you to SXSW for asking us to design and lead SketchCamp, to the Austin Center 4 Design for making our design team kick butt even harder, to Jeff Brantley and Elwood Fischer for supplying the robots and artbots, and to Shinbone Creative for supplying our D.I.Y. wooden prototyping toys. We have nothing but love for all these people.