Spur of the Moment: Genius Hour

All I have to say is, take an HOUR out of your day and join the "Genius Hour" movement.  Whether you are in the education field, business or merely curious about something...(You have to do it!)

In the education realm, Genius Hour is essentially a movement that allows students to explore their own passions and encourages creativity in the classroom.  The teacher allots a certain amount of time for the students to work on their passion projects. It provides students a choice in what they learn during a set period of time during school.  Students may spend several weeks researching the topic before they start creating a product that will be shared with the class, school, or even the world.  Deadlines are limited throughout the process, the teacher facilitates the student projects to ensure that they are on task. Genius Hour is an example of passion-based learning, where technology can be utilized to allow for collective learning and also personalization. I think Genius Hour will mean something different and unique in every classroom, depending on the grade and students. 

Please refer to the following link for more information regarding Genius Hour:

What is Genius Hour? - Introduction to Genius Hour in the Classroom
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMFQUtHsWhc

I believe that students are capable of anything. Students have ideas and passions that should be harnessed at a young age. Knowing your students allows teachers to relate classroom material to things that students are interested in or have experienced. Teachers can use these interests to make things more interesting and relatable to students. When teachers encourage students' passions and interests, they can improve students' motivation to learn. Most importantly, their intrinsic motivation to learn, the type of motivation that comes from inside an individual rather than from any external or outside rewards. In the new culture of learning, intrinsic motivation is a key concept. 

The following video clip is of fifteen year old Kelvin Doe, who despite not having a lot of resources, is passionate. See what he is passionate about: 

When I was presented with the task of Genius Hour, I really had to question with my fellow group members, what are WE passionate about, and more importantly, what am I passionate about? As I began to think, I tried to stick to something basic. What do I love? I came to the conclusion that I love talking to people and hearing their story. I thought, how amazing would it be if we could hear about other people's education experiences, in the capacity of reflecting on our own. My group really liked the idea. We created a flexible task list on where to begin...

1. We began to reflect on our own experiences in education/schooling and started to converse with others face to face about their experiences... 
2. Look at the research surrounding our areas of interest (culture, disability, divorce, etc)
We realized our topics of research varied, but that's what we appreciated about our Genius Hour... We wanted to see how different people experienced education/schooling, and everyone has a different story to tell
3. We began to take on different areas of research and see what the literature had to say versus the stories of the people we talked to (or our own)
4. We worked together but each of us took on different roles... One more research based, one focused on the slideshow, while another focused on creating the blog to share
5. Reflect. Reflect on the people we have talked to, their stories, and our own stories. This experience will be a reminder for us in the classroom, that everyone is unique and you can never genuinely judge someone, you must get to know them (you cannot merely rely on statistics and research)

The following is a video of released a video by Soul Pancake titled "Take a Seat- Make a Friend?" I have always appreciated this video because you never know someone's story until you talk to them!

As I write my last "official" blog for this class specifically, I wonder what my next Genius Hour will be? Where will my passions take me? 

(Personal Pictures/Permission to Use)

I am passionate about travelling, being active, family/friends, event planning, students/teaching, food, and baking. 

Where will my passions take me? 

"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who'll decide where to go"- Dr. Seuss

Information/education concepts from:

Drake, S.M. & Reid, J.L. & Kolohon, W. (2014). Interweaving curriculum and classroom assessment: Engaging the 21 Century Learner. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. 

Know Your Students: The Integrated Curriculum

For the past two months, I have done a great deal of reflection on my experiences with schooling and education, but have not focused specifically on teachers. For my elementary and secondary education I attended Catholic schools situated in a small town (Grimsby) that prides itself on friendliness and community involvement. I really lucked out with "amazing teachers." How do you define an "amazing teacher" though? What makes one teacher stand out from the rest? What did I learn from my teachers? ... As I look back on some of the best teachers I ever had, those who stand out not only taught me a great deal academically, but they genuinely knew me.

One of the elements of the integrated curriculum, is not only knowing the curriculum material, but knowing your students. In terms of knowing your students, it is essential to consider the economic, social, and cultural factors that represent the community. It is equally important to know your students on an individual level as well. For example, creating a "Get To Know You" handout at the beginning of the academic year. "Knowing your students" gives teachers the ability to understand students on both an academic and personal level. As a future educator, I plan to integrate goal setting with students with not just curriculum content, but with modern twenty-first century skills as well. For example, if a student is uncomfortable presenting in front of his/her peers, I would like to set up goals with the student to overcome such a fear. In order to become more comfortable with communication/presenting skills, I may ask students to break off and present to their peers in small case study groups, rather than to the entire class at first. Recently, working with Ontario curriculum documents and forming lesson plans by using an integrated curriculum model has encouraged me to reflect on my education and schooling experiences.

As I reflect on the many amazing teachers I have had, one teacher in particular stands out. My grade two teacher was a young and extremely outgoing professional. She was always encouraging students to do their best and had the ability to make education fun. One of my grade two spelling words was "photosynthesis" and it coincided with experiments and lessons we were completing in science. I'll never forget how the teacher was able to harness my outgoing nature and academic strength by challenging me to do new things. This teacher would show some of my grade two science work to the grade eight teacher who specialized in science, and it really gave me a sense of pride. Also, despite having some nerves and doubts, she encouraged me to read a short story I created in front of the grade eight class and I also read a journal entry about Christmas on the announcements. Speaking in small groups and in front of large audiences is something I have become very comfortable with. I was very fortunate to have a teacher who not only cared about the students' academics, but genuinely cared about our overall well-being and how we would develop as democratic citizens.

In my own recent experiences in the classroom, I have truly attempted to know the students. When I was in second year of university, I had the opportunity to be involved with a grade six classroom once a week for three hours. Often times I was one on one with a student who had difficulties paying attention and frequently interrupted the class. This student really struggled with math and never wanted to do his work. As I began to become familiar with the student, I discovered he was really interested in World War II ships and planes. While the class was doing a unit on perimeter, area and volume, I took the math questions and we worked it out together. I utilized the "Legos" in the back of the classroom by creating war planes and ships with him to explain the concept of "volume" specifically. Immediately, the student became more engaged with the learning material when it involved something he was interested in. In addition, he was able to physically work with materials at hand and visualize these mathematic concepts. I learned from that experience that it is essential to know your students.

The following image is of a book I have read, "What Teachers Make" by Taylor Mali. The book was interestingly a response to a rich man at a dinner party who sneeringly asked Mali what teachers make. Mali’s looks at how different experiences in the classroom contribute to the joys of teaching. I enjoyed the book overall as it was one of the first actual books I had read regarding education. I really appreciated the following lines: 

"On a personal level, however, face-to-face with children who have names and stories, who come to school hungry and wearing the same clothes as the day before, you cannot decide that some are no longer worth your time, no matter what the statistics seem to suggest. Teachers who tirelessly fight the good fight know this. No matter how far behind a child is, no matter how limited you think his future choices are, you cannot ever give up on him. That is what teachers make: the promise to leave every student they teach better prepared for the future than they were when they entered the class at the beginning of the year. On the most basic level, that's just what we do."
    -Taylor Mali 

(Personal Picture). 

The following is a clip of Taylor Mali sharing his experience about "what teachers make" in a humorous way. (The following speech is also in the book).



I challenge others to reflect on their education experiences. What makes an exceptional teacher? What did you learn from your past teachers? How have teachers impacted who you are as a person today? As I have reflected on these such questions, I truly believe that teachers are vital to society and have definitely impacted who I am today (not just academically) but as a person. I do understand though that everyone has different experiences with schooling and teachers. It is my goal as a future educator to know not only the curriculum at hand, but to know the students.

"One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child." Carl Jung

Concepts regarding education and/or curriculum referenced from: 

Drake, S.M. & Reid, J.L. & Kolohon, W. (2014). Interweaving curriculum and classroom assessment: Engaging the 21 Century Learner. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press.

Mali, Taylor. (2012). What Teachers Make. New York: Penguin Group Inc.