Implementing Genius Hour

I am enjoying planning for the upcoming school year and excited to be back in the general classroom. In addition to looking for ways to integrate primary sources and other resources, I will be implementing a Genius Hour time. In some ways, my engineering classroom was a bit like Genius Hour, except students didn't usually get to choose based on their interests or passions. Though they had choice on materials and ways to create outcomes, the topic was based on what we were covering in the classroom.

Genius Hour is inquiry-based learning that allows students to work on individual projects that focus on their passion. Even if they don't know their passion, they know what they are interested in and may discover a passion. My planning is in its beginning stages, but I am quickly identifying how I want to implement this opportunity and resources I may need to manage and scaffold the open-ended student process.

I want to create an introductory video much like the video below but in another program with audio so that students can revisit it throughout the project as needed. I would also like to have Genius Hour at least twice each week. The amount of time is still to be determined.




I will ask students to complete an interest survey to assist with the brainstorming component of choosing a project for Genius Hour. After choosing a topic, students will be asked to identify the driving question they would like to answer and share. There are a lot of great existing resources for planning and sharing with students to support the process. I will continue to dive into those while formulating my plans. It will be interesting to scaffold 2nd and 3rd grade question development and research strategies for answering questions that go beyond an easy Google search. I plan to use Seesaw Digital Portfolios for managing student progress https://web.seesaw.me/. There is still a lot of work to be done, but I feel as though I am on solid starting ground. I found the article at We Are Teachers was a great starting point with additional resources listed. https://www.weareteachers.com/what-is-genius-hour/

Identifying Possible Resources

After going through standards and curriculum to find good connections for integrating primary sources, I next wanted to look at the different resources I have accumulated over the years, especially the new resources I have learned about during my time as an Einstein Fellow.

I am organizing materials for the upcoming school year within a single document with sections for resources. I am interested in uses ranging from digital portfolios to coding to associations and professional development opportunities. This document will then be used as a reference during project and lesson planning to maximize implementation for expanded student learning experiences with real world connections. Below are some of the various resources, pd, etc. that I am considering for my classroom. These do not include the resources that can be found at the various associations.

Library of Congress - https://www.loc.gov/

Primary Sources - http://www.loc.gov/teachers/

HABS/HAER/HALS - https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/hh/

YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/user/LibraryOfCongress

TPS Teachers Network - https://tpsteachersnetwork.org/

TPS Consortium - http://www.loc.gov/teachers/tps/consortium/

National Book Festival - https://www.loc.gov/events/2019-national-book-festival/

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/activities/science/resources.html

Seesaw - https://web.seesaw.me/

Ecology Project - https://www.ecologyproject.org/

Scratch - https://scratch.mit.edu/

Minecraft - https://education.minecraft.net/

Raspberry Pi - https://www.raspberrypi.org/education/

The National Academies of Press - https://www.nap.edu/

IEEE Reach - https://reach.ieee.org/

BreakoutEDU - https://www.breakoutedu.com/

Globe - https://www.globe.gov/web/elementary-globe

Digital Harbor Foundation - https://www.digitalharbor.org/ https://www.digitalharbor.org/whatwedo/projects/fabslam/

Code/FWD - https://techprep.org/codefwd/ https://www.sphero.com/education/codefwd/

Newseum - https://newseumed.org/

Smithsonian https://learninglab.si.edu/ https://www.si.edu/educators

NASA - https://www.nasa.gov/stem https://www.nasa.gov/education/materials/ https://www.nasa.gov/offices/education/programs/descriptions/All_Alpha.html http://ymiclassroom.com/categories/language-arts/

PBS - https://www.pbs.org/education/ https://pbskids.org/

AEOP - https://www.usaeop.com/

ORISE/ORAU Opportunities - https://orise.orau.gov/stem/k-12/index.html

ESRI - https://www.esri.com/en-us/home

Invention Education - https://www.lemelson.org/our-programs/us-programs/education

USPTO - https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/outreach-and-education

3D - https://www.tinkercad.com/

City X Project - http://www.cityxproject.com/

Civil Air Patrol - https://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/programs/aerospace-education

National Geographic - https://www.nationalgeographic.org/education/

Space Station Explorers - https://www.spacestationexplorers.org/ambassadors/

ShareSpace Foundation Giant Mars Maps - https://sharespace.org/education/mars-maps/

Idaho STEM Action Center - https://stem.idaho.gov/

AIAA - https://www.aiaa.org/home/get-involved/students-educators

Share My Lessons - https://sharemylesson.com/