Technology is Key for 21st Century Learners
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Genius Hour
To promote lifelong learning my students take part in a new movement known as Genius Hour. They spend a good chunk of classroom time independently or in groups researching relevant information on topics of their choice. Many of my previous students would say this was one of their favorite parts of fourth grade in our classroom.Genius hour is a movement that allows students to explore their own passions and encourages creativity in the classroom. It provides students a choice in what they learn during a set period of time during school. It’s not easy to determine where the idea was originally created, but there are at least two events that have impacted genius hour. One factor is the search-engine giant, Google, which allows its engineers to spend 20% of their time to work on any pet project that they want. The idea is very simple. Allow people to work on something that interests them, and productivity will go up. Google’s policy has worked so well that it has been said that 50% of Google’s projects have been created during this creative time period. Ever heard of Gmail or Google News? These projects are creations by passionate developers that blossomed from their independent and self chosen projects.
“Each week, employees can take a Genius Hour — 60 minutes to work on new ideas or master new skills. They’ve used that precious sliver of autonomy well, coming up with a range of innovations including training tools for other branches.” The same genius hour principles apply in the classroom as they do in the corporate environment. The teacher provides a set amount of time for the students to work on their passion projects during the week at school. Students are then challenged to explore something to do a project over that they want to learn about. They spend several weeks researching the topic before they start creating a product that will be shared with the class/school/world. Deadlines are limited and creativity is encouraged. Throughout the process the teacher facilitates the student projects to ensure that they are on task.
Many teachers are raving about the autonomy that students are finding in their classes, including myself. A goal of every teacher should be to create lifelong learners. Genius hour projects are a huge step towards that goal.
“Each week, employees can take a Genius Hour — 60 minutes to work on new ideas or master new skills. They’ve used that precious sliver of autonomy well, coming up with a range of innovations including training tools for other branches.” The same genius hour principles apply in the classroom as they do in the corporate environment. The teacher provides a set amount of time for the students to work on their passion projects during the week at school. Students are then challenged to explore something to do a project over that they want to learn about. They spend several weeks researching the topic before they start creating a product that will be shared with the class/school/world. Deadlines are limited and creativity is encouraged. Throughout the process the teacher facilitates the student projects to ensure that they are on task.
Many teachers are raving about the autonomy that students are finding in their classes, including myself. A goal of every teacher should be to create lifelong learners. Genius hour projects are a huge step towards that goal.
The button to the right is a link to a great site that describes Genius Hour more in depth and how it can be used within education and in the classroom. You will find detailed analysis on the concept ranging from how to introduce it, how to assess it, interviews with teachers and much more.
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Even with all of the advantages of technology, one must remember it should serve to enhance our instruction and the quality of education for our students. It should never be meant to replace teachers but to help them adapt to meet the needs of 21st century learners. Finding that balance of integrating a healthy amount of technology into the classroom is key.
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Educators need to relax however, as there are many positives to using a healthy balance of technology in the classroom. The above blog discusses 4 main positives to implementing the use of technology in your classroom.
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Swartz Creek View Publication
My classroom was asked to write a short detailed article presenting the idea of Genius Hour that we use in our classroom to the community.
Genius Hour Press Release | |
File Size: | 176 kb |
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