Teaching with Tech: Genius Hour Part IX

A Genius Hour Reflection

It's hard to believe that 8 weeks have passed. My Genius Hour project timeline has come to an end, but that doesn't mean I have to stop learning. There are many more things I want to learn about boating. I have a feeling that this learning journey will continue far beyond a Genius Hour project.

When I first began this journey, I wasn't sure what to expect. My initial reaction was filled with dread, to be honest. I wasn't sure I could pull it off. I wasn't sure how I would find the time. I wasn't sure if I could stay motivated until the end. But all of those worries were for nothing. I did pull it off, and I have more ideas for where I want to take future learning. I made the time because it was important to me. My motivation pushed me through until the end.

I spent quite a long time deciding on a topic. Once I determined my topic, I was glad to have the support of my husband who came along for the Genius Hour ride. It was so helpful to have a partner to maintain motivation and bounce ideas off of.

Determining a timeline and outline of what I wanted to try to accomplish was important to my ultimate success. Even though both of those were tweaked along the way, without them, I would have floundered and had no end goal in mind. Throughout the process, I took important safety tidbits that I learned and created a Boating Safety Binder filled with some reminders, checklists, and visuals.

In the end, I feel a great deal of success. I'm ready to enthusiastically say,

"Let's Go Boating!"

10 Genius Hour Teaching Takeaways

My whole goal in completing a Genius Hour project of my own was to experience what my students feel embarking on what seems like a monumental task. Experiencing the pitfalls and productive struggle, helped me to better understand how to support my students through their own independent investigations. So, here are 10 of my biggest takeaways: