Innovation Week & Genius Hour

Oct 2, 2013

Go to the Humanities class blog and click on the page titled Innovation Week and Genius Hour for some of the videos we have been watching and more.







Feb 28, 2013
Reminder:  Genius Hour "Passion Project" proposals have been late coming in for consults - flex available now.  First Genius Hour Friday March 1!  Bring your devices - we will have the ipad cart also.


February 12, 2013

Genius Hour template for proposals

Sample - Marilyn Sun
***does not follow template exactly - her sample was completed first semester and the template has since been revised, but it will give you an idea of the depth of thought and planning expected.***


October 31, 2012

Genius Hour Timelines and Reminders

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Bx225j5fLKpL741k3smASObNQht1JTzwDP97hc70Dos/edit


October 12, 2012

Update:  This week students have chosen their "Passion Projects" to work on and have been writing up proposals based on an inquiry model developed from watching the above video (IDEO shopping cart - ABC Nightline) as well as other sources including a sample from the Western Academy of Beijing shared in my En 10 class by Marilyn, a welcome new Firehawk this year hailing from the aforementioned Academy.

These projects are being done in my Hum 8 and En 10 classes - some topics of exploration include:

• trying to solve our traffic pick-up and drop off problems
• creating a dance fusion video that blends traditional Chinese cultural dances with more modern hip hop / break dancing to appeal to a more modern teen audience
• exploring why, how we sneeze and what effects it has on us
• developing a video game based on varied software
• creating an app
• exploring the meaning of life through interviews and sharing through narrative
• exploring the inspiration of a self-help author through interviews
• creating an imovie to demonstrate how to care for a horse (imovie is a new skill for this group)
• exploring how to lessen the environmental impact on urban expansion
• sharing some of the current conflicts between China and Japan, their historical influences and why students should care
• critiquing various BMX bikes for various uses

We can't wait to continue our explorations and share with you our progress. 

Stay Tuned!

September 2012

This year in En 10 we will be implementing Genius Hour.  It was a business idea that originated with the company Google; they gave their employees approximately 20% of their company time to work / play with ideas, concepts they were interested in http://www.danpink.com/2011/07/the-genius-hour-how-60-minutes-a-week-can-electrify-your-job).  The result:  this regularly scheduled "play" time fostered some of the greatest opportunities for collaborative exploration and the development of some of their most innovative tools and applications.  Schools around the world are starting to implement this idea of having a scheduled "genius hour" to help foster creativity, collaboration and engagement with students choosing their own "passion project" to develop and present to the class.  See http://geniushour.wikispaces.com/ for further inspiration with teachers from around our district and beyond.

Does this fit into Humanities or English?  YES!

The BC Ed Plan encourages students to "discover, embrace and fulfill their passion" (BC Ministry of Education, 2011)

You will be given several "genius hours" to work on your "passion project" each term.  During this time, you will develop your own Inquiry Question and plan for exploration, share your findings, and reflect on your process throughout.

Already you have begun to brainstorm ideas for future "passion projects" to explore - your first project may be skill based or content oriented.  Is there some new skill you wish to learn and demonstrate your process, or a topic of interest for you?

Be inspired by a 9 yr old ...

Watch the video - think of his process and the inspiration he has become.  The filmmaker who created the first YouTube documentary has made a second one, illustrating the power of passion and creativity that he has inspired in others.



Finally, watch this video.  IDEO is known for its innovative inquiry process.  What can you learn from them?  (we will be discussing this in class as a model to consider for development of our passion projects).  I hope you will be as excited as I am to begin your first passion project in the coming weeks!  Ironically - this company has used this process since the 1990s and they are still going strong!  They must be doing something that works!

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