To begin our quest, we had a brainstorming session in order to get our minds thinking about possible Genius Hour projects. We did some brainstorming in Google Docs first. The students were asked to describe things they’ve never tried before but wanted to try. Now they were ready for the Idea Factory. The students filled the white board with their ideas. We emphasized that ALL ideas were welcome–even the seemingly impossible. 

Our Genius Hour projects will get started this Friday. Students have submitted their proposals and received approval. Each individual or team had to come up with a central question, the materials and/or tools they may need, think about obstacles they may encounter, and think about questions they have about their topic. I will help them out with whatever materials and tools I have, but they may need some additional materials. The Genius Hour will continue all year with a “Show and Tell” type open house for the entire school as a culminating activity. This project is meant to be completed at school, entirely by the students. If you want to learn more about the Genius Hour, here’s a great introduction.