7 steps to creating your Genius Hour Project: Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose

What is a Passion Project or Genius Hour? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMFQUtHsWhc#action=share

Pick Your Topic #1 Choose a few topics related to the Health that you are passionate about.  What piques your curiosity? Take this as a learning experience, not an easy grade.  Your success will suffer if you do not sincerely pursue a genuine interest.

Research #2 Use high quality sources to gather as much information as you can about your topic. If you find a topic that interests you more, SWITCH topics.  It is critical that you have an open mind throughout this process.   Keep track of the sources that you end up using for your final product. You will eventually be responsible for creating a Works Cited page in proper MLA format.

Formulate a Question #3 What question or questions do you hope to answer for your project? Your question should be thought-provoking, open ended and address higher level thinking.  The answer to your question won't be easy to find.  It will be a culmination of extensive preliminary research.

Blog in your B-Portfolio #4 Discuss your progress, discoveries, and setbacks. Complete the self reflection form. Answer: What have you learned about your topic? Answer: What have you learned about yourself? Answer: Where do you go from here? Each week, please post on your blog, and comment on at least one student's post (from any class).

Repeat Steps 2-4 #5 This is a process that will be repeated many, many times. As you learn more in class and during your own research, your questions and answers will evolve as your knowledge grows.  You may end up completely changing the course of your research several times depending on what you learn.  This will be a process. Be messy, take risks.  You will document your independent work and thinking in your B-Portfolio.  

Project Proposal #6 After much questioning and research, you will narrow your focus and decide on a project.  What will this be?  The sky's the limit, but it must include: TED Talk component 2-3 minutes Visual component Works Cited in MLA format

Share Final Product #7 In January, we will have a Genius Hour Fair where you will share your projects with your classmates

Please get out a piece of paper!

For the next two minutes or so I want you to brainstorm potential passion project topics—just write whatever comes to mind!

Now we are going to complete a Passion Madness Bracket! 

Problem: What is the problem you want to address? Challenge: What’s your plan to address this problem? Consider: What is currently being done? Be innovative. Critical Question: What is it that you hope to answer or reveal through your work?