My Genius Hour
journey has provided me with a deep understanding of how to create and care for
a terrarium that will survive and thrive within the atmospheric conditions
offered in my bedroom. Furthermore, my experience has taught me
how important it is to be interested in the topic at hand; a piece of
information that will be extremely helpful to me when creating projects for my
future students.
The
Final Product of my Research
The three main
factors that contributed to the characteristics I ended up choosing for my
terrarium are:
1) My bedroom
has an eastern facing window, meaning it will have morning and early afternoon
sunlight.
2) I am a
student and therefore do not have an excess amount of time for terrarium care,
therefore low maintenance plants will fit better into my lifestyle.
3) I don't want
to be poking holes all over my bedroom so I would prefer a container that sits
on a surface rather than one that hangs from the ceiling or is mounted on the
wall.
 |
| My Final Product! |
I ended up
choosing a decently large glass container with an open top to allow airflow and
prevent locked in moisture. I chose plants in the cacti and succulent families
because they require dry environments and therefore will not need to be watered
often. They also prefer lots of direct or indirect sunlight so the amount of
daily sun I get in my bedroom will be ideal for their preferred conditions.
The
Genius Hour Process
I have to say,
the Genius Hour Project definitely struck some fear in me at the beginning. The
assignment consisted of many smaller activities, at least one of which would
push every style of learner out of their comfort zone. For me, the blog posts
were most exciting. I love to write. I also find that collecting and retelling
information helps to solidify my understanding, so being able to write about my
research made it all much clearer in my memory.
The
technological aspects were the parts I found the most daunting (yes, I am aware
this is a tech class). Mostly, it was the video creation that made me nervous
(ie. the trailer and the Ted Talk). However, I even found myself enjoying those
aspects of the project because they forced me to get really creative and think
outside of the box I would normally stay within. No, I don't love being on
camera and I didn't love having to hear my own voice as I edited. But not only
was it even more rewarding to finish because it was so far out of my comfort
zone but I realized the Ted Talk specifically is very similar to getting
comfortable teaching in front of a class. I actually think filming myself
teaching lessons might be something I do for the first little while during my career so I can
identify and work on the weaker aspects of my presentation skills.
Genius Hour
projects are definitely something I will present to my own classroom one day.
The best part about them is they can be modified to fit the needs of any age and
any individual learner. They are also a great way to introduce how to research and
compile information. Genius Hour Projects can be arranged to incorporate many different
activities, therefore the teacher can ensure at least one activity will appeal to
every student.
I look forward
to being on the other end of this assignment and hopefully one day watching as
my own students complete the tasks!
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