EEND 679 Module 5 Discussion: Genius Hour
Hello Class,
I have to say that this assignment this week was one of my favorite that I have done over my cousework at USF. The idea of the Genius hour is.... well genius!! I love it as a personal activity as well as its application in the classroom. Getting students excited about what they are learning is sometimes difficult. But what if we put the ownership on them? What if they get to pick the topics to get to an end goal that we decide? Definitely, and interesting idea to explore form both a personal and educational angle.
For my genius hour, I used this opportunity to explore a topic that I have been thinking about for awhile now. Two years ago I watched the documentary, COWSPIRACY, with my wife at home. I was already making changes in my life to become more environmentally friendly but was looking to do more. I have to say, this documentary and the research that came afterwards have really changed my life. I have now gone 2 years without consuming beef, or any other mammal for that matter. I learned that to call yourself an environmentalist, you cannot consume beef. Agriculture for meat production is the single largest contributor to green house gas emissions and therefore the biggest contributor to global warming. If you add all of the transportation on the entire planet together, it doesn't come close to the damage agriculture does to our planet. I drive a fully electric Tesla, but I make a much bigger impact by not eating a hamburger! One pound of beef also takes over 2400 gallons of water to produce. I quickly decided to change my diet but never gave going full vegetarian a chance because of my love for Chicken.
Fast forward to this Genius Hour, I decided to research what it would take for me to go full vegetarian and the environmental impact it would make. I purchased a cookbook on Amazon, watched 3 youtube videos, and found the number 1 vegetarian source online for most of my research. I learned a lot in this hour and realized that I need to make this change to better myself. I learned a lot about meal prep, and specifically how to make sure I still get all of the necessary nutrients. I also learned about how this will change my carbon footprint thanks to an excellent ASAP Science Youtube video! I am looking forward to this Genius Hour turning into a Genius lifetime and really started to think about the application in my classroom.
I think including a "Genius Period" every once in a while is a great idea for the classroom. Especially if you can use it to teach a skill. If you teach English or Math, what an awesome opportunity to get some personalized instruction by allowing students to choose the subject material they use to get the skill. In biology, this may be more difficult but I could see giving students a genius period to study an animal of their choosing, or an environmental impact of their choosing. In some ways it mimics the genius hour idea, but also guides students to similar outcomes. Giving students choice is very powerful and empowers the students to make the material more authentic to them, something I think we can all increase in the classroom.
Overall, I am really excited both professionally and personally about this genius hour idea. I am going to begin to implement in my classroom, and possibly at home as well with the kids! Might make a fun family learning experience!
Thank you,
Jim
I have to say that this assignment this week was one of my favorite that I have done over my cousework at USF. The idea of the Genius hour is.... well genius!! I love it as a personal activity as well as its application in the classroom. Getting students excited about what they are learning is sometimes difficult. But what if we put the ownership on them? What if they get to pick the topics to get to an end goal that we decide? Definitely, and interesting idea to explore form both a personal and educational angle.
For my genius hour, I used this opportunity to explore a topic that I have been thinking about for awhile now. Two years ago I watched the documentary, COWSPIRACY, with my wife at home. I was already making changes in my life to become more environmentally friendly but was looking to do more. I have to say, this documentary and the research that came afterwards have really changed my life. I have now gone 2 years without consuming beef, or any other mammal for that matter. I learned that to call yourself an environmentalist, you cannot consume beef. Agriculture for meat production is the single largest contributor to green house gas emissions and therefore the biggest contributor to global warming. If you add all of the transportation on the entire planet together, it doesn't come close to the damage agriculture does to our planet. I drive a fully electric Tesla, but I make a much bigger impact by not eating a hamburger! One pound of beef also takes over 2400 gallons of water to produce. I quickly decided to change my diet but never gave going full vegetarian a chance because of my love for Chicken.
Fast forward to this Genius Hour, I decided to research what it would take for me to go full vegetarian and the environmental impact it would make. I purchased a cookbook on Amazon, watched 3 youtube videos, and found the number 1 vegetarian source online for most of my research. I learned a lot in this hour and realized that I need to make this change to better myself. I learned a lot about meal prep, and specifically how to make sure I still get all of the necessary nutrients. I also learned about how this will change my carbon footprint thanks to an excellent ASAP Science Youtube video! I am looking forward to this Genius Hour turning into a Genius lifetime and really started to think about the application in my classroom.
I think including a "Genius Period" every once in a while is a great idea for the classroom. Especially if you can use it to teach a skill. If you teach English or Math, what an awesome opportunity to get some personalized instruction by allowing students to choose the subject material they use to get the skill. In biology, this may be more difficult but I could see giving students a genius period to study an animal of their choosing, or an environmental impact of their choosing. In some ways it mimics the genius hour idea, but also guides students to similar outcomes. Giving students choice is very powerful and empowers the students to make the material more authentic to them, something I think we can all increase in the classroom.
Overall, I am really excited both professionally and personally about this genius hour idea. I am going to begin to implement in my classroom, and possibly at home as well with the kids! Might make a fun family learning experience!
Thank you,
Jim
Hey Jim,
ReplyDeleteBeing environmentally friendly is something I am very interested in as well. Although from the sound of it I am not as committed as you. I do not think I could ever go vegetarian. I love beef and chicken too much. I would love to get an electric car though. What do you think about the tesla? How long have you had it? How many miles do you get before it needs a charge? Do you notice any difference in the amount of power it has verses a gasoline fueled car?
From Allison Geers
ReplyDeleteJim, I am a vegetarian as well and just the name Cowspiracy elicits a shutter inside of me. I am glad that you have had the time during this Genius hour to research vegetarian eating. When I work out and take care of my body I am a much happier person to be around because I feel at peace. As a vegetarian for 10+ years, I know i have fallen into the traps of eating meat free- but not necessarily healthy. Having time during the Genius Hour to research vegetarian cooking and the added benefits of decreasing your carbon footprint sounds like it will be a great start to eating intentionally for you!
Jim,
ReplyDeleteThank you as always for making me environmentally conscientious. I have never been much of a beef eater, I like cows too much, but to know the environmental impact means it is something that I should take seriously. Just like all those candy bars I don't eat anymore thanks to you ;-)
Although I'm not a vegetarian, I do try to eat meat free. So I am going to throw this out there, and I might regret my decision, but what is your opinion on soy? Being a biology teacher I am curious if you know about the health debate, and if so, what is your take?
As for genius hour, it sounds like you have some good ideas. I understand how hard it is to give up classroom time, but maybe it is the kind of leap we need to make to see where the students might go if we let them...
Elise