I just read about Genius Hour (time given to Google workers to explore something they are passionate about during work hours). Teachers have been using this concept in Science classes to give students time to explore what interests them. I love the idea.
I decided to try it with Social Studies today. The students watched CNN Student News, then I gave them time to do some research on their chromebooks about anything in the news that they wanted to know more about. Some students tried to find out more about the Malaysian plane crash, INTERPOL, Eric Snowden, a new dinosaur species, or an interactive Pizza Hit table. It was 15 minutes of students researching something in which they are interested. Good use of time, I'd say.
The students had to submit a few paragraphs to me to show that they learned something new and they gave me feedback on their interest levels during class. I learned a lot from reading their posts and I feel they recognized what I was trying to do and they appreciated it. 7th and 8th graders should have some time to explore interests and start to figure out what they might want to do in life. How much do people earn? What requirements are needed for certain jobs? What colleges offer what I need to study? These are individual questions that I can't answer for everyone. They have the devices to find information - give them some time to explore what interest them so they can become interesting and productive citizens.
No comments:
Post a Comment