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Genius Hour Post #1: Topic Selection

For this E-Learning course, we are focusing our energies on a Genius Hour project - curveball: for ourselves! I've had experience with taking students through the Genius Hour process for several years while I was still in the classroom, and I've also helped to lead our district staff through education-related Passion Projects, but I've never completed a Genius Hour or Passion Project of my own. This is EXCITING! I'm the type of person who never stops learning and trying new things, so this type of project is right up my alley.

Now, what to focus on? I love to journal in my free time and one of my entries a day or two before the new year was a bucket list for 2020 (pictured). On that list I included things I've always wanted to try, to learn, or to experience, and so what better place to start my Genius Hour project than there?

Some bucket list items that could make for excellent Genius Hour projects include:

1) Capture beautiful moments with my camera

Two Christmases ago, I got a beautiful shiny new DSLR Canon camera - and I have no clue how to use it. I took a one-day photography class right after I got the camera, but after 6 hours of terms like "shutter speed" and "ISO" flying around, I left more confused than when I walked in. I have promised myself I would give more energy to this hobby, but two years later, my camera is still sitting in my hall closet collecting dust. I am traveling to New Zealand for spring break and would love to bring my camera on that trip to capture the beautiful sights. I just have to learn how to use it first.

2) Learn to surf

I have always wanted to learn how to surf. A interesting choice of potential hobbies seeing as I live in the midwest, but that hasn't stopped me from wanting to learn. I am going to Hawaii with my family this summer, and am dying to hang 10 with the best of them! I've always been a west coast girl at heart (hello, bright blonde hair and love of palm trees), so it is no wonder that the idea of waking up early on a Saturday morning and taking my board down to the beach to catch some waves really lights me up inside. Now if only it weren't 10 degrees outside...

3) Take a cooking class

Growing up, my grandma was the world's best cook and baker, and I always told myself that someday I would cook just like her. Well, fast forward 20 or so years, and my best dish is spaghetti and meatballs, that is if I don't overcook the noodles. It seems that no matter how hard I try, the things I cook just don't turn out how I'd like them to. I follow recipes to a T and I will still burn, undercook, or somehow otherwise ruin any meal I try to make. I love to host and entertain, but my lack of cooking abilities makes it embarrassing and I typically fall back on ordering out for my company. I'd love to learn how to cook so I can share my cooking with other people!

Comments

  1. Lorene HimpelmannJanuary 21, 2020 at 7:09 PM

    Photography nearly made it onto my top 3 list as well. The idea of taking those amazing photos I see other people post online makes me want to take a class.

    ReplyDelete

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