Genius Hour

Post 1

What better way to end our final class than with the concept of a Genius Hour?! I have to admit, when I initially learned about this assignment, I had mixed feelings. I’m excited about the idea of learning something new, but I also feel a little uneasy about entering uncharted territory. 

I’m so glad I started this process of deciding what the focus of my passion project would be by watching If Money were No Object. I found myself reflecting on his words and pondering the questions he posed. It must’ve been the tone of his voice that really drew me in. He ends the video with, “It’s so important to consider this question: What do I desire?” And at that point, I thought Well, that’s a loaded question! 

I needed a little more guidance to get me thinking about the last question Watts posed, so I scrolled to the bottom of our assignment to reflect on some of the other questions. I found them to be helpful when I started making a list. I learned that many of the things I enjoy doing, are things that I’m good at, which makes sense (no one likes to do things that they suck at!). So, I decided that I’m going to try to pick something I know I’ll have to put some effort into and that I’ll probably get frustrated with at some point. My three ideas are: to learn more about teaching practices in other countries, to learn how to make baklava, and to learn some Spanish.  

Post 2

One of my favorite things to do is to learn about different people and cultures through traveling, so all of my ideas are somewhat tied to that.  My first idea stems from the fact that I’ve always considered teaching abroad. After doing a little research on Fulbright, I learned that the whole process of applying and going through the teacher exchange program is quite involved. Obviously, moving to another country can be complicated, so I might need some time to really think things through! I’ll have to table that idea for now.  

My second idea, learning how to make baklava from scratch (not the kind with store-bought phyllo dough), would make my Albanian mother so proud. However, making that work would be tough. My mom lives about 2 hours away from me and I don’t think I can learn via FaceTime.  Not to mention, rolling paper thin dough takes a lot of time to perfect, and I’m not sure I have enough patience to work with my mom for that long, and vise versa! 

Maybe I'll just persuade her to make some for our final class instead ;)

My last idea comes from my recent struggles to communicate in Spanish during my trip to Colombia. Look, I’m not aiming to be fluent here, but I’d like to improve my conversational language skills. I have plenty of resources (both tech and human) to assist me, so I feel more confident in tackling it. I’m also inspired by my students to learn more. I feel like I’ll be able to connect with my bilingual Spanish speaking students better and even my 5th graders who take Spanish class three times a week. Plus, I’m going to Mexico next month, so I’ll have the 

opportunity to practice! Voy a aprender Español! (Hopefully Google Translate got that right!)