Article 2 Genius Hour

Article 2 Genius Hour

References
RUSH, E. B. (2015). Genius Hour in the Library. Teacher Librarian, 43(2), 26-30.

I added the word “library” to “instructional technology” this week in an attempt to find an article that would give me more specific information to use in my current role as an elementary librarian. I came across an article titled, "Genius Hour in the Library".  While I've heard of maker spaces and hour of code, I’d never heard of Genius Hour. I was intrigued and dove into this article by Elizabeth Barrera Rush.

Rush begins the article by explaining that Genius Hour is a new movement in education, “that allows students to spend time in school exploring, researching, and studying any topic of their choice.” (Rush, 2015) Rush details her inspiration and steps for implementing Genius Hour into her library. 

Rush’s first step was to get support from the school administration and faculty. Once she had convinced most of the school that it was a good idea and wouldn’t take any extra effort for the test fatigued teachers she began to build an environment that would supply the students with everything they would need to explore. The space included a “Tinkering Lab”, supply station, and flexible seating. In addition to the physical changes to the library, she created explicit guidelines for the students.

From there Rush outlined where to begin with, the students. She suggests a student/parent digital survey engage the students and parents in the project. The digital results will make it easier to keep track of the students’ topics and resources needed. Once the students have chosen a topic to research she teaches library skills such as how to use reference sources and how to evaluate websites.

Rush then mentions ways to keep organized throughout the year and how to plan a Genius Hour event to show off all the presentations. She ends the article with advice and a list of logistical details.

I found the idea of the genius hour intriguing. I love the idea of students learning about something they are passionate about while learning literacy skills. The article only skimmed the use of technology during Genius Hour. I was hoping it would incorporate more technology than using the computer to research. While I found this article informative, it did not increase my instructional technology knowledge.