Genius Hour Post 3

The Genius Hour project has continued to progress quite nicely for me. I am continuing to write more poems and have a nice collection of them built up so far. I have about 22 poems written so far ranging in length, type and content. This project has helped to reinvigorate my creative mind and get me back into a zone I haven't explored in a while. I have written in five different poetry styles so far. These styles include Acrostic, Haiku, Cinquain, Ode and Limericks. These types range in both their structure and the length of each poem. Odes tend to be a little longer in length but Cinquains and Limericks are on the shorter side. I have learned about so many different forms of poetry I have not had experience with prior. In regard to the illustration side of my scrapbook i plan on completing that part last after I finish the poems. I have brainstormed some ideas for what I want to include on the cover of my scrapbook. I want to include pictures of famous poets, some cool art and maybe a couple pictures of myself to personalize it.

Acrostic Poems

Haiku Poems

The topics I have chosen to write about are mixed between stuff that is reflective of my experiences and more general topics such as food or animals. I love writing the fun poems but I do enjoy talking about subject matter that is more personal to me. I have been tackling some stuff that touches on some of my fears and hopes in regard to school, my future,my friends/family etc. I wanted to talk about the aspects and people in my life that are the most important because I want this scrapbook to be a reflection of me and my journey so far. Later poems in my scrapbook will tackle subjects that in the past I have been reluctant to write about including some of the harder moments in my life. 

Cinquain Poems

Ode Poems

Limerick Poems

I see myself using Genius Hour in the classroom as a way that can enhance the main subject matter. My main teachable is history and my goal is to teach that in a high school setting. I would incorporate genius hour by using it as one of the culminating project. It would be something that the students could do toward the end of a big unit but it would be ongoing. An example would be students have to make something that demonstrates the life story of a person during a historical period or event. This could be in the form of a diary, film, letter etc. This would be a great way for my students to demonstrate that they know the content but also get them passionate about the subject matter by providing them a small window into the past.

The biggest strength of the genius hour framework is that it has stimulated the creative aspects of my brain. It also has got me thinking critically about ways that creative writing can be used across curriculum. Another strength has been that the project has been fun because it involves something I'm passionate about. The biggest challenge has been coming up with subject matter to write my poems about because I have to come up with so many. 

Hopefully by next week I will have even more written and I will be close to finishing. Hope you have enjoyed seeing what I have so far and look forward to sharing more soon.