Written by Cultivating Genius
When I began my Cohort 21 journey back in 2012, I was grappling with how much flexibility I had to allow students to determine the content they learned vs. the content I selected to develop their skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing in French.
I learned a lot from my research and the ensuing personalized unit of study I designed. A challenge for many of my students was that providing a short time frame to complete a project didn’t allow them to “dig in” as I hoped they would to achieve their learning goal. I needed to reconsider the roll-out of an inquiry-based unit of study for my students that provided enough time, structure and guidance to allow them to succeed at every step of the learning process.
I was introduced to Genius Hour for the language classroom when I attended a conference in November. I had done a bit of reading 
on the topic that applied to teachers in all disciplines, but Laura Sexton’s presentation had me consider the idea through the lens of a World Language teacher, and got me really excited about the design of a new learning opportunity in my French classes. Finally, this is the framework that I’ve been looking for!
Many thanks to A. J. Juliani (@ajjuliani) and Laura Sexton (@SraSpanglish) for their generous online sharing which has helped me immensely in the initial launch of this project. I am in the process of introducing a Genius Hour (or Heure de Génie) project to my Grade 10 French class, which will run from January-May (every 5th class in a non-semestered timetable). I am fortunate to be collaborating with my Spanish colleague who is following a similar format with her Grade 11 & 12 students.
In the coming months, I will observe how well students use their time during Genius Hour classes, how motivated they are to complete Genius Hour tasks in the target language, and evaluate language gains in the Interpretive, Interpersonal and Presentational modes of communication (to borrow ACTFL-speak).
Has anyone tried Genius Hour in their classroom (French or other?) I’d love to hear your input on positive outcomes, challenges and any advice you’d like to share.
Hey Jen!
I haven’t tried Genius Hour, but now I want to! In the past, I have done a “Choose Your Own Adventure” project, in which students design and complete their own unit at the end of Grade 12 Green Industries, and it has been very successful. Last year, one student started a business, while others entered design competitions. Here’s a link to my thoughts on that experience: http://www.lesmcbeth.com/choose-your-own-adventure-student-designed-curriculum/
I can’t wait to hear how it goes in your class. Thanks so much for sharing! I am going to bring this to my team at Greenwood.
Les
Hi Les,
It was great to read your blog post – there are some great resources listed there, and I love the format you used for your CYOA project! It was great to read those tidbits on how you played your coaching role. I’ve had some great coaching conversations so far, although at times I wish I had you and a team of people right behind me that I could consult on the spot for inspiration!
Thanks,
Jen
Love the Genius hour and 20% time. I am going to share this infographic with my students who are currently beginning their Project Based Learning challenge. Looking forward to hearing how it goes.
Cheers,
Tim
Hi Jen,
Yes! I love it! Thanks for hyperlinking all of your other blog posts. This is something I would love to explore next year. As you know, I really like to personalize the learning so we do this but it’s within a framework. So students get choice but not ultimate choice.
Last year students created their own essential questions but I like the idea of the sky is the limit.
Thanks so much for this post. You’re an inspiration to language teachers and I would love to hear all about your conference!
I look forward to reading and hopefully hearing about how this goes in your courses!
Thanks for this Jen! (and thanks to Tim Rollwagen for hyperlinking me to your site).
I love the personalized learning/voice and choice approach and I look forward to reading/learning about the project throughout the process.
I can, perhaps speak more specifically to the broad structure. In my English Class I use a ‘1 topic equals 18 essays’ framework that I think a lot of English teacher are using these days (over the course of the year, students write 18 essays, exploring a range of purposes, on one topic of their choosing). So, like you, every fifth class is dedicated to this endeavour. I love it and I think the students kind of do to. It is a massive endeavour, but it doesn’t weigh on them – they appreciate the distance from it, just as they appreciate the dedicated, focused time. Also, it provides a disruption to the regular flow of class , which they also appreciate. Writing days have a different feel, they arrive with a different sense of purpose, and it seems to sooth the demands of “regular” class. It feels healthy. Does that make sense?
In the end, they ALL have an impressive body of work to represent a pretty personal journey. That in itself is gratifying to watch.
I think you’re going to love it, and again, I look forward to following.
Hi Graham,
Thank you for your comments! I just posted again about Genius Hour and made reference to how much I’m loving the time frame of the project so far. I can’t believe what a difference it makes to give some distance between the Genius Hour classes. I hope you’re enjoying your time with the Cohort this year and spreading a love of reading in your class and beyond!
Jen