Year 5s Genius Hour

Genius Hour is an inquiry-based, personalised learning experience that gives students the opportunity to work on a project they are passionate about in class time. Genius Hour provides strong connections to many of the attributes found in the College’s Connecting Learning to Life Strategy. It fosters students’ sense of curiosity, ownership, and empowerment of their learning. 

This term, students in Year 5 participated in Genius Hour during their Library lessons. The girls were given time to identify a challenge they would like to explore and were then responsible for creating weekly plans, managing their time, organising materials, and reflecting on their learning with the goal of presenting their project to peers in Week 8. 

The process allowed students the freedom to think independently, take risks, problem-solve, think creatively, learn from their successes and their failures, and develop resilience. The students were completely engaged from the start, and many went above and beyond by continuing their projects out of class time. 

Among the many amazing projects were a food critic video, a nesting box for local fauna, an interactive poster using Makey Makey circuits, an interior design booklet, a hydro-dipped pot, a podcast about dogs, and a plan for a sustainable underwater farm.  

Here are some quotes from the girls.

“I had to change my project three times, I overcame this by being resilient and I kept trying my best.”

“The best thing about Genius Hour was that we had the freedom to do whatever we love doing. It is inspiring to know what I am capable of learning.” 

“I learned to never give up and face challenges.” 

“The best thing about Genius Hour is you get to embrace and learn about what you love.” 

“In Genius Hour I could let out the inner me and be creative!” 

What A Term! So Many Opportunities – Jennifer Oaten

As I look back on the past nine weeks, I am so grateful for who we are as a community and what we have achieved. Through the dedication of our staff and the enthusiasm of our students, we have established new connections, immersed ourselves in opportunities and worked through challenges.

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