My daughter had been singing for almost two hours with no break. The song “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” from the Frozen soundtrack was on repeat, and my…
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Students continue to fall into the same trap year after year with traditional schooling. They rarely have a chance to choose their learning path in school, and routinely treat school…
Teaching is not always easy. And learning can be a struggle for many of our students. As educators, we are called to this back and forth process of teaching and…
If you haven’t heard of Genius Hour or 20% time in the classroom, the premise is simple: Give your students 20% of their class time (or an hour each week) to learn…
Ahh, summer is coming to an end. For some of us, school has already started, for others, we still have a few weeks left before the doors flood open with…
I remember thinking about doing Genius Hour (or as I called it a 20% time project) in my class for the first time. It was a bit scary. It was…
It was towards the middle of my first year teaching (8th grade) when it hit me: My class was spinning out of control, and it was all my fault. I…
Creativity isn’t limited to STEM or STEAM or even the arts. Every time a student is designing, building, tinkering, and problem-solving, it becomes a chance to develop a maker mindset….
A few years ago, during the school year, my students and I had a similar problem: There wasn’t an opportunity for me to find out what they really enjoyed doing,…
I often get asked about the steps for running a Genius Hour Project or a 20% Time project in your class. I tend to give the same answer every time:…
We’ve all had our “aha” moments as teachers. Those days where everything clicks, the students are not only engaged but also empowered, and for a minute we remember why we…
Note: I recently opened up enrollment in my Genius Hour Master Course. The course is available to join from now until July 30th. After July 30th we are shutting down the…
If you haven’t heard of Genius Hour or 20% time in the classroom, the premise is simple: Give your students 20% of their class time (or an hour each week) to…
“Let me ask you a question,” she said. “Ok,” I offered back, not too sure where this was headed. “This whole Genius Hour and 20% project thing…isn’t that how we…
I failed a lot this year (you can read about them all here in my failure report), but also had some amazing successes with teachers and students at our school….
In the five years since doing the 20% Project in my class, I’ve connected with amazing educators doing the same type of inquiry-based learning, whether it be Genius Hour, 20%…
When my students were doing the 20% Project (Genius Hour) in my class we had an “Epic Failure Board” (inspired by a number of people) where they would pin up…
How do I get started? Lucky for you there are many teachers who have already jumped into Genius Hour and 20% Time Projects. Even luckier is that they have shared…
Mohini was a regal white tiger who lived for many years at the Washington DC National Zoo. For most of those years her home was in the old lion house—a…
In the past couple of weeks, I’ve been asked the same question multiple times after speaking, “Do you still believe Genius Hour and 20% Projects are the best way to engage…
I used to think all I needed to create something that mattered was passion…I was wrong. It turns out passion might start the engine and get the creative process moving,…
Remember waiting? We used to wait for our favorite song on the radio. We used to wait for a TV show to come on and watch simultaneously with millions of…
I remember devouring “Choose Your Own Adventure” books as a kid. I’m sure many of you had the same experience as the “hero of your own story” making choices that…
Michael Port shares a story (in his book) about a donkey, an old man, and a boy: An old man, a boy and a donkey were going to town. The…
Want to start Genius Hour in your classroom but not sure where and how to begin? Already started Genius Hour and need a bit more guidance? I hosted this 25…
It is a new school year and I’m so excited to see many teachers and schools starting Genius Hour or 20% Projects for the first time! As I mentioned to…
This is the first post in a three-part series on “Intentional Innovation”, specifically for education. Stay tuned for the second post, “The Intentional Innovation Manifesto” and the third post, “PLASMA:…
The police were on strike, yet we were still walking through the streets of Tembisa. It was the middle of July, but it wasn’t hot. We were in the southern…
In the 14th century, the term “genius” was regarded as a guardian spirit. Yet a person with “unworldly” talent was said to have a genius, because his/her gift (of genius) being a supernatural act. No one…
A young man was restless in his studies. He couldn’t stay focused on school work, and found himself consistently skipping classes, missing due dates, and working on projects that meant…
I cringe when people ask me, “Are you handy?” Partly because I don’t consider myself to be the best with tools, but also because it is asking me to judge whether…
I want to build an app. And I need your help in creating it. I know you may think, “He’s not talking about me”, but yes, I am talking about…
Professional development is needed now more than any other time. With the change of pace in learning, and the changing lives of our learners, we must teach different to meet…
It’s almost here! TEDxPennsburgED is finally happening in one week, and we’ll be broadcasting it live to the world (at Upper Perkiomen High School) on May 7th from 12:30-4:30pm (EST)….
Learning By Choice: 10 Ways Choice and Differentiation Create an Engaged Learning Experience for Every Student (my new book) is now available as a Paperback! You can get it here on Amazon…
“This atmosphere of excitement, arising from imaginative consideration, transforms knowledge. A fact is no longer a bare fact: it is invested with all its possibilities. It is no longer a…
Updated: I’ve updated this post and page since publishing my most recent book about student choice and project-based learning. I’d love for you to add resources you’ve found in the…
First, I just want to say thank you to all of my blog readers for helping make my new book, Learning By Choice, hit #1 in Amazon in Education over the weekend….
“Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” ― Steve Jobs There are moments of…
Get good grades they say. Take Honors and AP classes they say. Go to college they say. Get a good internship they say. Get a good job and work hard…
And just like that…it was over. I’d pitched the 20% time project to my students with only a few days of planning, but it turned out to be the project…
This is a live blogging event of the work PDE SAS Institute teachers and leaders will be doing during our four sessions today. Please join in on twitter with the…
It’s been almost a full three years since I told my students they would have 20% of their class time to work on whatever project they were inspired to create….
It seems there has been a lively debate going on for the past few years about whether or not 20% time is “dead” at Google. Some in the education space…
The Holstee Manifesto is a reminder of what life is about. As we continue to help students prepare themselves for anything, let’s not forget about their lives right now. It is…
This was originally published in a TeachThought guest post. John Maeda grew up working in his family’s Seattle tofu store in the 1980s. He was a bright and curious student who…
“Scratch Your Itch” Education is my favorite way to describe the inquiry-based learning process. It always starts with an itch, and you never know what is going to happen once…
I originally wrote this as a guest post for the TeachMama.com blog. Be sure to check out that site! My daughter had been singing for almost two hours with no…
Inquiry and Innovation in the Classroom is Here! First, I want to say how thankful I am to so many of you that have helped me with my book, asked…
This week, my book — Inquiry and Innovation in the Classroom: Using 20% Time, Genius Hour, and PBL to Drive Student Success — will finally be available. I’m excited, a bit nervous for people…
View the web version of this infographic here. Joy Kirr’s Livebinder Books & Blogs 20timeineducation.com Check out my new book! Inquiry and Innovation in the Classroom: Using 20% Time, Genius…
This is the second post in the “Innovative Teaching Challenge” series. To get every challenge sent to your inbox, sign up here. Ahh, the sweet smell of failure. As students…
I spent a lot of time as a teacher figuring out new ways to inspire and motivate my students. Sometimes my antics worked, but often I would fail to reach…
Maybe you’ve had the same challenge I’ve been dealing with for the past seven years in education…things change rapidly. And the only reason it is a “challenge” is understanding which…
A few months ago I wrote a post titled “10 Commandments of Innovative Teaching”. I didn’t expect it to be so well received, but teachers loved the idea behind some…
This is not about technology. This is about hope. This is about impact. And it’s about choice. Over the past few months I’ve been hit multiple times with the same…
If you are like me, then you’ve spent your fair share of professional development hours sitting…listening…watching…and never really “doing anything” until the break-out session that lasts 15 minutes at the…
As I work with students and teachers there is one common thread that the “stand-out” classrooms share: They take risks. Not only do these students and teachers take learning risks,…
A teacher I work with asked me last week, “How do we deal with those students who aren’t doing anything with Genius Hour? I feel like I’ve helped and helped…but…
Google changes everything. And, everything is going to change because of Google. There is no other company (except maybe Tesla and SpaceX) that I have more trust in to change…
I used to think all I needed to create something that mattered was passion…I was wrong. It turns out passion might start the engine and get the creative process moving,…
Each month I add a new resource to the Innovative Teaching Toolbox. Here is a simple framework for innovation in the classroom that came out of the research, interviews, and…
Have you ever wondered how some schools have made the jump from a 20th century mindset to innovative institutions? It’s no secret that these schools have to deal with the…
Joanne’s mother had died a few years earlier, and now she was a single parent (recently divorced) with no job, living off welfare benefits so she could provide for her…
As a new teacher I remember getting into my classroom for the first time. I set up the space like classrooms I had seen before and enjoyed; I got my…
“Be Yourself. Everyone else is taken.” – Oscar Wilde As I look back on the past year I realize how many different people inspired me. I was inspired to write…
In 1989 researchers set out to “evaluate the ethical continuum” of “teaching to the test”, and came up with a seven point range from “most to least ethical”: General instruction…
I’m really excited to share some awesome news! I’ve been working on my first published (by Routledge) book for the past year. It’s been a learning process throughout, but now…
Josh Kaufman’s recent book, “The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything Fast” really got me thinking. Many of us are familiar with Malcolm Gladwell’s “10,000 hours” approach to becoming…
Two years ago at this time during the school year my students and I had a similar problem: There wasn’t an opportunity for me to find out what they really…
I’m writing a book on inquiry and innovation in the classroom. The research is fascinating (I cite some of it here), but even more interesting is the lack of knowledge…
I read a lot of posts and books on the need to “innovate” in education. The authors say similar things: We need to use more technology. We need to engage…
If you follow my blog, or connect with me on Twitter, you’ll know that we are in the middle of the 20% Project MOOC. This course has been amazing thus…
With the influx in educational technology over the past decade, many schools, communities, and leaders have missed the point. Most often I hear that they want educational technology to do…
Remember waiting? We used to wait for our favorite song on the radio. We used to wait for a TV show to come on and watch simultaneously with millions of…
This July we started the 20% Time Academy. It’s a MOOC where educators have come together to discuss inquiry-driven education. We’re learning about 20% Time, Genius Hour, and how these…
Summer is just getting started, but so are the opportunities to learn and connect with other teachers around the world! I recently came back from ISTE in San Antonio and…
I was in a band for six years without ever being a musician. We were called the “25th Hour”. I was in sixth grade when my best friend Jim started…
This past year at my school we’ve taken Genius Hour and 20% Time to the next level. After a Fall in service (where we shared about Genius Hour) five other…
There are many rewarding things about being a teacher and educator. However, for me, the most rewarding part of the job is seeing growth. Watching students grow as readers and…
1. It is the “foreign language” of the future. Forget Chinese and Spanish as being the top two foreign languages students should learn. In a few years we will all…
I’m a fan of Medium. I believe it will succeed in many areas where Quora has not. I was a big fan of Quora. In fact, I used Quora very…
I hope you’ve heard about Genius Hour by now, if not – please read the awesome “Genius Hour Manifesto” written by Denise Krebs, Gallit Zvi, Hugh McDonald, and Joy Kirr….
