Summarize the purpose of your Genius Hour project in 140 characters.
My genius hour project is about spreading kindness to the people around me in our community. A small act of kindness can have a big effect.
Explain the process of your Genius Hour project. Be reflective. Be contemplative. Explain and describe your journey. (No Less Than Three FULL Paragraphs.)
My genius hour project is all about spreading kindness to the people around me in our community. My partner and I are aware that our generation is based
around social media and cell phones. With such devices and easy access to the internet comes cyber-bullies and reckless individuals who spread gossip with the security of hiding behind a screen. Many teenagers are oblivious to the effect that their words can have on another person. Our whole plan was to give back to our community and in doing so, prove to others that kindness is easier than hatred. Kindness will always beat out hate and we wish to spread the word to others our age that being kind is so simple. The smallest act of kindness can impact a person in a big way.
Our journey began when our teacher, Mrs. Sutton, gave us an opportunity to ring bells for our local Salvation Army. We woke up early on a Saturday morning and met at the the grocery store. We spent three hours ringing bells, singing Christmas songs, and smiling. Many people thanked us for our service to the organization which felt good. In the end, we were able to raise lots of money. Our next idea was to take a visit to the local animal shelter. We agreed that spreading kindness should not only be to the people in our community but also to the animals. One sunny afternoon after school, Jen and I took a drive to our animal shelter. Our first stop was to visit the kittens. There was a “visiting” room full of kittens and another room that had all cats in cages up for adoption. We decided to visit the ones in the cages first. Jen and I looked in the all the cages making purring noises and petting the ones that would come to us. It was quite shocking to me how many cats there were that were up for adoption. It seemed that every cage was full, some with two or more cats in them. All of them were fluffy and friendly. We particularly enjoyed playing with the baby kittens. Next, we went into the visiting room where we held some kittens and took pictures with them giving them love. Last but not least, we visited the room with the dogs. Luckily, there were not many dogs. We felt bad since a family arrived not long after but left with no dog. Many were friendly but loud due to the fact that we were strangers.
At the beginning of second semester, we were contemplating switching the focus of our project. That is until we again received word from our teacher that the gym instructor, Mrs. Bianco, was planning on starting up a used clothing store upstairs in our very own school. Our teacher said she was searching for individuals to decorate and run the store. Jennifer and I sprung on the idea immediately. I emailed our gym teacher and asked her if we could help her which she answered yes. Over the course of a couple months, we spent every Friday in the room hanging up clothes and moving the furniture to make the room aesthetically pleasing. We met with the teacher on an almost daily basis to make sure we were on the same page. There was a lot of clothing that was donated to the school for the store. The idea of the store was that individuals could drop off new or slightly used clothing and take clothing of their choice in return. There would be no cost and we chose the hours we would open it. The teacher put Jen and I in charge of the ideas and running the store. The week before the opening, I made posters and hung them up in all the main school halls. We opened on a Tuesday and the store had a slow start with people not knowing what it was all about. Jen and I encouraged people to start bringing in clothes but it was still slow. Some people did donate and take clothes. I think the idea was a great one. However, we didn’t get the word out well enough for people to be aware.
The intention For Genius Hour is NOT only to learn, but ALSO to share your knowledge with others who can and will benefit from your learning. How did you share your learning? What do you hope the result might be? (No Less Than Two Full Paragraphs.)
I shared my learning by discussing my genius hour project with strangers and adults who found the project quite inspiring. I also told my parents about my idea. I explained the need for a change in our community. Our community needs to learn to come together and be kind to one another in order to live a life of happiness. Being kind is so much easier than being rude.
Spreading kindness is so simple to do and you can start with such a small act. One small act of kindness can impact a person’s life in a major way. I hope that people start to realize this. If everyone made a point to do one nice thing for a person each day, the world could be made a better place one step at a time. Especially being a teenager, many of us are self-absorbed and oblivious to the feelings of others. I hope the result could be a change in the majority of teens to realize that their actions or words can affect others positively and negatively. The sooner the realization occurs, the sooner they can change for the better.
If you could do anything different with your Genius Hour project what would you do differently and why? (No less than two full paragraphs.)
I would try to be better at spreading the word about my genius hour project. Since our main audience was for teenagers, we should have put the word out about our project with others at our school. I think we could have tried to work harder aiming for our goal and tried to volunteer more in our community. At the beginning of our genius hour project, we were so focused on gaining ideas and putting them into action. A few weeks into the project, Jen and I seemed to start slacking off which was one of our first mistakes. I wish we would have taken advantage of the hour we were given every week to make our project the best it could be.
One main problem was that Jen and I had so many ideas yet so little time to accomplish them. We had ideas about events we could hold and had hopes of starting a kindness club at our school. With the time we were given, we lacked the chance to achieve these goals. I wish we would have worked outside of school to try to make these things happen. We could have worked harder at trying to make our ideas a reality. Anything is possible if we would have worked a little harder. When my partner, Jennifer, was moved to a different class, we stopped talking as much. We didn't stay connected to work on our project which was a big reason that it ended up not being as successful as we hoped.
Reflect on what you did well during this Genius Hour process? Note your successes and accomplishments. (No less than two full paragraphs.)
During our genius hour process, we were able to visit our local animal shelter, raise money for the Salvation army, and establish a clothing store at our school. We were successful in giving love to many homeless cats and dogs. Although this is not a huge accomplishment, I know that these animals rarely get visitors and desire attention which we were able to give. Like I said, I believe even the smallest of acts can impact others (even animals) in a big way.
The ringing of bells was for sure one of my favorite parts. The Salvation Army has always been very close to my heart since I love the work that they do. My mom did a lot of volunteering for them for many years. I felt proud to wear the “I am a bell ringer” apron and raise money for a good cause. I know that the money will be used to help those in need and saw the impact that my volunteering had on some of the individuals who thanked me. I also feel accomplished with the work that we did with the store at my school. I felt honored to be part of such an event. I was shocked by how many donations we received and the quality of clothing. Jen and I spent weeks hanging up many items of clothing. We worked long hours and met with our teacher as often as we could. I was quite pleased with the results:)
Include any videos, pictures, presentations, or artifacts that will document your journey.
My genius hour project is about spreading kindness to the people around me in our community. A small act of kindness can have a big effect.
Explain the process of your Genius Hour project. Be reflective. Be contemplative. Explain and describe your journey. (No Less Than Three FULL Paragraphs.)
My genius hour project is all about spreading kindness to the people around me in our community. My partner and I are aware that our generation is based
around social media and cell phones. With such devices and easy access to the internet comes cyber-bullies and reckless individuals who spread gossip with the security of hiding behind a screen. Many teenagers are oblivious to the effect that their words can have on another person. Our whole plan was to give back to our community and in doing so, prove to others that kindness is easier than hatred. Kindness will always beat out hate and we wish to spread the word to others our age that being kind is so simple. The smallest act of kindness can impact a person in a big way.
Our journey began when our teacher, Mrs. Sutton, gave us an opportunity to ring bells for our local Salvation Army. We woke up early on a Saturday morning and met at the the grocery store. We spent three hours ringing bells, singing Christmas songs, and smiling. Many people thanked us for our service to the organization which felt good. In the end, we were able to raise lots of money. Our next idea was to take a visit to the local animal shelter. We agreed that spreading kindness should not only be to the people in our community but also to the animals. One sunny afternoon after school, Jen and I took a drive to our animal shelter. Our first stop was to visit the kittens. There was a “visiting” room full of kittens and another room that had all cats in cages up for adoption. We decided to visit the ones in the cages first. Jen and I looked in the all the cages making purring noises and petting the ones that would come to us. It was quite shocking to me how many cats there were that were up for adoption. It seemed that every cage was full, some with two or more cats in them. All of them were fluffy and friendly. We particularly enjoyed playing with the baby kittens. Next, we went into the visiting room where we held some kittens and took pictures with them giving them love. Last but not least, we visited the room with the dogs. Luckily, there were not many dogs. We felt bad since a family arrived not long after but left with no dog. Many were friendly but loud due to the fact that we were strangers.
At the beginning of second semester, we were contemplating switching the focus of our project. That is until we again received word from our teacher that the gym instructor, Mrs. Bianco, was planning on starting up a used clothing store upstairs in our very own school. Our teacher said she was searching for individuals to decorate and run the store. Jennifer and I sprung on the idea immediately. I emailed our gym teacher and asked her if we could help her which she answered yes. Over the course of a couple months, we spent every Friday in the room hanging up clothes and moving the furniture to make the room aesthetically pleasing. We met with the teacher on an almost daily basis to make sure we were on the same page. There was a lot of clothing that was donated to the school for the store. The idea of the store was that individuals could drop off new or slightly used clothing and take clothing of their choice in return. There would be no cost and we chose the hours we would open it. The teacher put Jen and I in charge of the ideas and running the store. The week before the opening, I made posters and hung them up in all the main school halls. We opened on a Tuesday and the store had a slow start with people not knowing what it was all about. Jen and I encouraged people to start bringing in clothes but it was still slow. Some people did donate and take clothes. I think the idea was a great one. However, we didn’t get the word out well enough for people to be aware.
The intention For Genius Hour is NOT only to learn, but ALSO to share your knowledge with others who can and will benefit from your learning. How did you share your learning? What do you hope the result might be? (No Less Than Two Full Paragraphs.)
I shared my learning by discussing my genius hour project with strangers and adults who found the project quite inspiring. I also told my parents about my idea. I explained the need for a change in our community. Our community needs to learn to come together and be kind to one another in order to live a life of happiness. Being kind is so much easier than being rude.
Spreading kindness is so simple to do and you can start with such a small act. One small act of kindness can impact a person’s life in a major way. I hope that people start to realize this. If everyone made a point to do one nice thing for a person each day, the world could be made a better place one step at a time. Especially being a teenager, many of us are self-absorbed and oblivious to the feelings of others. I hope the result could be a change in the majority of teens to realize that their actions or words can affect others positively and negatively. The sooner the realization occurs, the sooner they can change for the better.
If you could do anything different with your Genius Hour project what would you do differently and why? (No less than two full paragraphs.)
I would try to be better at spreading the word about my genius hour project. Since our main audience was for teenagers, we should have put the word out about our project with others at our school. I think we could have tried to work harder aiming for our goal and tried to volunteer more in our community. At the beginning of our genius hour project, we were so focused on gaining ideas and putting them into action. A few weeks into the project, Jen and I seemed to start slacking off which was one of our first mistakes. I wish we would have taken advantage of the hour we were given every week to make our project the best it could be.
One main problem was that Jen and I had so many ideas yet so little time to accomplish them. We had ideas about events we could hold and had hopes of starting a kindness club at our school. With the time we were given, we lacked the chance to achieve these goals. I wish we would have worked outside of school to try to make these things happen. We could have worked harder at trying to make our ideas a reality. Anything is possible if we would have worked a little harder. When my partner, Jennifer, was moved to a different class, we stopped talking as much. We didn't stay connected to work on our project which was a big reason that it ended up not being as successful as we hoped.
Reflect on what you did well during this Genius Hour process? Note your successes and accomplishments. (No less than two full paragraphs.)
During our genius hour process, we were able to visit our local animal shelter, raise money for the Salvation army, and establish a clothing store at our school. We were successful in giving love to many homeless cats and dogs. Although this is not a huge accomplishment, I know that these animals rarely get visitors and desire attention which we were able to give. Like I said, I believe even the smallest of acts can impact others (even animals) in a big way.
The ringing of bells was for sure one of my favorite parts. The Salvation Army has always been very close to my heart since I love the work that they do. My mom did a lot of volunteering for them for many years. I felt proud to wear the “I am a bell ringer” apron and raise money for a good cause. I know that the money will be used to help those in need and saw the impact that my volunteering had on some of the individuals who thanked me. I also feel accomplished with the work that we did with the store at my school. I felt honored to be part of such an event. I was shocked by how many donations we received and the quality of clothing. Jen and I spent weeks hanging up many items of clothing. We worked long hours and met with our teacher as often as we could. I was quite pleased with the results:)
Include any videos, pictures, presentations, or artifacts that will document your journey.