Genius Hour: Passion Projects that Ignite Innovation and Student Inquiry

Andi McNair would like to start a revolution in education, and she calls it “Genuis Hour.” This book is a fantastic guide for teachers to implement student-directed passion projects in the classroom. “They [students] are tired of learning by completing worksheets that involve nothing more than putting pencil to paper and regurgitating what they have just heard.” McNair posits that students can and should learn by doing. That’s just what passion projects offer children.

This book thoroughly explains each step of the process and offers the tools necessary to get started in your own classroom. Each chapter ends with questions for you, the educator, to reflect on how you might begin this process in your class. Examples, tips, and templates abound, giving you everything you need in this one slim and easy-to-read book.

Although aimed at educators, this book can also be useful for parents. It includes great tips on how to discover and encourage the passions of children. This is certainly valuable information for parents. It also provides a clear and concise understanding of what the goals of education should be in our modern age. It definitely challenges the norm, but in an inspiring and energizing way.