Genius Hour Reflection
Summarize the purpose of of your Genius Hour project in 140 characters
1. I used my Genius Hour opportunity to learn more about how to use herbs in meals and everyday life. Then I gave herbs away into my community.
Explain the process of your Genius Hour project. Be reflective. Be contemplative. Explain and describe your journey. (No Less Than Three FULL Paragraphs.)
2. The main theme I wanted to focus on for my genius hour project was eating healthy. I came up with the idea to grow different kinds of herbs. The first step in my project was the set up. I got a coffee table and some plastic to put on it. I placed the table downstairs near a window. I was not sure if the plants would get enough light, so I bought a grow light from home depot. I found the best deal on herbs at Menards in Green bay, WI. Here, I bought 50 herbs including oregano, chives, parsley, rosemary, sage, purple sage, and golden sage. The plants started as seedlings because I did not have enough time to start them from seeds(it is very hard to start herbs from seeds). I placed the plants on the table with the grow light above them. This is where I kept them for about two months.
Taking care of the plants was the hardest thing about this project. I had to water them about every other day depending on the type of herb. I also had to trim the herbs so that the dead pieces were not in the way of the new buds. When necessary, I moved the plants to different spots on the table and rotated them to make sure all of the herbs were getting enough light. As some of the plants got bigger, they needed to be transplanted into bigger containers. I found the perfect pots at the dollar tree to put them in. I also bought some soil to add to the plants.
I did not only learn how to grow herbs. I also looked up facts about each herb and recipes to go along with them. Many of the herbs can be used for healing purposes when people are sick. Some herbs like sage can be burned or smudged onto objects to make things smell nice. Herbs such as parsley can be used as a source of vitamins and minerals for people. Many people also find herbs useful when treating diseases and temporary problems like insect bites. After looking up the miscellaneous uses for the herbs I had, I looked up delicious recipes to go along with them. I tried one of the recipes for chive biscuits and chive butter that you put in the biscuits. They were delicious and we still make them occasionally.
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.)
3. After I grew herbs for about two months and researched benefits and recipes of herbs, I decided to share my findings with the community. My plan was to give the plants that I grew out to people in the community. I made a logo for my project and a sign to bring with. I attached my “business card” to the herbs with clothes pins. I felt that they needed more, so I printed off recipes for the different kinds of plants. My first giveaway was at the Northern Lights YMCA. I hand out about 15 herbs. I returned to the YMCA about three weeks later and handed out another fifteen plants. That time though, I made the Biscuits and Chive Butter Recipe for people to try. I think it was a hit! The final 20 herbs, I brought to the Community Center. I not only attached recipes, I also gave people a packet on some of the miscellaneous uses for the herb of their choice.
On the little business cards I handed out, I gave people the link to my website. On my website, I had links to all of the resources I used to find facts about the herbs. I also added more links for people who might be having trouble taking care of their herb plants. If they still have questions, I added another page where they are able to contact me. Last semester, I was only able to find a few seedlings to grow. Because I was only able to hand out ten plants, I brought more recipes and miscellaneous facts for people to take if they were interested. I split the plants up into fives and went to the YMCA and Community Center again. I hope that people were able to find cool ways to use their herb plants and how to make their meals healthier and filled with more flavor.
If you could do anything different with your Genius Hour project what would you do differently and why? (No less than two full paragraphs.)
4. I believe that overall I was very successful with my plan for my genius hour project. There were two things that I would do differently if I had to redo my genius hour project. The first thing that I would change is the way I gave out my plants. I would have liked to take more time growing the plants so all of the plants were a good size for people. When they were prepared to my liking, I would try to give away my plants at a bigger place, unlike the YMCA and Community Center. It was hard find times that would work for me while having enough people their to give them away to. I think a place like Walgreen's might have been a good option to give away my herbs.
The second thing that I would change if I redid my genius hour project would be the different types and amounts of herbs I bought. When I was at Menards in Green bay, I did not really think through buying six different kinds of herbs until my project started progressing. It was nice to have the different options for people, but I only bought a few of some of the kinds like rosemary and oregano. I think it would have been better to get a large supply of about four different kinds of herbs to make it easy on myself when taking care of them and to give people more practical options of herbs they have heard of before. Some people hadn’t heard of some of the options I had and so they did not take them even though I had the facts and a recipe for each kind. Other than those to things I felt that everything ran smoothly and I would love to do it again.
Reflect on what you did well during this Genius Hour process? Note your successes and accomplishments. (No less than two full paragraphs.)
5. Overall, I believe my project turned out very well and I was able to successfully complete my plan. At the beginning of my project this semester, I was afraid I might not find little seedling herbs anywhere at that time of year, but I was able to find a bunch of them at Menards in Green bay. I was also able to find a table and a grow light to use for growing my herbs and allowing them to get as much sunlight as possible. I only had four seedlings die at the beginning of my project out of fifty. I was able to stay on track with watering and trimming my plants. While I was growing the herbs, I also added a few more things to my website involving what to do if your herb is dying or how to take care of it. I thought this would be a nice addition to the links that I previously provided involving these topics.
In the second half of my project, I also had much success. I was able to set up times at the YMCA and the Community Center again to hand out more plants. My plants went just as fast as they did the first semester. I made more recipes, fact sheets, and “business cards” for my plants. It seemed to work out in the fact that I was not seeing the same people as I did when I handed out plants first semester. I only lost about four plants towards the end of my project because they seemed to be dying and I didn’t believe that it was fair to give those ones away.
1. I used my Genius Hour opportunity to learn more about how to use herbs in meals and everyday life. Then I gave herbs away into my community.
Explain the process of your Genius Hour project. Be reflective. Be contemplative. Explain and describe your journey. (No Less Than Three FULL Paragraphs.)
2. The main theme I wanted to focus on for my genius hour project was eating healthy. I came up with the idea to grow different kinds of herbs. The first step in my project was the set up. I got a coffee table and some plastic to put on it. I placed the table downstairs near a window. I was not sure if the plants would get enough light, so I bought a grow light from home depot. I found the best deal on herbs at Menards in Green bay, WI. Here, I bought 50 herbs including oregano, chives, parsley, rosemary, sage, purple sage, and golden sage. The plants started as seedlings because I did not have enough time to start them from seeds(it is very hard to start herbs from seeds). I placed the plants on the table with the grow light above them. This is where I kept them for about two months.
Taking care of the plants was the hardest thing about this project. I had to water them about every other day depending on the type of herb. I also had to trim the herbs so that the dead pieces were not in the way of the new buds. When necessary, I moved the plants to different spots on the table and rotated them to make sure all of the herbs were getting enough light. As some of the plants got bigger, they needed to be transplanted into bigger containers. I found the perfect pots at the dollar tree to put them in. I also bought some soil to add to the plants.
I did not only learn how to grow herbs. I also looked up facts about each herb and recipes to go along with them. Many of the herbs can be used for healing purposes when people are sick. Some herbs like sage can be burned or smudged onto objects to make things smell nice. Herbs such as parsley can be used as a source of vitamins and minerals for people. Many people also find herbs useful when treating diseases and temporary problems like insect bites. After looking up the miscellaneous uses for the herbs I had, I looked up delicious recipes to go along with them. I tried one of the recipes for chive biscuits and chive butter that you put in the biscuits. They were delicious and we still make them occasionally.
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.)
3. After I grew herbs for about two months and researched benefits and recipes of herbs, I decided to share my findings with the community. My plan was to give the plants that I grew out to people in the community. I made a logo for my project and a sign to bring with. I attached my “business card” to the herbs with clothes pins. I felt that they needed more, so I printed off recipes for the different kinds of plants. My first giveaway was at the Northern Lights YMCA. I hand out about 15 herbs. I returned to the YMCA about three weeks later and handed out another fifteen plants. That time though, I made the Biscuits and Chive Butter Recipe for people to try. I think it was a hit! The final 20 herbs, I brought to the Community Center. I not only attached recipes, I also gave people a packet on some of the miscellaneous uses for the herb of their choice.
On the little business cards I handed out, I gave people the link to my website. On my website, I had links to all of the resources I used to find facts about the herbs. I also added more links for people who might be having trouble taking care of their herb plants. If they still have questions, I added another page where they are able to contact me. Last semester, I was only able to find a few seedlings to grow. Because I was only able to hand out ten plants, I brought more recipes and miscellaneous facts for people to take if they were interested. I split the plants up into fives and went to the YMCA and Community Center again. I hope that people were able to find cool ways to use their herb plants and how to make their meals healthier and filled with more flavor.
If you could do anything different with your Genius Hour project what would you do differently and why? (No less than two full paragraphs.)
4. I believe that overall I was very successful with my plan for my genius hour project. There were two things that I would do differently if I had to redo my genius hour project. The first thing that I would change is the way I gave out my plants. I would have liked to take more time growing the plants so all of the plants were a good size for people. When they were prepared to my liking, I would try to give away my plants at a bigger place, unlike the YMCA and Community Center. It was hard find times that would work for me while having enough people their to give them away to. I think a place like Walgreen's might have been a good option to give away my herbs.
The second thing that I would change if I redid my genius hour project would be the different types and amounts of herbs I bought. When I was at Menards in Green bay, I did not really think through buying six different kinds of herbs until my project started progressing. It was nice to have the different options for people, but I only bought a few of some of the kinds like rosemary and oregano. I think it would have been better to get a large supply of about four different kinds of herbs to make it easy on myself when taking care of them and to give people more practical options of herbs they have heard of before. Some people hadn’t heard of some of the options I had and so they did not take them even though I had the facts and a recipe for each kind. Other than those to things I felt that everything ran smoothly and I would love to do it again.
Reflect on what you did well during this Genius Hour process? Note your successes and accomplishments. (No less than two full paragraphs.)
5. Overall, I believe my project turned out very well and I was able to successfully complete my plan. At the beginning of my project this semester, I was afraid I might not find little seedling herbs anywhere at that time of year, but I was able to find a bunch of them at Menards in Green bay. I was also able to find a table and a grow light to use for growing my herbs and allowing them to get as much sunlight as possible. I only had four seedlings die at the beginning of my project out of fifty. I was able to stay on track with watering and trimming my plants. While I was growing the herbs, I also added a few more things to my website involving what to do if your herb is dying or how to take care of it. I thought this would be a nice addition to the links that I previously provided involving these topics.
In the second half of my project, I also had much success. I was able to set up times at the YMCA and the Community Center again to hand out more plants. My plants went just as fast as they did the first semester. I made more recipes, fact sheets, and “business cards” for my plants. It seemed to work out in the fact that I was not seeing the same people as I did when I handed out plants first semester. I only lost about four plants towards the end of my project because they seemed to be dying and I didn’t believe that it was fair to give those ones away.
Business Card
Herb Facts
https://docs.google.com/document/d/11alTGjiCEcbl1TmLVGyr23_4nKUbGRbggDuVQ4hUcHk/edit#
Recipes
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZW3bJbk1uCfF0onf_THDSgsH4hiE6YHspsMEc0ASaDg/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1v1i3HcLmn_0cv_pRyewpPAzG21juiBqH2SfMq-BG3CU/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/15gBL7lLoylw3xGiLuTPmCcbpHNlzRuWb8aULB1GUWyI/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UFbRQnBn0joSGQpzdh2pIPxVdPNU2ldsGf0FgfZ3_YE/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/11alTGjiCEcbl1TmLVGyr23_4nKUbGRbggDuVQ4hUcHk/edit#
Recipes
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZW3bJbk1uCfF0onf_THDSgsH4hiE6YHspsMEc0ASaDg/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1v1i3HcLmn_0cv_pRyewpPAzG21juiBqH2SfMq-BG3CU/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/15gBL7lLoylw3xGiLuTPmCcbpHNlzRuWb8aULB1GUWyI/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UFbRQnBn0joSGQpzdh2pIPxVdPNU2ldsGf0FgfZ3_YE/edit