20% Time Kick-Off

Last week was our big 20% Time Kick-Off day. This year feels really different than the past 2 years because I was out on maternity leave last semester (I am now a mama to the cutest baby ever - Luke).

Being out presented a few challenges with starting 20% time. Usually, by this time in the year, I have a few things going for me that are really important in starting 20% time:
1. I've built up a level of trust with the students  - this is really important in explaining an ungraded project. For the first time when I introduced it, I had students who really seemed not to be all that interested in pursuing it if there wasn't a grade involved (I think I won some of them over though after our Bad Ideas Brainstorm and showing them the news video from last year).
2. I know them well. I'm still getting to know my kiddos this year. That makes it harder for me to help lead them in the right direction. In the past, I've really been able to help students pick (or should I say get rid of bad ideas for) projects. I'm worried I won't be able to help as much with some of the students that it's taking longer to get to know.
3. They know it's okay to fail. This is a big one. I know last semester was rough with the substitute (not for lack of trying on her part). Due dates were slippery, they did a lot of book-work, they tried to do research papers and had a rough time with that... so it's been a transition to reset their expectations in our Language Arts class. I need to get them to the point where they are willing to try things (with the possibility of not reaching a goal) and learn how to set and re-evaluate their goals quickly. I think there is kind of a mind-set that takes some time to build that is optimal for 20% time projects.

All that said, I'm glad I'm aware of these challenges and I'll be working really hard to gain back some of that missed time together.

Definitely having so many great examples from the past and the news story to show my students helped inspire them big-time. I'm grateful for that. I'm also really excited about my students this year - they're reading more than ever (20 minutes each day of books they choose), they are one of the nicest bunch of students I've ever taught (someone is always holding the door open and people seem welcoming and friendly to everyone), and I feel like I have a diverse group of teens that will soon be showing off their diverse interests and skills.

All in all, I can't wait to see what this year's 20% Time Projects will bring. Here's to counting down the days to our May 12 presentation day (pencil it in!).