The Meaningful Mess Community
Welcome to the Meaningful Mess Community! It's a safe and free space where educators gather to learn, share, and grow together. With almost 700 passionate members, our community is a place for meaningful collaboration. Join us for regular meetups where we brainstorm, problem-solve, and inspire one another. Dive into our engaging challenges designed to spark creativity and experimentation. And don't miss our treasure trove of posts filled with innovative ideas, practical strategies, and resources tailor-made for Genius Hour projects. Come be a part of this supportive community where the journey of education is as enriching as the destination.
Join the FREE CommunityAre You Ready to Make a Real Impact in Gifted Education? Join the BIG TALK Community!
The first thing a gifted learner should receive after being identified is clarity.
Providing clarity and and understanding for gifted learners and their families has the potential to completely change their gifted experience. This Masterclass is designed to help educators, coordinators, and administrators design an Gifted Onboarding experience that will take gifted services to the next level.
REGISTRATION IS OPEN NOW!
Learn More
I've also created an entire year's worth of Gifted Onboarding Newsletters for you to access and use in your classroom. Check out this year's newsletter's below.
2024-2025 Gifted Onboarding NewslettersWant to learn on your terms? The virtual book studies allow you to learn in your PJs, in your classroom, or in the park.
Each book study includes videos to watch as you read the book as well as additional content, resources, and ideas to implement as you learn. Note: Each course requires purchase of the book.
Genius Hour changed everything in my classroom. I was tired, burned out, and ready for change. I almost left education for good and then stumbled upon the idea of Genius Hour. I began to implement this idea in my gifted classroom and created a framework to make this type of learning manageable and meaningful. In this book, I share the framework along with a ton of ideas for implementation. If your looking for something something new in your classroom or an innovative way to serve gifted learners, this is the book study for you!
Genius Hour Book Study
How do you organize what may seem like a chaotic mess into a classroom that empowers students to engage with content and pursue their passions? I wrote this book to offer suggestions and specific tools that can be used to engage this generation of learners in meaningful, relevant, and student-driven learning experiences—even if things in the classroom may get messy, both literally and figuratively. In this book, I address strategies and tools such as Genius Hour, Makerspace, flexible learning spaces, meaningful technology, global learning experiences, critical and creative thinking, collaboration, and reflection.
A Meaningful Mess Book Study
Differentiate your gifted classroom by designing experiences instead of writing lessons plans. I don't think that addressing the specific needs of countless learners doesn’t have to be overwhelming and unsustainable! I wrote this book specifically for general education teachers that aren't sure how to challenge and engage their gifted learners. My goal was to offer a fresh mindset and process for designing meaningful experiences that leave learners engaged, empowered, and motivated to move from surface-level learning to deep understanding.
Designing for Depth Book Study
Do you have questions? Want someone to support you as you implement Genius Hour step-by-step?
My coaching platform allows me to record our interaction for you to rewatch and take notes as well as a space for me to share resources and ideas throughout the time that we work together. If you'd like to work together to implement Genius Hour, support your gifted learners, or just design meaningful learning experiences, let's do this! I'm here to help and ready to serve you through a meaningful coaching experience.
If you are implementing Genius Hour and would like to access my resources to make the process both manageable and meaningful, these resources are MUST HAVES.
My Genius Hour Student Learning Guides guide learners through the process and give you an opportunity to see documentation of their learning.
The Skills Enhancement Suite includes over 80 learning experiences designed to engage learners in skills practice throughout the Genius Hour experience.
This is the ULTIMATE guide for anyone wanting to implement Genius Hour in the classroom. This package includes everything you need if you are just getting started or need a fresh start. Have you wanted to try Genius Hour but your just afraid to jump in? Have you tried Genius Hour before and it just didn't go the way that you hoped? Do you need a thought partner to just be "in it" with you to reflect and share ideas? This is what you've been waiting for! Maybe, you haven't heard of Genius Hour but you are looking for a new way to serve your gifted learners? The package includes:
Genius Hour: Passion Projects that Ignite Innovation and Student Inquiry- The book that started it all. The book will introduce you to the 6 Ps of Genius Hour process and help you understand the what, why, and how of the entire experience.
Genius Hour Coaching Package - The coaching package is an opportunity for us to connect 8 times as you go through the Genius Hour process in your classroom. I will support you through each step with new resources, reflection opportunities, and the opportunity to ask questions and share your experience.
Genius Hour Student Learning Guides - The learning guides were created for students to use as they move through the Genius Hour process. It is a wonderful resources for your learners to use to document their experience for you, as the educator, to see evidence of their journey.
Genius Hour Skills Enhancement Suite - The Skills Enhancement Suite includes over 80 learning experiences that give learners the opportunity to build skills throughout the Genius Hour process. This resources was created to make the experience more meaningful and intentional in any classroom.
You will receive a certificate for documentation of the professional learning for both the virtual book study and the coaching sessions.
I want the ULTIMATE Genius Hour Toolkit!