Awakening Genius
As an educator, what is your most inspirational idea? For me, it is the book Awakening Genius, by Thomas Armstrong. It is a short book, 70 pages, first published in 1998 by ASCD. I highly recommend it. The book is organized into three parts – Every Student is a Genius, The Genius Shuts Down, and How to Awaken Genius in the Classroom. Armstrong defines genius as “giving birth to one’s joy”. I believe Oprah has said it is following one’s passion in life. Armstrong further defines genius as the guiding force that inspires one at crucial moments in one’s life. He also provides his definintion for the twelve qualities of genius: curiosity, playfulness, imagination, wonder, wisdom, inventiveness, vitality, sensitivity, flexibility, humor and joy.
The book is a must read for anyone who has kids or teaches. As educators we want to help kids develop their potential, and Armstrong gives ways to support students in finding their inner genius. He states in his conclusion, “Right now in your classroom you may have a student who had the potential to someday develop a vaccine for AIDS, or to create a plan to combat world starvation, … If you embrace the notion that genius is just for the elite few, you might let this student slip by unrecognized, and theat gift might be lost to the world.” As administrators, we have the added responsiblity of our staff. To protect and nurture their genius, make sure teachers do the same for their students, allowing everyone to reach their potential.
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I love the quote from your blog, “If you embrace the notion that genius is just for the elite few, you might let this student slip by unrecognized, and that gift might be lost to the world.” As a classroom teacher, one of the best things I ever did was to add AIG (Academically and/or Intellectually Gifted) certification onto my teaching license. The instructional strategies I learned in the training helped me to better teach all children. One notion I took away from the training was that all students have gifts, and it is up to us as teachers to open their gifts.
What a powerful quote! We really do need to help children reach their full potential by helping them discover their genius!
All students have gifts. Most of the people who we label brillant were poor students. How did they reach such levels of success? Someone tapped into their gift. The quiet student in the corner. The student who has attention seeking behaviors. The daydreamer. All of these need to be challenged so that the brillance can be drawn out earlier.
Thank you for introducuing me to this book. I have never heard of it before abd I am looking forward to reading it. The premise of this books reminds me of a speaker that I once heard. I cannot remember the man’s name, but he was an educator who had taught in the inner-city. He shared with the audience the story of his first year at a new school. He asked the principal for information about his students before school started, and the principal provided him with what he interpreted as the student’s IQ scores. He was delighted to see that every child in his class was gifted. That school year, he gave the students special projects and assignments that were very challenging. At the end of the year, his class outscored all other classes in the school. The principal then revealed to him that the numbers she had given him before school started were not IQ scores, but their locker numbers! This story reminds all of us that kids will rise to the expectations we set for them.
I agree that all students have gifts. Adding AIG certification to my teaching license has also enhanced my teaching in the regular classroom, like it did for you. Another challenge was adding National Board Certification. My instruction has improved from the process, and I have gained a more comprehensive view of curriculum as well as the role of a teacher in a school.