Passion Projects

Think back to when you were a child.  Think of the interests that you had.  Was there something that you loved? Something that you were passionate about? Was there something that you wished you could have studied or learned more about?

I remember I loved sharks and convinced my table group to name ourselves ‘the sharks’. I also loved math and numbers. But what I was most passionate about was soccer. I was fascinated by the game and spent countless hours playing soccer over the course of my life. Although it wasn’t a tradition school subject, I was lucky enough to have parents, teachers and coaches that supported my love for the game. And that made all the difference. Through the work with my passion, I was able to learn about commitment, friendship, teamwork, hard work, discipline, and fun! Soccer gave me an education and took me around the world. Having supportive people in my life has given me the chance to find enjoyment in my daily life and the desire to pass along this love of soccer to the next generation.

Children come to us with various talents, interests, gifts, and desires. It is our job to help children find their passions in life and become involved with their passion. It will enrich their lives and create a more meaningful experience in their studies.  They will feel a connection to something and their work will truly be a labor of love.

Why encourage passion? Passion drives individuals to pursue information voraciously, consuming everything ever made for a particular interest.  In the pursuit of the interest of the moment (or a lifetime), one learns at the upper levels of ability, pushing personal development.

How strange that classroom conversations are so rarely concerned with love of learning or with really getting good at something, in contrast to talk about minimal standards, grades, deadlines or state testing.  Could it be that, by NOT mentioning love of learning or pursuit of mastery, by not inviting our students to see how they relate to those aspirations, we contribute to an atmosphere of indifference, boredom, or mild interest?

William Butler Yeats said, “Education is not about filling a pail, it’s about lighting a fire.”

As an elementary school teacher, we spent part of our year studying our passions. I called it a ‘Passion Project’ and gave students the opportunity to study whatever they wanted. It was a magical time in the classroom and an enriching experience for each student involved.

I explained this project to the students and told them, “You get to study whatever you want!” Their eyes lit up and they stared spouting off the various ideas they had! It was electrifying! The looks on my students’ faces when they thought about studying whatever they wanted was absolutely priceless. I took them to the computer lab and adjoining library and let them explore. They had one hour to search and explore various ideas they had that they wanted to study. They could have stayed there even longer. They spent time reading and sharing and talking and showing each other their passion project ideas. After, they had to turn in a written statement about what they wanted to study. Some of them are as follows:

“I would like to study more about the solar system because I have only studied about it for two years and I want to learn more!”

“I would like to study and learn the languages of the whole world!”

“I want to study about Great Danes because that is the kind of dog I have.”

“I want to study cars because cars are cool!”

“I want to study about music in the 1960’s. With that, I’d study about The Beatles.”

“I would like to study a lot about health because when I grow up I want to be a doctor. That is why I want to study a lot about health, starting from now until all my life!”

After this, students worked to present their information in the form of a children’s book. This way each student could see their passion shared with other kids. They wrote rough drafts, had meetings with me to check on their progress and worked in a special zoned classroom area for final copy work. Upon completion, we had a celebration! Each student was able to present their passion project in any way they wanted. We celebrated each of them as authors and had some amazing presentations.

Eric’s passion was old cars and he was able to make a video and interview his grandfather who owned a very nice old car. During the interview, Eric asked his grandfather, “What are you plans with this car?” The grandfather replied, “Well, I am going to pass it along to my grandson.” Eric realized his grandfather was talking about him but tried to contain his excitement and professionalism during the interview and managed to squeak out, “Well, that is VERY GOOD NEWS!” It was such a special moment! After the video, Eric brought the class out to the school parking lot where his grandfather was waiting with the car. Eric explained in detail about the car and let every look around.

Miranda’s passion project was about lacrosse. For her presentation, she read her book and then her brother (who was on the high school lacrosse team) came into the classroom in his uniform with all of his gear and talked to the class. The students were mesmerized!

Each presentation was unique and well thought out. It was a special time in our classroom full of energy and excitement for each passion studied and shared!

It is our job to make sure that children have the opportunity to find their passion in life and to delve deep into it. We can do this by exposing the children to various subjects and topics, by sharing our own passions and by letting them explore and experience a variety of topics. The joy and sense of fulfillment they will gain through their involvement with their passion will be profound.

Dr. Mel Levine explained, “You learn best when you love what you are learning.”

Every child deserves the opportunity to explore their passion.