Citations

These are the resources I have used throughout my Genius Hour research. Just in case anyone is interested in any of these websites I attched the links to each website by the corresponding MLA format citation.

• "3D Origami Art." 3D Origami Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click HERE)

• "3D Origami for BEGINNERS." YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015.  (To follow the link click HERE)

• "A Brief History of Paper." Crafts RSS. N.p., 31 May 2013. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click HERE)

• "DIY - Bird Cage Lanterns - The Bride's Cafe." DIY - Bird Cage Lanterns - The Bride's Cafe. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click  HERE)

• "Types of Origami." Types of Origami. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click HERE)

• "好可爱的折纸熊猫~快来学习折一个吧." 好可爱的折......_来自Florence_11的图片分享-堆糖. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click  HERE)

• "The History Of Paper And Paper Crafts." Papersave. N.p., 21 Mar. 2013. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click HERE)

• “Kirigami Is an Art Form Where Paper Is Folded & Cut to Create Beautiful Designs." Kirigami Is an Art Form Where Paper Is Folded & Cut to Create Beautiful Designs. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click HERE)

• "Origami Maniacs: What Is 3D Origami?" Origami Maniacs: What Is 3D Origami? N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2015. (To follow the link click HERE)

2000 Paper Cranes

I just found out a interesting fact about paper cranes. I read about an ancient Japanese legend that says that anyone who folds 1000 paper cranes will be granted a wish. Many people fold 1000 paper cranes for weddings, hope, and good luck. The video shows how much an act of one person can a difference. Artist, and creator of the video, Jeffery Brown wrote:


"This is an art project I've created to memorialize Sadako Sasaki.

Contained within the fragile wings of these 2000 paper cranes is the portrait of Sadako Sasaki. A child victim of leukemia from the atomic bombings of Hiroshima, Sadako folded paper cranes as a means to become well again. She eventually lost her battle from a disease caused by a war that was no fault of her own. Drawing from her dedication to overcome adversity and born from the hope to memorialize and inspire, each grayscale crane serves to allow Sadako's story of perseverance and optimism to live on. A single origami crane stands true as a universal symbol of peace, but when folded and grouped into larger quantities, their overwhelming inspiration seems to flourish.


Although hatred and greed abundantly affect much of our world, it seems that compassion and empathy are spread thin. These emotions, be it love or hate, are universal, and not exclusive to any one creed; their potential lives inside everyone. This message is echoed in the fact that a folded origami crane can blossom from any hand. It is hoped that the solemn stare of the girl that materializes from within the careful arrangement of folded paper helps the viewer to reflect on the potential that lives inside themselves."

Jeffery Brown's art piece is currently being displayed in Hiroshima, Japan after almost seven years of dedication. It is held in a permanent display pieces in the Honkawa Kindergarten in Hiroshima, which is the closest kindergarten to the Peace Memorial Park. Jeffery Brown hopes to inspire a new generation.

In the End

This is the last blog post I am required to do for my English 1 class. It has been a wonderful six weeks of having the freedom to research the topic that I chose. I present to my class on Tuesday, May 12, which happens to be next week. I plan to continue exploring my leading question : What aesthetic creations can be made out of paper? I also plan to continue blogging even though Genius Hour is about to end. Everyone in English 1 at my school is required to answer five simple questions for their last blog entry.

1. What was your favorite part of the topic you chose?
My favorite part of learning what objects can be made out of paper was how broad the topic was. I loved how many things I could research and make within this one driving question. I had the option of working with copier paper, rice paper, wax paper, cardboard, poster board, tissue paper, and more.

2. What was your least favorite part of the topic you chose?
My least favorite aspect of my topic was how much time it took to make a product. I love to make things, but with the hectic schedule I have at school combined with how tired I am by the weekend makes it difficult to make more products for Genius Hour.

3. What do you like best about Genius Hour research?
My favorite thing about Genius Hour research was learning about the history behind paper. I have a deep love for research and history, so I also find it exciting knowing how inventions we have today were made.

4. What do you like least about Genius Hour research?
Participating in Genius Hour is always a joy, but there are many problems that happen along the way. My least favorite part of Genius Hour research was that most of the days my class had a chance to work on Genius Hour during class happened in the computer lab. The firewall was maddening. Resources such as : YouTube and g mail are not accessible in the computer lab. Any photographs I emailed myself in preparation for my in-class research were useless. The first day we started Genius Hour I realized that websites that have online radios were also blocked. Websites with pictures and instructions to projects are great, but videos on YouTube were more helpful when I was trying to learn something new for my topic.

5. What was the most important thing you learned about yourself, how you learn, or research in general as a result of this work?
I quickly learned that I like to create my own product more so than following someone else's directions. I like to problem solve my way through anything that happens while I'm making my own product. I also realized that I like blogging. I'm learning more and more about what I like to write, and that there are people in the world who actually like what I post :D. I also found out that I care more about the quantity of the products I create. I always care about the quality of anything I make, but for some reason this year I have such a strong desire to make a lot of products to present to my class. I know I probably won't have another opportunity to make many art projects during the next 19 days of the school year, so I think I'm in a hurry to take advantage of this opportunity. I also had a problem with doing a variety of paper crafts. My brain tells me I should explore different types of paper crafts, but my heart is usually stuck on one type of paper crafts. If I make an art project based off of a logical decision where my heart is not into it, I will not enjoy making it. I had to get to the point in this process where I felt comfortable making things I loved to do instead of worrying if my class would "approve" of it during my presentation. I actually learned a lot about myself and how I learn through this year's Genius Hour research.

I am mostly a visual learner. If I can see what I'm trying to do and think out loud or hear what to do I am
golden. During Genius Hour research I could not stay quiet to save my life. Thinking out loud helps me think more clearly. The more comfortable I am with thinking out loud the easier it was to research quickly.

I found the Papyrus flower the most interesting through the course of my research. I found it amazing that dried flowers were used to make paper. ( To see more information about the history of paper on a previous blog post Click HERE )




I can't wait to continue posting on my blog! Thank you for everyone's support through my process of my Genius Hour project. I still have some Genius Hour related post that I will publish before I present to my class. This process has been fun, exciting, and very eye opening. I can't wait to continue more Genius Hour projects in the future. 

The Paper Crane

My 17 paper cranes

My newest success was finding out how to make a paper crane. Paper cranes hold a very special place in my heart from a story my mom used to tell me. To this day I still have the children's book that holds that story. My interest in making paper cranes was inspired my The Paper Crane by Molly Bang. ( To watch the video of the of children's story The Paper Crane by Molly Bang Click HERE)


Between first and second period during my school day on Friday I made 17 paper cranes. It took me a few times to actually make a paper crane that looked right. I actually had five attempts of making a paper crane that I just crumpled up because I couldn't get it right.

Making paper cranes are easy after the first few attempts of making them. One of the things I love about them is how small or big they can be depending on the size of paper you make them out of. Paper cranes are also really easy to display. I haven't made any paper crane displays yet, but I am planning on doing some type of display in the near future. 

Failure #3

As I have said before, I don't mind embracing that failures I have during this Genius Hour Process. A while ago I messed up a 3D origami base. I glue each module together, so if I put 26 modules together instead of 25 modules I've already ruined the entire base and I have to start over. The 3D origami base won't be wasted - I'll use it in another art project one day.

What the base should look like

What my base basically looks like

I felt so frustrated when I realized I messed up the base. I think I was awake into the early hour of the morning and my body was giving me signs to go to bed. I actually had three failures involving 3D origami bases, but two of them mysteriously disappeared. When I look for instructions I understand what I'm supposed to do, but my mind starts wandering and next thing I know I can't connect to rows of modules.

It's always disappointing when I see a picture of how a 3D origami base should be and then I realize my failure has one module too many so the whole thing is ruined.