Genius Hour Part 3

Since last week I have continued looking into potential reasons why different European countries have varied traditions of how they prepare perogies.  As it turns out, a lot of it stemmed from the economic status of the country/area, specifically when it came to the concept of refrigeration.  The area of Ukraine that my grandma is from was traditionally a fairly poor region.  As such, their access to refrigeration was very limited and food items like potatoes do not expire when kept at room temperature, which is why the perogies I grew up with always contained potato filling.  Wealthier areas in countries such as Poland, who could afford luxuries like access to fridges, are where perogies tended to be filled with types of ground meat.  As meat needed to be kept below room temperature, and spoiled quicker, it was more likely to be kept around these wealthier households.  A similar explanation can be used as to why I had never heard of fruit perogies until this project.  Compared to potatoes, fruit doesn't last near as long at room temperature, and as such, having lived in a poorer region, my grandmas family continued using potatoes as their staple ingredient.

As of now I have obtained some of the perogies from the Ukranian church across the street and plan to cook them at some point over the thanksgiving break.  I also plan to make my grandma's homemade perogies at this point whee I will then start my taste testing to determine which perogie, under which cooking method is the best tasting.

As a side note, during my research I discovered that people love perogies so much that in Alberta there exists a giant, 6,000 pound statue of a perogie on a fork.  I know I love perogies but I never would've guessed it was something worthy of its own monument!  In case you don't believe me I've attached it below.

Al Hunt. (8 August, 2008). Perogy in Glendon, Alberta [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/fracture/2748295544/ 

Throughout this project and course I have learned a number of things about myself, my family, and the ways in which I can be an effective teacher.  This project has allowed me to explore my family's history and heritage, of which I was aware of but never really explored until now.  This has given me the chance to better understand how and why some of my family's traditions came to be and better relate to the history of my grandma and her family as they eventually came to Canada.

Within this course, my experiences have allowed me to have a more well-rounded perspective on technology in the classroom.  I have also learned just how oblivious I was to the huge variety of educational technology tools that exist.  Before this course, my concept of educational technology was limited to Youtube, PowerPoint, and Smartboards.  I have learned since that there exists an entire world of "educational social media" and sharing programs that allow teachers and students to share with each other in a more controlled way.  I have also learned that I am more competent in using technology than I first thought.  I always thought that using creative, engaging technology in class required someone very adept at using technology, but I found out that I am able to effectively use a lot of these programs.  It helped me discover the confidence to approach opportunities to use educational tech with enthusiasm instead of doubt that I will understand.

The next steps for me will be the filming of my movie trailer and ted talk.  Specifically, now that I have my background research, the main component left for me to do is to make and cook all of the perogies and give them a proper taste test, and maybe even prepare some to bring to class!