Do you follow your curiosity?

Episode 42 in Part 3 of our Introduction series: Getting to know others.

Habits:  Be Curious | Ongoing Learning

Skills:  Passion | Ideas | Initiative

Description:  In this final episode of Passion Arena's introduction series, we investigate the role of curiosity in finding your passions. We outline the benefits of curiosity for its own sake and ask you to consider the areas where you a most curious. Is there an opportunity for a future career or hobby that merges different areas that you are curious about?

 

Suggested student exercise

What are you curious about?

Ask your students to make a list of all the areas that they find themselves curious to know more about.

When they're done, ask them to review the list. Are there any common themes? Could they merge two or more of their curiosities into one field like James Cameron did?

How this lesson might be applied in the classroom

This final episode in our Introduction Series, investigates the importance of curiosity in helping students to find their passions, or their 'element'. We encourage students to think not just about the things that interest them, but to think of ways that some of their interests might intersect. We use the interests of filmmaker James Cameron to demonstrate this idea – Cameron having merged his loves of story telling, science fiction and diving into a career that's seen him make movies like The Terminator, Aliens, The Abyss, Titanic and Avatar.

In discussing this episode, some questions might include:

  • How could you know if you're curious about something? What would be your clues?

  • Do you think it matters if you're curious about one thing a lot, or lots of things a little? Why/Why not?

  • If you're struggling to come up with ways to connect some of the things you're curious about, what could you do? Who could you talk to?

  • Are there things you're curious about, but don't know how to take the next step? Who could you turn to for help?

  • Do you think there are other ways to discover the areas you're most interested in other than curiosity? What are they?

  • If you're struggling to think of anything that you're curious to know more about, is there a close friend or family member who might be able to help you?

  • What is it about each of the things you're most curious about, that makes you curious about them?

Some specific discussion points

As always, discussion of any literary works, historical figures, celebrities or characters who display a sense of curiosity offers an opportunity to discuss how their curiosity might have shaped their outcomes.

Questions may include:

  • Can you think of someone (a celebrity, TV, movie or book character – other than James Cameron) who has been able to merge two or more things they're interested in to create a new area of interest?

  • How has this new interest been of benefit to them?

  • Think of a naturally curious person or character – how has their curiosity provided new opportunities for them?

  • Has their curiosity ever led to bad outcomes? If yes, are there ways they could have been curious without the risk of bad outcomes?

  • Can you think of any successful person who has a strong interest in what they do, or the outcomes they deliver to others?

  • Can you think of any successful person who does not have a strong interest in what they do, or the outcomes they deliver to others?

  • Does having a sense of interest/curiosity in what you're doing helps you to be better at it? Why/Why not?

  • Think about the things you're best at – do you have a stronger interest in them than other things you're not so good at? Is there anything else that makes you better at these things?

Discussing the quote from this episode:

"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing" — Albert Einstein

Possible areas of discussion may include:

  • Do you agree that the important thing is not to stop questioning? Why/Why not?

  • What is the connection between connection and curiosity?

  • What do you think Einstein meant by Curiosity has its own reason for existing'?

  • How could being more curious help you;

    • At school?

    • In your relationships?

    • In something you're already interested in?

  • What are some reasons you might not question or be curious?

  • What could you do to help you ask more questions or be more curious?

Further information on this topic

If you'd like to dive a bit deeper on this topic, you might be interested in watching:

 

James Cameron – Before Avatar... A Curious Boy.

 

Please let us know how we could improve this episode?

We're always keen to hear how our work can be improved. If you can think of anything we can do to improve either the delivery of our content, the content itself, the exercises, or our guides to how the lesson can be applied in the classroom, please let us know.