Teaching Strategies
My number one priority while teaching is to find something engaging to inspire my students to think critically and to help keep them focused on the task at hand. I know when my father watched Roy Rogers on the movie screen he was focused. I know that when Saturday morning came to a close I would engage in imaginative play starring superheroes for much of the afternoon. Heroes and their tales have enraptured humanity for centuries. All cultures have given rise to stories of heroes. The Greeks spoke of Hercules and Theseus. England shared tales of King Arthur and Robin Hood. Hua Mulan is a prominent Chinese hero. Heroes fascinate and resonate with people the world over. It is not surprising that my kindergarten students love heroes as well. But, when considering a group of characters with which to explore the concept of hero, I must take into account the diversity of my class population. Over the course of my teaching career, I have come to know that in my class, it is a very rare child who is unfamiliar with the stories created by the Disney Company, so I will focus my unit on a study of heroes by examining the stories of Walt Disney and Pixar. This choice will allow for a common pool of background knowledge and will set student engagement at a high level.
My students will be excited and inspired by a unit focused on the heroes of Disney. How do I tie this topic to content that should be explored in kindergarten? This unit will be used to address standards in the areas of English Language Arts (ELA) and Social Studies. The unit will also afford me the opportunity to teach critical social skills, which are a big part of kindergarten learning.
I aim to practice several key skills with regards to the kindergarten ELA curriculum. First and foremost, throughout the unit students will be encouraged to ask and answer questions about the stories we read and watch together. Interacting with key ideas and details from text (supplemented by videos in our case) is required of students. Another focus will be the integration of knowledge and ideas. Simply put, this will require students to link words and images. They will also be comparing and contrasting the narrative elements of familiar stories and retelling those stories, too. I will also be involving my students in writing about these tales. It is important to note that in kindergarten, writing incorporates traditional writing, but also allows for drawing and dictation by the teacher. Additionally, this unit will provide ample opportunities to practice speaking and listening skills, which are a foundation of kindergarten.
This unit also allows for the exploration of Social Studies concepts. To begin with, heroes in these stories often end up becoming leading citizens. In kindergarten we spend a good deal of time exploring questions like: Who is a citizen? And, What do good citizens do? The stories of Disney can allow us to examine the traits of the hero and to determine if these traits help them be effective citizens. The students also study the concept of working in groups or teams. Many of the heroes we will explore do not work alone. This will help us determine if working in a team is sometimes more beneficial than working alone. Finally, with the Disney animated films covering a span of 1937 to the present, we can explore the history standards. I teach the concepts of past and present. A way to help my students understand these abstract concepts is through the exploration of change over time. Our society’s heroes reflect our society’s values and the level of importance we put on certain character traits. From Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to Moana we will be able to see how our values have morphed through the changes our heroes have undergone.
I am charged with guiding my students to become citizens of the school community. With this goal in mind, I teach many necessary social skills. I will link the desirable traits of the hero to desirable traits of the school citizen. I will focus on traits like perseverance, honesty, being a good friend, cooperating, and being responsible, to name a few. My goal throughout the unit and indeed the entire school year will be to help my students attain their white hats and become heroes to each other and in their own eyes as well. As they grow through kindergarten and beyond it is my hope that these young heroes will develop into leading citizens of the school and the community at large.
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