For TEACHERS: How do u incorporate Disney into teaching???

[Crazy4mandms]

Inspired by another thread, I thought it would be a great topic for a new one! I know most of us are looking forward to the end of the year and cleaning out our classrooms, packing things up for the summer (heading to WDW!!); however, I also know many of us use the summer to work on lessons, new ideas, etc. for the coming year. So I'm wondering if any of you would like to share lessons or ideas on how you incorporate Disney into your classroom beyond the decorations. I am a multi-level teacher (grades 5-8 Social Studies and 5th grade Reading and ELA) and would love any ideas! I love integrating 5th R/ELA/SS and am thinking of starting off next year with a month-long integrated lesson using POTC as the theming. A good idea might be to give a summary of your lesson/unit here, then anyone else can request a pm of the lesson plan/unit outline. (Sorry, I'm starting this thread but have nothing to share beyond using the Disney Sing-alongs to teach poetry!)

 

[Cindy B]

One 3rd grade class I taught found a longish biography of Walt Disney (it was an older Scholastic run) and they read it as a class together.

Then the students created a timeline. Students then also made a poster of Walt Disney (no characters!) in one point of his life --either him as old or young and had a caption about it.

If you truly think about it, most kids don't know who Walt Disney really is. Honestly, he died before I was born and I am in my mid 30s! So this bio worked out well for them-- so they got to learn about him.

 

[mickeyboat]

Please don't take this the wrong way, but as a parent, I would have mixed feelings if my kids came home with work relating to POTC or Disney. I might be o.k. with pirates or mice, but I guess it is the commercialization of Disney in school I would have a problem with. Does that make sense? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill? Am I the only person who feels this way?

I would be o.k. with a biography of Walt Disney, and his contributions to animation and the theme park industry. I guess I might change my mind when I see what the lesson plan would look like, so I will watch this thread with an open mind.

Denae

 

[Cindy B]

Here's the book the class used. (It is an older book!)

http://www.amazon.com/Story-Walt-Di...6199117?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180471243&sr=8-2

I would not like as a parent a unit on the POTC movies. Remember, these movies are rated PG13, and some parents do not allow kids to see these movies. I was working at a preschool today and a bunch of 3 year olds were talking about how they saw the movie! 3 year olds! I haven't even let my kids see it and they are 9 and 12.

If you want to talk about pirates, think about flags, customs and such like that. I worked at a middle school and they did an integrated theme Social Studies/Language Arts with the book Robinson Crusoe being the cornerstone. Students read the book, created maps, made their own "fantasy island", and culminated with a Pirate fair-with all the students participating in a pirate type fair. Students had flags, games, and customs on display. There was no references to drinking, pillaging or anything like that. The students liked it-- and they had fun with it.

 

[BCDisneyFanatic]

to do a project on ecosystems. The students would watch the movie, and then have to draw food webs, discuss the biotic and abiotic conditions at different locations, answer questions about microenvironments (i.e., the log scene where they walk over the log), etc. The kids really enjoyed it (Grade 8s). We usually incorporated it into the week before Spring Break, and we would show the movie over a couple of days (this motivated the kids to get their other work done quickly!).

The first few paragraphs of the intro to the project are as follows:

In this project, you will be looking at the different aspects of the movie “The Lion King” from a scientific point of view. In addition to being a wonderful story of courage, tradition, and honour, there is an important environmental message about the balance of nature. This will be a major project worth 60 marks, and can be done individually or with a partner (no more than two to a group).

Part 1: The Lion King’s Ecosystem (10 marks)
Make a colour drawing of the Lion King’s ecosystem. You must include Pride Rock, Water Hole, Elephant Graveyard, Jungle, Desert, etc. Include a brief description of each ecosystem.

Part 2: Organisms (10 marks)
Make a table of at least 20 organisms you observe in the movie. This can include plants, animals, insects, etc. You must include the diets of all the animals in your table:

For example,
Organism Diet
Mouse Seeds, grasses, insects

If anyone is interested, I can PM them the full assignment. It is quite detailed in its criteria, and includes a marking rubric.

Heather

 

[ChrisnSteph]

Please don't take this the wrong way, but as a parent, I would have mixed feelings if my kids came home with work relating to POTC or Disney. I might be o.k. with pirates or mice, but I guess it is the commercialization of Disney in school I would have a problem with. Does that make sense? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill? Am I the only person who feels this way?

I would be o.k. with a biography of Walt Disney, and his contributions to animation and the theme park industry. I guess I might change my mind when I see what the lesson plan would look like, so I will watch this thread with an open mind.

Denae

No, I feel the same way.

 

[aprincessmom]

Please don't take this the wrong way, but as a parent, I would have mixed feelings if my kids came home with work relating to POTC or Disney. I might be o.k. with pirates or mice, but I guess it is the commercialization of Disney in school I would have a problem with. Does that make sense? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill? Am I the only person who feels this way?

It does make sense. You are not the only one. I don't know that I'd complain to the principal or school committee but I'd certainly ask the teacher why Disney was included in the lesson plan to understand the value of it in my DD's everyday learning. I have a problem with all commercialization in schools -- from the local dentist who comes in to talk to the health class and leaves behind business cards and new patient forms along with the toothbrushes and floss to the car dealer who comes on career day and leaves behind magnets and other sales related things. I appreciate the information they can impart but I don't appreciate the sales pitch.

 

[Cindy B]

If you want to do a research based project, you can pick island in the Caribbean.

(I'm just making this up off the top of my head, so no true lesson plans)

Pick an island-- use a group of about 6-8 islands so each small group is doing something new
Get coordinates (lat. and long. --uses Social studies skills)

Research the island

Population
Gross National Product-
Types of production/export
Literacy Rate (these could all be graphs--uses math skills)


Culture of Island (this is like Humanities class--or if a French speaking country--could incorporate French language)

What types of Culture?
What are some significant events in this islands culture?
What types of things are different than your culture -- this could be a comparison/contrast essay using a Venn Diagram

You can even do a webquest on this... Kids like webquests. I've made a few Webquests, they are a pain in the neck at first and then they become easy.

 

[SavvyMom]

It does make sense. You are not the only one. I don't know that I'd complain to the principal or school committee but I'd certainly ask the teacher why Disney was included in the lesson plan to understand the value of it in my DD's everyday learning. I have a problem with all commercialization in schools -- from the local dentist who comes in to talk to the health class and leaves behind business cards and new patient forms along with the toothbrushes and floss to the car dealer who comes on career day and leaves behind magnets and other sales related things. I appreciate the information they can impart but I don't appreciate the sales pitch.

I really don't think it's a matter of commercialization. It's more a matter of finding something that grabs and keeps the child's attention. Let's face it, most of our children (and us too) are of the TV generation. As a teacher, if I can find something that entices the child to learn, I want to use it! I am not as exciting as Spongebob . I didn't get the impression that OP was 'teaching' Disney, but using the characters as a vehicle to teach whatever the standards are. I think BCDisneyFanatic's idea is a great one! Use the movie to get their attention, then teach what they are required to learn using something fun as the foundation. I have a pirate flag in my room with the words, "Read, or walk the plank!" The kids (and parents) get a kick out of it. Nowadays, teachers are not given the freedom to teach whatever they want. We have to teach the standards handed down by our respective states. Disney (or Nickolodeon, or Warner Brothers) characters are just a way to get/keep the kids' interest.

As far as the dentist or car dealer goes, unfortunately, it's par for the course. At my school, the dentist comes for free and gives away floss and toothbrushes. I still remember the red tablets they gave us in school that made your teeth red if you didn't brush your teeth right. ((mine were red If they have his/her name on them so be it. Our lunch menus have advertisements on them! I'm guessing they are 'donated' as well. We gave the kids JC Penney bags to hold their stuff during our Spring Fling. We used Publix bags to make a project. Publix also donated activity books for Black History Month and, of course, they had 'Publix' emblazoned all over them.

 

[Crazy4mandms]

I really don't think it's a matter of commercialization. It's more a matter of finding something that grabs and keeps the child's attention. Let's face it, most of our children (and us too) are of the TV generation. As a teacher, if I can find something that entices the child to learn, I want to use it! I am not as exciting as Spongebob . I didn't get the impression that OP was 'teaching' Disney, but using the characters as a vehicle to teach whatever the standards are.

Exactly!

POTC, meaning....the whole "yo-ho kinda pirate thing....pirates..not nec the movie exactly..but kids are so hyped up on the whole pirate thing nowadays and most kids are aware of the POTC.

I do a few things that are Disney related in my classroom, like I use the old Disney version of the 3 Little Pigs book (compare it to the True Story of the Three Little Pigs) as a lesson in persuasive writing (5-7 paragraphs from 5th graders! And unlike many other assignments, this one gets completed by 100% of the students!!). I also use a few Disney sing-along songs to start my poetry unit (music is poetry and they all know the songs and I know they are 'clean'). They bounce along learning rhythm and rhyme, already knowing the words which is a bonus!!

Does this distract them from their education? No way!! Those kids get so into it and when I use things like this EVERYONE does the assignment and the homework!!!!

I also use Dr. Suess books to teach my 8th graders (Yertle the Turtle=Hitler, Butter Battle Book = Cold War)..is that commercializing Universal Studios?


I use lots of things to grab my students' attention. I don't sacrifice the standards (believe me, we follow NYS learning standards to the T, and then some cuz I teach in a Catholic school and the Diocesan standards are tougher than state standards!!) to grab their attention, whether it be Disney or otherwise.

 

[Laz]

I am a high school business teacher, and Disney is a gold mine for ideas! I love to talk about them when it concerns service marketing. Look at WDW and consider the differences between a service and a product:


Intangible
Perishable
Lack of standardization
Simultaneous Production and Consumption

 

[Crazy4mandms]

If you want to do a research based project, you can pick island in the Caribbean.

(I'm just making this up off the top of my head, so no true lesson plans)

Pick an island-- use a group of about 6-8 islands so each small group is doing something new
Get coordinates (lat. and long. --uses Social studies skills)

Research the island

Population
Gross National Product-
Types of production/export
Literacy Rate (these could all be graphs--uses math skills)


Culture of Island (this is like Humanities class--or if a French speaking country--could incorporate French language)

What types of Culture?
What are some significant events in this islands culture?
What types of things are different than your culture -- this could be a comparison/contrast essay using a Venn Diagram

You can even do a webquest on this... Kids like webquests. I've made a few Webquests, they are a pain in the neck at first and then they become easy.

Thanks, Cindy B..you've given me a great diving board for a new lesson!! I begin 6th grade SS with geography..the kids hate it! I think I'll do a pirates themed lesson but something as Pirates cruising the world instead of just the Caribbean...that way I can incorporate the 5 themes, lat/long, continents, oceans, etc...into a long unit based on the theme of pirates.

 

[Fitswimmer]

I really don't think it's a matter of commercialization. It's more a matter of finding something that grabs and keeps the child's attention. Let's face it, most of our children (and us too) are of the TV generation. As a teacher, if I can find something that entices the child to learn, I want to use it! I am not as exciting as Spongebob . I didn't get the impression that OP was 'teaching' Disney, but using the characters as a vehicle to teach whatever the standards are. I think BCDisneyFanatic's idea is a great one! Use the movie to get their attention, then teach what they are required to learn using something fun as the foundation. I have a pirate flag in my room with the words, "Read, or walk the plank!" The kids (and parents) get a kick out of it. Nowadays, teachers are not given the freedom to teach whatever they want. We have to teach the standards handed down by our respective states. Disney (or Nickolodeon, or Warner Brothers) characters are just a way to get/keep the kids' interest.

As far as the dentist or car dealer goes, unfortunately, it's par for the course. At my school, the dentist comes for free and gives away floss and toothbrushes. I still remember the red tablets they gave us in school that made your teeth red if you didn't brush your teeth right. ((mine were red If they have his/her name on them so be it. Our lunch menus have advertisements on them! I'm guessing they are 'donated' as well. We gave the kids JC Penney bags to hold their stuff during our Spring Fling. We used Publix bags to make a project. Publix also donated activity books for Black History Month and, of course, they had 'Publix' emblazoned all over them.

I'm with you-do whatever it takes to get kids excited about learning. Didn't anybody see Mr Holland's Opus?? When he showed them the link between classical music and the rock and roll they loved-they GOT IT. If I was teaching and I could use something that kids were excited about to teach them real concepts, you bet I'd use it. Kids need to see that what they're learning in school has some connection to real life and that's a great way to do it.

 

[LotsOfQuestions]

Inspired by another thread, I thought it would be a great topic for a new one! I know most of us are looking forward to the end of the year and cleaning out our classrooms, packing things up for the summer (heading to WDW!!); however, I also know many of us use the summer to work on lessons, new ideas, etc. for the coming year. So I'm wondering if any of you would like to share lessons or ideas on how you incorporate Disney into your classroom beyond the decorations. I am a multi-level teacher (grades 5-8 Social Studies and 5th grade Reading and ELA) and would love any ideas! I love integrating 5th R/ELA/SS and am thinking of starting off next year with a month-long integrated lesson using POTC as the theming. A good idea might be to give a summary of your lesson/unit here, then anyone else can request a pm of the lesson plan/unit outline. (Sorry, I'm starting this thread but have nothing to share beyond using the Disney Sing-alongs to teach poetry!)

Please don't take this the wrong way, but as a parent, I would have mixed feelings if my kids came home with work relating to POTC or Disney. I might be o.k. with pirates or mice, but I guess it is the commercialization of Disney in school I would have a problem with. Does that make sense? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill? Am I the only person who feels this way?

I would be o.k. with a biography of Walt Disney, and his contributions to animation and the theme park industry. I guess I might change my mind when I see what the lesson plan would look like, so I will watch this thread with an open mind.

Denae

As much as I love Disney myself, I have to agree with the above. Please don't do this. Teachers are not supposed to be biased. There are many parents who don't care about Disney, even some who actually boycott it But to teach via a commercial theme park/movie studio is not a good idea.

Teach about Pirates, teach about the Caribbean. But unless you are teaching a unit on fiction, then don't teach Pirates of the Caribbean. That is not a subject, it is a fictional movie.

I would also be ok with a biography of Disney and his contributions to animation, but it has to be balanced with all the others that have also contributed.

Although I do really like the Lion King movie/eco system lesson, I don't think a month long unit for Social Studies using a violent movie like POTC is appropriate for 5th graders.

I think what was confusing at first is the OP's question of how to purposefully incorporate Disney into her lesson plans. This gave some, including me, the impression that it wasn't about grabbing kids' attention, but more about trying to include the teacher's personal love for Disney into her teaching plans.

I think

 

[Crazy4mandms]

It IS about incorporating my love of Disney into lesson plans. The more I enjoy teaching the more the kids will get out of it. No, I didn't mean I was going to use the movie specifically to teach (I can't even show the movie as it is above G rating!), as you see in subsequent posts I corrected myself and was more talking about using pirates because of the way the movie has made the whole pirate thing so popular.

Some do seem to be missing the point is that I am not teaching about Disney, but merely using it as a way to grab the kids' attention. Kids love Disney stuff, it is a way to connect with them. Does that mean I'm going to stand in front of my class and say, "Okay kids, today we are going to learn about how to tour the Animal Kingdom so that you can avoid the crowds during peak season".

Can someone tell me if they find using Disney as a theme less acceptable than the numerous ways teachers are out there taking advantage of the whole Harry Potter craze? Kids are totally INTO Harry Potter...it makes kids want to read! Even kids who hate reading! I can't use Harry Potter in my classroom (again, the Catholic school thing) but more power to the teachers who take every advantage available to them to make kids WANT to learn! Research has proven over and over that students learn better when things are applied to their lives and surroundings and whether people like it or not (being as commercialized as it is) Disney is out there and interesting to the kids and to me, so why not??? Gosh, I even had a college prof. use it in one of my classes when I was in college! I never forgot that lesson!

 

[Daxx]

You know, it's really funny b/c today we were working on addition during Kdg. math today. I handed out a math worksheet and it had fish on it. Adding three starfish and two clown fish. Adding two of those yellow and blue fish and two sharks. Adding two turtles plus one turtle. All my students were saying was "Nemo! Bruce! Crush! Dorie!" Of course, being the Disney freak, I was delighted!!! Now, I didn't bring in the Disney element, but it was there!
The kids managed to find it w/o my prompting.

Another thing that comes in handy. I have to give a test where the kids come up w/an imaginary creature. This concept is tough enough when they see so much fantasy on tv that they have a tough time coming up w/their own idea. Most will draw Spongebob Squarepants and that's not what I'm looking for. It has to be an "original" creature. So, I talk to them about imaginary creatures (Mike, Sully, etc.) and ask what makes them imaginary (you don't see them in everyday life, nobody like Mike or Sully is walking around, nobody has blue fur w/purple dots, nobody is a ball with one eye). Then, I go on to ask if Boo is an imaginary creature. We discuss that she isn't b/c she's a little girl and we have little girls in our room. I then tell the kids that Disney wants them to make up a new imaginary creature for Monster's Inc. They have to come up w/a new creature that they've never seen before. I told them it can't be Sully, Mike, etc. nor can it be Boo. It has to be something they've never seen on the streets or in the water. I really don't think that's really detrimental b/c it helps them understand what an imaginary creature is.

Bringing up Disney films in class is sometimes how kids can relate and understand what you want. If I ask my children what kind of animals they'd find in the ocean, I usually get "fish" or "sharks". If I am lucky, I'll get "dolphin". If I say "Now think of Finding Nemo ... what kind of animals did you see in that movie's ocean?" ...then they start offering up sea turtles, jellyfish, seahorses, etc. Sometimes it's a motivator.

 

[aprincessmom]

Can someone tell me if they find using Disney as a theme less acceptable than the numerous ways teachers are out there taking advantage of the whole Harry Potter craze?

Actually not all children like Disney just as not all children like Harry Potter. Sure, the 10 boys in DD's 4th grade class were way into HP but the 12 girls could have cared less about him, Ron, and Hermione. DD read the first one and said "I'm not into this type of fiction" and went back to her other books. Her teacher this year tried a Harry Potter thing related to science (5th grade) and only a handful of kids were thrilled. The rest were basically rolling their eyes and saying "not again...I'm not a Harry Potter fan" or had no idea what she was talking about because they hadn't read the books. And therein lies the danger of assuming all children are hooked into pop culture and that all children like or assimilate into the pop culture of today. I think it's dangerous to plan entire lesson plans around a pop culture topic.

Sure, it's great to try to link things back to everyday life like learning fractions by assigning students to bake cookies or brownies (DD did that this year and I thought her teacher was ingenious for providing them with a way to make it relate to everyday life). But DD saw the first POTC, thought Jack Sparrow was funny but had no desire to see any further sequels. If you base a unit on those movies, she'd be lost and uninterested and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't be the only one.

The lesson on environment that linked back to the Lion King would have been really miserable for DD. She was never interested in that movie, it would have been a chore for her to watch and she would have complained about the fact that she was made to watch it throughout the unit. However, had it been linked to Born Free or any number of Discovery Channel Planet Earth episodes or even books she has read about the environment and conservation, she would have been over the top excited. But Lion King...not her thing.

All I'm saying is there are many, many things in real life that can be related back to classroom learning. Limiting it to pop culture or marketing/branding would not make me as a parent very happy with the lesson plans.

 

[Daxx]

The lesson on environment that linked back to the Lion King would have been really miserable for DD. She was never interested in that movie, it would have been a chore for her to watch and she would have complained about the fact that she was made to watch it throughout the unit. However, had it been linked to Born Free or any number of Discovery Channel Planet Earth episodes or even books she has read about the environment and conservation, she would have been over the top excited. But Lion King...not her thing.

And, in return, some children would be highly bored with watching the Discovery Channel Planet Earth episodes. You can't satisfy all the kids!

If I were the teacher, I would show both and, in doing so, I would attach a lesson on comparing and contrasting the live action vs. the animated.

 

[mickeyboat]

All I'm saying is there are many, many things in real life that can be related back to classroom learning. Limiting it to pop culture or marketing/branding would not make me as a parent very happy with the lesson plans.

You read my mind. My kids have gotten plenty interested in lessons revolving around snakes, reptiles, bats, spiders, owls, dinosaurs, amphibians, pilgrims, Martin Luther King, Jr. and the rainforest, without having to introduce any pop culture or commercialization into their studies.

Maybe we are raising a generation of kids who, because of massive exposure to tv and video games, can't learn or relate or get excited about their lessons without reference to pop culture.

Again, I don't have a problem explaining a concept by making a one-time, short reference to a Disney movie. My kids would probably not get the reference, though. I don't have a problem capitalizing on the pirate craze by a unit on pirates. I would have a problem with an entire lesson being taught to young kids which revolved around a Disney movie.

Denae

 

[aprincessmom]

Another thing that comes in handy. I have to give a test where the kids come up w/an imaginary creature. This concept is tough enough when they see so much fantasy on tv that they have a tough time coming up w/their own idea. Most will draw Spongebob Squarepants and that's not what I'm looking for. It has to be an "original" creature. So, I talk to them about imaginary creatures (Mike, Sully, etc.) and ask what makes them imaginary (you don't see them in everyday life, nobody like Mike or Sully is walking around, nobody has blue fur w/purple dots, nobody is a ball with one eye). Then, I go on to ask if Boo is an imaginary creature. We discuss that she isn't b/c she's a little girl and we have little girls in our room. I then tell the kids that Disney wants them to make up a new imaginary creature for Monster's Inc. They have to come up w/a new creature that they've never seen before. I told them it can't be Sully, Mike, etc. nor can it be Boo. It has to be something they've never seen on the streets or in the water. I really don't think that's really detrimental b/c it helps them understand what an imaginary creature is.

Daxx,

The bolded area in the assignment you talked about is where I have a problem. I can see the value of associating the imaginary creatures with creatures they have seen, identifying what's real and what's imaginary but the assignment is where I draw the line. Why is the assignment, "draw a new imaginary creature for Disney"? Why isn't the assignment, "now that you know what an imaginary creature is, it's time for you to create an imaginary creature" and allow the children to create something truly unique of their own imagination?

In my opinion, the lesson shouldn't be about creating a creature to fit into someone else's imaginary world, it should be about creating a creature to fit in their own imaginary world -- what does it do, where does it live, why does the creature have some of the features it has? It should be encouraging the children to use their own imagination to develop the creature and its world, not just placing it in an already imagined setting like Monstropolis or The Crusty Crab.