Literature tie-ins at WDW

[cancilla]

I recently asked about Tom Sawyer references on Tom Sawyer island, and this got me to thinking about literary educational possibilities at WDW. We homeschool and are preparing for our upcoming trip by teaching our son about some of the things he will see at WDW. So far, we have the following on our reading list:

Winnie the Pooh
Tom Sawyer
Swiss Family Robinson
Beauty and the Beast
The Little Mermaid

Reading these, enjoying the attractions, and discussing the difference between the Disney version and the original version will be fun for my son (he's that kind of kid ).

Are there any other books we should be looking at? By the way, my son's been to Disneyland but not WDW, so almost everything will be new to him.

Thanks!

--Dominick

 

[sk8ingmom]

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong...but isn't the treehouse in WDW now Tarzan, not Swiss Family Robinson? getting my parks confused...

Jungle Book
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (first Narnia book) - we read aloud to DSs 5&7 before going to the movie, they loved it.

Depending on DSs age/maturity, you could read the original fairy tales of Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, etc. You may want to pre-screen these as they are much darker than Walt's versions!

What a great idea! We usually read children's books that movies are based on before the movie comes out (Charlotte's Web right now), but I never thought about tying books to a WDW trip. Very cool!

You might also try the Family board - I think I've seen a homeschool thread there.

 

[sunny04]

Just a little idea here as this is a topic I have gotten into recently - you could do a really great comparison with Peter Pan. There are the original story, and play versions, and several movie versions that are outstanding, including Walt's Peter Pan and one with real people that came out a couple year's ago (by *gasp* universal) named Peter Pan, and Finding Neverland (depending on the age of your child maybe). Plus there is a new Disney approved book called Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson that tells the story BEFORE Peter Pan...how Peter Pan got there, how Neverland was created, that kind of thing. You could an entire homeschool unit on Peter Pan.

(By the way, I teach drama to elementary school kids, and I have used Walt's cartoon Peter Pan for an entire characterization unit this year that I am still doing. If you want to know about how to do that, just PM me and I'll let you know. )

 

[GeorgiaAristocat]

Don't forget Peter Pan!

I was going to suggest the original fairy tales also (Grimm and Hans Christian Anderson, depending on the story.) Be warned, the original Little Mermaid story is VERY VERY different from the Disney version. (I think the mermaid dies at the end of the original?) As the other poster said, the originals are much darker than the disney version.

You only asked about books, so I won't throw in all my suggestions for other educational opportunities (there are SOOO many.) BTW, good for you for home-schooling!

 

[PrincessCM]

The tree in the MK at WDW is Swiss Family Robinson. The one in DL is Tarzan....

 

[Twende]

Treasure Island is about Pirates sort of like POC.

How about the original Bre Rabbit and Uncle Remus tales. The way society has changes since then would be interesting. There is the Disney movie Song of the South. It woudl fun to tie that into Spalsh Mountain.

 

[tar heel]

Alice in Wonderland
Legend of Sleepy Hollow (snack place)
Aladdin
You should be able to find something on Pecos Bill

 

[GoofyDad869]

Don't forget "Sleeping Beauty"

In Epcot the World Showcase Players do fractured versions of famous tales with crowd participation - I was Galahad in King Arthur & the Holy Grail.

 

[cancilla]

Lots of great suggestions! We've already done Alice, Aladdin, and a few fairy tales here and there. My wife put off Peter Pan and some original fairy tales until my son is older because some of the content would bother him (although I don't recall what it was in Peter Pan).

You only asked about books, so I won't throw in all my suggestions for other educational opportunities (there are SOOO many.)

I'm very interested in more suggestions! So far our list has:

• A variety of books, as we have been discussing in this thread
• All the World Showcase countries and the cultural items that are highlighted in each
• American history, particularly folks featured in the American Adventure show (if I got the attraction's name right )
• African culture because we're staying at AKL
• The animals we hope to see at AK (we expect this to be our favorite park -- we're very into animals)
• Movie stunts, with an emphasis on safety
• Various Future World topics -- energy, the senses, product testing, manufacturing, the history of communication. We've already done quite a bit on fish and dinosaurs.
• Farming (we're going on the "behind the seeds" tour)

Let me know what I might have missed. And if there are particular items in World Showcase you think I should make a point not to miss but that might be less than obvious, I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks, all!

--Dominick

 

[Disney711]

For anyone who has girls, and wants to read about Disney in the 80s, go online or to a used book store and look for the Baby-Sitters Club book "Baby-Sitters on Board". All the girls in the club go on a cruise (not DCL) and then to Disney, which is just MK and Epcot at the time. Even if you don't have kids, it's a nice fun fluffy read. I think about this book everytime I go on Haunted Mansion, there's a chapter that describes it in detail.

 

[JessetheCowgirl]

My son read "Horrible Harry and the Drop of Doom" in first grade; it really seemed to us to be about the Tower of Terror. There are several other rides that are named differently but seem to be describing WDW rides.

We also studied the Mars Mission quite a bit prior to our trip--that made Mission Space all the more fun.

 

[JessetheCowgirl]

I thought of another---how about King Arthur/the Sword in the Stone???

 

[Pixiedust34]

Learn about the "real" Pocahontas. Sonlight Curriculum sells a book called Pocahontas and the Strangers by Clyde Robert Bulla. We have not read it yet, but it looks like a good book!

The Great Movie Ride in MGM has a scene from The Wizard of Oz. If you haven't read that book yet, it's worth a read.

Before going to Epcot, locate all of the Epcot countries on a world map. Maybe you can get a book about each country at home, and make a recipe from each country.

 

[ccw]

Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis was a book before it was a movie so how about that one at MGM????

 

[cara76]

I thought of another---how about King Arthur/the Sword in the Stone???

I was thinking of that one too.

We are starting an Animal Science Journal here - DS and I got the idea from Go Deigo Go the other day. I'm going to use the Animals at AK for the learning experiences as well as pictures for the journal.

 

[Loves Disney]

Just a little idea here as this is a topic I have gotten into recently - you could do a really great comparison with Peter Pan. There are the original story, and play versions, and several movie versions that are outstanding, including Walt's Peter Pan and one with real people that came out a couple year's ago (by *gasp* universal) named Peter Pan, and Finding Neverland (depending on the age of your child maybe). Plus there is a new Disney approved book called Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson that tells the story BEFORE Peter Pan...how Peter Pan got there, how Neverland was created, that kind of thing. You could an entire homeschool unit on Peter Pan.

(By the way, I teach drama to elementary school kids, and I have used Walt's cartoon Peter Pan for an entire characterization unit this year that I am still doing. If you want to know about how to do that, just PM me and I'll let you know. )

Peter Pan is a great idea! There are so many things within it that people oftem over look. Symbolism and metaphors. Remember the ticking alligator? Being an enemy of Peter it makes sense. Time, Peter not wanting to grow up...Oh and plus, "Finding Neverland" is a great movie based on the life of the author of Peter Pan. Johnny Depp does an excellent job as he plays the author of Peter Pan.

 

[rabyoga]

My 9 yr. old daughter and I just read "Kingdom Keepers" it's Science Fiction set within Disney World. It's very good. We're now reading "Peter and the Star Catchers". It's about Peter Pan before he became Peter Pan. It's very good.
Here's some other Disney related ideas:
Study Dinosaurs and fossils-Dinoland will use much of that info.
Study animal in AK's safari-emphasizing the savannah- compare how closely AK comes to the real thing.
Study Everest-legends of the Yeti- (My daughter and I are doing that; so that we can really enjoy Expetition Everest)
Study the different countries of Epcot- depending on age/grade level- can get real in-depth with each country's culture, language, history, food, customs, etc.
Study space travel-astronaut training,etc.- It's said that Mission: Space is the closest thing to astronaut training as the real thing.
Study Geodomes, Pyramids- Epcot has a few buildings in these shapes. Can work in basic geometry.
Study US presidents, focusing on Abe Lincoln. Hall of Presidents will really come alive for kids (Last year, my daughter did a report on Jimmy Carter- she couldn't wait to see "her" president in the Hall of Presidents. She also loved seeing Ben Franklin in the American Adverture.)
IF you have a guide book, use the maps to help kids learn map skills: directions, N,W,S,E. Plus, it will familarize you with the parks.
You can tons of math related lessons with money, time, estimating, etc.
There is so much you can teach that's Disney related.

Not too long ago, the History Channel aired a great 2 hour Behind the scenes of Disney World: How it was planned; how it was created; and how it works. Very informational and fun to watch...

*If I could I teach a year's worth of Disney related curriculum...

 

[cancilla]

Excellent suggestions! I hadn't even considered some of these (I particularly like the map idea).

--Dominick

 

[sunny04]

My 9 yr. old daughter and I just read "Kingdom Keepers" it's Science Fiction set within Disney World. It's very good. We're now reading "Peter and the Star Catchers". It's about Peter Pan before he became Peter Pan. It's very good.

That's so funny. I just finished reading this today and got on here to post that suggestion! Kingdom Keepers is really cool....but again, depends on the age of your child I guess.