Friedrich Fröbel

You may be wondering who Friedrich Fröbel is. I know that when I first heard his name, the only thoughts I had about him was that he had kind of a funny name, but I didn't know much about him otherwise. I chose him solely because I didn't know anything about him, so naturally I did some research. Friedrich Wilhelm August Fröbel was a student of Pestalozzi, who laid the basic foundation and setting for modern education, based mostly on the idea that children have unique needs and capabilities, and should be individually taken care of in school. Fröbel, or Froebel, invented the idea of "kindergarten" which is now a term used in English and German languages. More importantly, he created the idea of educational toys to help students better learn, known as Froebel Gifts.

Froebel believed that humans are able to be creative and productive on their own, and fulfillment comes by developing these things in harmony with not only the world but with God as well. "Froebel sought to encourage the creation of educational environments that involved practical work and the direct use of materials. Through engaging with the world, understanding unfolds." That is why he incorporated the idea of play and "gifts," because it is a creative activity and children are able to be more aware of their role and place in the world. He developed toys or "special materials" used to help teach, such as balls or wooden bricks, which he called gifts. He also developed a series of "occupations" which were recommended activities, and movement activities, which linked a set of theories. Froebel wanted to teach young children lessons by using educational games, and later became associated with a demand from the "provision of special centers for the care and development of children outside the home."

"The purpose of education is to encourage and guide man as a conscious, thinking and perceiving being in such a way that he becomes a pure and perfect representation of that divine inner law through his own personal choice; education must show him the ways and meanings of attaining that goal." -Friedrich Fröbel

http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-froeb.htm

It's Holiday Time, Kids!

If you think back to when you were a kid, how were you taught about Thanksgiving and Columbus Day? For me, in Elementary school we did fun activities about what we were thankful for on Thanksgiving, learned the basic vocabulary about "Pilgrims, harvests, Native Americans" etc. and learned the general idea about what the holiday was about. We were also taught that Christopher Columbus was the first to land in America and were taught the fun "1492" rhymes as well. However, we were never actually taught about the true meaning of Thanksgiving, or the violent and gruesome details that go along with it. Or how Columbus wasn't actually the first to sail to America and settle. So, is it fair that children are being fed fake information about these holidays?

I did some research and found examples of a good lesson plan for Thanksgiving and a bad lesson plan for Thanksgiving: 

- This lesson plan to me seemed like a good idea because it gets the children to think about the true meaning of Thanksgiving, not just about the "giving thanks" and "food" aspects of the holiday. It may not get into full details about what really happened on Thanksgiving, and the events that led up to it, however it does help them realize that there is a more in-depth explanation of the holiday and what's behind it.

http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/dailylp/dailylp/dailylp029.shtml

- This next lesson plan I found to be a bad way of teaching solely due to the fact that it is clearly meant for fun, and does not actually teach children much of anything when it comes to Thanksgiving. It merely brushes the surface of what the holiday is actually about. This is actually quite typical from my experience and from what I've seen of what teachers would give their students to help "teach" them about Thanksgiving. This also incorporates more of an artistic idea, rather than just having the children do actual factual work when it comes to learning. 

http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/dailylp/dailylp/dailylp028.shtml

Columbus Day is another one of those holidays that is falsely taught to children. Again, they learn the basics while doing some fun coloring activity about the Nina, the Pinta or the Santa Maria. And like I've said, teachers only ever brush the surface. But if I really put some thought into it, I don't think that as a teacher I would want to teach my young students about what really happened on Thanksgiving, or tell them the truth about Columbus Day. I believe that by them not knowing the truth, it is only preserving their innocence, and in the long run it isn't really hurting them to not know every single detail, including the awful ones, about the holidays. As a teacher, I am going to give them as much information as possible, without overloading them and without scaring them. As much as I don't think lying is right, in some situations it doesn't seem too bad. I don't see the harm in teaching the children about Thanksgiving or Columbus day with a fun coloring activity, although I do think they could stand to do a little more work on these subjects. If teachers combined both of the lesson plans above, and found a happy middle, then the children would learn much more while still having fun.