And together we learn

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Bits and pieces

This is what greeted me as I took the orange juice out of the fridge.

It's a grapefruit, suspended surreally in the morning beverage. CALVIN!! This morning there were two paintbrushes and a CD in the fishbowl. Not nearly as harmful as the shredded wheat--I think the fish really enjoyed the change of scenery. I need to put a cowbell around that kid's neck.

You know how things tend to creep up on you? We're in a weekly playgroup for Chloe, and I host once every 8 weeks. You'd think I'd have enough time to throw something together, no? But of course I forget until late the night before. This morning I threw together a very quick lesson and art project that turned out to be cute. We read the book Rainbow Fish, a book that I really really hate for the message, but I read it to them anyway because it was the only fish theme book I had on the shelf. Nina, don't hate me for poisoning them with rotten literature! Actually, I'd forgotten how bad it was until I read it again. It was given to us as a gift. Talk about a celebration of mediocrity/communism. It's one book that is going to be given away in the next donation box!

Anyway, we did an art project afterwards with a tissue paper mosaic and a piece of tinfoil for the 'glittering scale.' It turned out cute and the kids enjoyed it.

5 comment(s):

Too funny about the grapefruit and the fishbowl scenery! He's a sneaky kid!!

I like the rainbow fish crafts you did. Very cute!

By Blogger Amanda, at 10:40 AM  

How on earth is the Rainbow Fish so horrible??

By Anonymous Anonymous, at 10:21 PM  

Catherine, Rainbow Fish really bugs me for a few reasons. The pictures are gorgeous and it's fun that way, but the message is pretty horrible. It's SUPPOSED teach sharing, but what it's really selling is mediocrity.

The message that comes out is that different is bad, and there is no special. Anything special needs to be given up so everyone is the same. And not given up willingly, given up due to social stigma and peer pressure. It just seems really...communist to me.

But come over and read it for yourself and see. If you like it--you can have it!!

By Blogger Becca, at 2:57 AM  

How does it teach different is bad/there is no special?
It seems to me to teach the opposite because by sharing the fish learned to accept it's uniqueness as valuable as opposed to withdrawing, ashamed and uncertain of the value of these things. Instead he shares as an act of trust. Was it Stephen R. Covey who used the example of the person at a party playing a game wherein each attendee took a turn singing. When one party goer decided not to, people soon left. The moral was that the other people didn't feel trusted. To me the fish giving the scales away signified an act of trust in which he shared his talents and uniqueness with others and thus found the self-esteem to be who he really was and in the process, found frienship, too.

By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:53 AM  

Yuck about the grapefruit! Lol

I love your art idea! I may steal that.

By Blogger Mrs. Darling, at 7:39 PM  

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