FAIR School (Fine Arts Interdisciplinary Resource School)
Location:
Crystal, MN
Grade:
6
Disciplines:
Theatre Music
Visual Art
Social Studies Language Arts Math
Description:
Students develop their own island cultures.
Watching the Video
Before You Watch Respond to the following questions.
What is culture? How do you define culture?
How do you make abstract cultural concepts more concrete for children?
What role could the arts play in a unit about a past culture?
How do the arts affect a culture? How does culture affect the arts?
Watch the Program
As you watch note how the arts are used to help students understand an abstract concept like culture. Write down what you find interesting, surprising, or especially important about the teaching and learning you see in this unit.
Reflect on the Program
How did each art form serve to deepen students understanding of culture?
What kinds of preparation do you think preceded the lessons seen in the video to make these activities successful for students?
How do the culture and resources of this particular school help support the type of instruction shown?
Which components of the study – social studies, visual art, theatre, or music – would be most challenging for you and your colleagues to incorporate in an integrated unit?
What evidence, if any, did you see of the ways students benefited from this unit of study?
Before You Watch