Mr. Potato Head is what I use to teach the concept of "how we learn" to young kids. By letting them know the different ways we learn will help them cope through their learning differences. This lesson will help students to realize the thrill of increasing awareness and learning, what a long way they have come since their birth, and what a long and exciting way there is yet too go. I will usually use this on the first diagnostic lesson - goal is to let them know that together we will learn some things about our language which may be new to them, that I have a different way to teach them - helping them use all their learning channels they will learn reading, writing, and spelling.
This is how I usually will present this 5 min. lesson:
Today I brought my friend Mr. Potato Head (bring out body/feet), he is going to show us all the different ways he learns (another word is modalities - show it on whiteboard). (Give them a bag full of body parts and ask them to take them out one by one) You chose the hands - so how do we use our hands to learn? Yes by touching & feeling. (Optional: another word is kinesthetic/tactile) Now you have picked out the ears - so how do we use our ears to learn? Yes by hearing/listening - another word is auditory. Next you have picked out the eyes - so how do we use our eyes to learn? Yes, by looking, another word that means the same is - visual. Next you have the mouth. How do we learn by our mouths? - speaking, talking. Next you have the nose - how do we learn by our nose? - smelling things. So this is how I am going to help you learn to read/write/ spell - using all these modalities (visual, auditory, kinesthetic/tactile, speaking- but of course maybe not so much using the sense of smell - not like the letters have a stinky smell!!!
Have the child explain back to you how we learn by pointing to all the body parts. Then have them make a record page by gluing the body parts onto a Mr. potato head cut out.
This is how I usually will present this 5 min. lesson:
Today I brought my friend Mr. Potato Head (bring out body/feet), he is going to show us all the different ways he learns (another word is modalities - show it on whiteboard). (Give them a bag full of body parts and ask them to take them out one by one) You chose the hands - so how do we use our hands to learn? Yes by touching & feeling. (Optional: another word is kinesthetic/tactile) Now you have picked out the ears - so how do we use our ears to learn? Yes by hearing/listening - another word is auditory. Next you have picked out the eyes - so how do we use our eyes to learn? Yes, by looking, another word that means the same is - visual. Next you have the mouth. How do we learn by our mouths? - speaking, talking. Next you have the nose - how do we learn by our nose? - smelling things. So this is how I am going to help you learn to read/write/ spell - using all these modalities (visual, auditory, kinesthetic/tactile, speaking- but of course maybe not so much using the sense of smell - not like the letters have a stinky smell!!!
Have the child explain back to you how we learn by pointing to all the body parts. Then have them make a record page by gluing the body parts onto a Mr. potato head cut out.