A few year back I had the opportunity to teach an amazing Grade 6/7 class. Some of my favourite memories of that year stem from watching videos together. Weekly, usually during our "Media Monday Moments", we would watch news clips, trending YouTube videos, inspiration messages and even music videos. It wasn't the watching part that got me, but the "talking part". After each video, we would have a class discussion. We would share our thoughts, feelings, emotions and opinions about different aspects of the videos. From the content, to the overall message, to the quality of production. The conversations seemed endless and really engaged my chatty students.
As my assignment has changed, so to have the deep conversations. As I teach a Grade 1/2 class this year, I sometimes miss the thoughtful discussions I was able to have in my Junior/Intermediate classroom.
And this is where "THE KIDS SHOULD SEE THIS" comes in.
This website is a space to find kid-appropriate videos about everything! From science, to nature, to music and technology, this site has it.
As described on their About page,
"The Kid Should See This is to help with that challenge: to connect kids, parents, and teachers with smart, conversation-starting videos – about science, art, music, nature, and more – that probably weren’t made for kids, but are still perfect for them. Yes, it’s true that there are plenty of videos for kids out there, but they often include unnecessary wacky noises or simplistic narration that distracts from the beauty of what’s real, and what’s completely fascinating on its own. Why not share content that doesn’t underestimate what children can learn or might be interested in?"
This very description is what hooked me. It was exactly what I was looking for.
As I have just started to use this resource in my classroom, I am hopeful that it generate meaningful discussions and be a space that my students can feel safe accessing and using.
I will post some my observations as we continue the process.
Do you have other resources that really generate class discussions?
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