1. The Puppet Theatre
Amanda Kochel
amandakochel@knights.ucf.edu
April 19, 2013
EEX
2. Discovery Elementary
“Everyone, Everyday, In Some Way
Is A Winner At
Discovery Elementary School”
•651 students, in grades k-5.
•Title I school
•68% Free or reduced lunch.
•60% Minority students
•40% Caucasian students
3. Engagement Activities
• Before beginning this project, I knew I wanted to work with local children
in my community.
• Luckily, my wonderful professor Dr. Hines was able to put me in contact
with Ms. Kenis, the principal at Discover Elementary School.
• I wanted to have a literacy connection tied in somewhere, so I decided it
would be beneficial for the children to be able to write their lines down.
• My first few visits to the classroom were spent observing and getting to
know the children.
• My next visits were spent visiting the children approximately once a week,
for a few weeks.
4. Engagement Activities
• After getting to know the students, we began work
on our puppets.
• Step-by-step, we created our puppets and later
completed sentences on what we wanted our puppets
to say.
• Finally, we presented our puppets to the class in our
puppet theatre production.
5. Participant Demographics
• The class I worked with consists of 13 wonderful boys and girls!
• Their ages range from 6 years old to 12 years old.
• Their grade level ranges from 1st to 4th.
• The children’s exceptionalities include, Specific Learning Disability,
Intellectual Disability, Emotional, Behavior Disability and Autism
spectrum.
• Most of the children in the class have more than one
exceptionality, which include Language Impaired, Speech Impaired,
Orthopedic Impaired and Occupationally Impaired.
• Six of the children in the class are fluent in Spanish and English.
• The ethnic backgrounds of the children consist of African
American, Hispanic, and Caucasian.
7. Perceptions of Differences
• This project has definitely changed my view of disabilities.
• Prior to this project, I had little to no exposure with
children with disabilities.
• I was very close-minded in terms of disabilities, because I
had no exposure or knowledge of them.
• Before starting this project, I did not realize how vast the
spectrum of disabilities can be.
• After completing this project, I now have a better
understanding of the various disabilities.
8. Connections to EEX 4070
• After experience in the course EEX 4070, along with
my service activity, I now have a better understanding
of:
• Teaching students with learning disabilities
• Strategies for a diverse classroom
• Intellectual disabilities
• Behavioral/emotional disorders
9. Civic Engagement
•After completion of this project, I feel I understand the importance of being
involved in trying to meet the needs of the community. It is quite a rewarding
feeling once you feel as though you have served others.
•As an educator, it is extremely important to be aware of the needs of your local
community, and aim to meet those needs.
•Civic engagement is important for all citizens because it allows a person to place
their own thoughts and needs second and focus on the need of others.
•Service-learning is a crucial part of the future educator’s education process and
I would encourage teachers and students to become apart of the process.
10. Final Thoughts & Reflections
• The biggest step a person could make in understanding
individuals with disabilities, is not only exposure but
actually working with these individuals.
• The role of the teacher is much larger than just educating
students. Teachers must be able to set the standard for the
community and teach students, parents, and communities
about much more than just academic topics.
• The primary concern of a teacher must be the “greater
good” of society. A teacher must always look for ways to
better not only themselves, but the world around them.
