Revista simpozionului Eficienta si calitate in educatie 2018 Revista simpozionului | Page 73

Having this example in mind, I always try to teach English by conveying emotion and by
telling my students that their own imagination and creativity can change the world. Using
some special books to lead to thematic and interdisciplinary approach, through
cooperation, I tried to develop students’ long life skills and to help them find a meaning. My
students found themselves in these books, relived feelings and moments they thought they
have forgot and stirred their curiosity.
“Have you filled a bucket today?” promotes the positive behavior using the concept of an
invisible bucket to show the children how easy and satisfying it is to express kindness,
appreciation and love through „filling the bucket”. Moreover, children get to understand
better that dipping into someone else’s bucket is just a negative behavior, not a permanent
label, and this thing doesn’t help us filling our own bucket, on the contrary. There is a wide
range of activities that we explored. Children created their own bucket and they filled it with
positive words describing positive feelings like: love, help, tolerance, sharing, smiling. The
students received some colorful papers on which it was written: I would like to fill
someone’s bucket by telling him that… This activity was touching because aroused
students’ feelings, each of them filling the bucket of their mother, father, brothers,
grandparents, teachers, using kind words. The students felt important, special and this
activity made them feel alive, full of emotion and empathy.
Another book which led to many captivating and interactive activities is called “The empty
pot”, a traditional Chinese story. This story full of moral teachings tells the children that
values like Courage, Honesty, Perseverance, Integrity, Responsibility, always win, despite
the fact that sometimes they seem hopeless. After reading a few pages, I stopped and I
asked my students to continue the story as they imagine it. My students proved very
creative and original, impressing with their words. Some of them even guessed the end of
the story. Students drew a pot with a flower and on each petal they wrote a virtue they
discovered in the story. After they identified the virtues they drew a pot with fertile seeds
which gave birth to a flower full of values. This book placed many question marks in the
students’ conscience and spirit.
“The giving tree”, by Shell Silverstein is an artistic masterpiece, an illustration of human
emotions. Such a simple story, with funny pictures hides a deep message. Appropriate for
all ages, this book tells the story of a generous tree which gives all that it has to a child and
during this time the tree is happy. The students received a list of questions based on the
text. They created then leaves and apples made of colored papers on which they wrote the
answers to the questions. The questions were about devotion, altruism, the custom of
giving and offering presents, love, parents-children relationship, happiness. “Create a
stamp” is an activity during which the students, using their imagination, create a stamp in
honor of their best memory. They also received a few words from the book to make their
own story. The results were incredible.
“The three trees”, by Elena Pasqauli is yet another masterpiece of American literature. Full
of hidden meanings and messages, this book is largely accepted by the students. Three
trees express their thoughts, their dreams, hoping they are accomplished. This thing
happens, but not as they imagined it. The students received worksheets containing
questions and different interactive activities. This story helped them talk about and reveal
their own dreams, hopes. Asked how a person would look like without dreams, a student
answered: “like a tree without leaves and flowers”.
“Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” is, according to my students, the best book of Dr. Seuss. The
book talks about life’s adventure and about all the obstacles a person meets along it. Dr.
73