Lets Go to Market! and Paper Bag City

    For both of these readings, a lot of things were put into perspective for me; I didn’t realize how important it is for students to learn through experience. There’s a specific quote from Let’s Go to Market! that says, “children often need many experiences to incorporate a new understandings” (Gomez 2010). This quote resonated with me because it’s true, how can we expect our students to learn the material simply by reading a textbook? They need to go beyond that to truly learn the material in depth and evolve their new understandings while they’re at it. In both of the daily readings, we can see how through hands-on experience, whether it be field trips or in class activities, students can make connections to their communities and look at their world with a different mindset. For both readings I believe that they progressed smoothly, and students connected these far beyond food markets and maps; it created a conversation about different areas, different cultures, and different traditions. This is where the true value lies behind social studies, where young students can make those connections and become more open minded to those that are different. It can help our students be more aware of their surroundings and gives value to where they come from and where they live. I chose this quote by John Hope Franklin, a great historian, where he says it’s important to go beyond the textbook and explore the world through experience. This is how our students should be taught because it really captures the value of what they are learning; teaching kids through experience and with hands on activities is vital in any classroom.