The other day I told the kids to get a book from the library to read during Independent Help. One little girl named Maria brought back a book about Disneyland probably from the 60s/70s. I went up to her and said, "I love Disneyland. I've been there." Her mouth dropped and next thing I know all of my 5th graders ran up to me with dozens of questions. One little girl asked if Mickey Mouse and Sleeping Beauty was real. I didn't really want to say he wasn't so I said, "At Disneyland they are actors, but all the characters are real and live in a place called Toon Town, and only Mr. Disney knows where it is." There were squeals of delight and a ton of more comments/questions. One girl was super interested and asked if I could basically stalk Mr. Disney...aka as she said "Follow him with your car and sneak in." They also asked if its in America, which I responded with "In a land far far away." haha They all want to go to Disneyland, but they don't really get what it is. I think they think its like a museum because one girl asked me if people take you around in cars and show you things. I probably screwed them up and now they are going to think for the rest of their lives that there is a Toon Town. lol
As I mentioned all kids here are considered to be from the Untouchables class...aka the poorest of the poor. The other day I was teaching history and was discussing Gandhi and the Freedom Movement. For living in India, they really don't know a ton about their country's history, most likely because of lack of education and resources. But anyway, I mentioned the Untouchables and was describing why Gandhi wanted to support them. One kid shouted, "That is us! We are called Untouchables!" I didn't know how to respond, but thankfully none of the kids thought anything of the comment and continued to ask questions. My heart definitely broke at hearing him say that though.
