A Case Study: Mary and Jane

A Case Study: Mary and Jane

Let’s look at how this process works. In this scenario Mary and Jane are reflective co-teachers for a multiage class of 4-year olds and kindergarteners. They observe that six of the boys in the class are entirely focused on “superheroes.” This is evident in many aspects of the curriculumlanguage, artwork, journal writing, block structures, and outside play.

A young boy wears goggles and a cape while pretending to be a superhero.Jupiterimages

Teachers Mary and Jane used a systematic reflection process to understand and respond to children’s superhero play.

The teachers are unsure about the value of superhero play or why it seems so important. They assume that it is gender-specific to boys but also notice girls engaged in themes about fairies, witches, princesses, and other powerful creatures. Mary and Jane decide to:

  • Identify relevant resources and research (Cooper, 2009; Erdman & Downing, 2015; Paley, 1992)
  • Develop a plan for recording observations in the classroom
  • Devote some of their daily planning time to talking together about what they have read, seen, and thought about
  • Involve the children in conversations about superhero play
  • Make decisions and adjustments to the curriculum to address problems and new questions
  • Keep a journal of their thoughts about the issue of superhero play

After two weeks, Mary wrote:

I had no idea that the characters involved were princesses and witches and I find it interesting that the preferred role is that of the witch. Something to think about [sic]. Is this version of good guy/ bad guy? I don’t think so since neither role is really seen as a “bad guy” role by them. I think this is “power” play on the line of superman, etc. and in this case the witch has the power, doesn’t she always? Another thing I notice when I reflect on this is the social give and take. When Susan leaves the play because she doesn’t want the role assigned to her Anastasia steps back and [I believe] thinks about it and realizes that if they switch roles then Susan will be willing to continue the play. As it turns out she was right.

One week later, Mary said,

We have been allowing superhero play and there have been no real problems. We had to solve the problem of tagging too hard but scarves in the pocket have solved that problem. We decided that when there were problems we could have a meeting and ask the children to help us find a solution. I think they are motivated to solve problems because they know that too many hurts or tears will result in at least a temporary end to our approval of this play. They are just beginning to experiment with the idea that it might also be ok to tell stories that involve power play.

Now let’s look at what happened as a result of Mary and Jane’s reflective process. Their original beliefs about superhero play have changed, as they think they understand better the dynamic between the theme and important concepts of good/bad and power. They no longer assume that it occurs only with boys and realize that dialogue with the children is meaningful and can provide ideas for problem solving. They are confident that their decision to adapt curriculum to include superheroes is based on sound information. They have new questions to pursue about the possible applications of superhero themes to literacy.

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