The Three Little PigsThe TRUE Story of the Three Little Pigs

Little Red Riding Hood

Joann Wettingfeld

EEX 4070

April 10, 2010

jwettingfeld@knights.ucf.edu

Story telling & Puppet show

Emily Danks

Melissa Gatlin

Joann Wettingfeld

Ucp Osceola

Melissa and Emily are friends I met in a literature class last

semester; we are taking another class together this semester (other

than this one) and decided to join forces to do this project.

We met at UCP Osceola on Friday mornings at 9:00 am to tell a

story and act it out with puppets. The children served were ages 2–5.

Our presentations were given the first three weeks in March.

After story time was over, we chose or were assigned a class. We

planned an activity, but since it was so close to lunch time by the

time we finished with all the classes, we helped them with lunch; they

kept the activities for later.

Early Perceptions

.

Up to about 13 years ago, my first reaction when I came in contact with someone with a

disability was to feel sorry for the person. A personal experience taught me that people

with a disability do not want to be pitied; it’s insulting.

A number of years ago I made a new friend, Rosa. Rosa is legally blind. I have

known many people with a mental or physical handicap over the years,

but I had never been personally acquainted with someone who was blind.

At first I found myself talking 'down' to her or using very simple speech like

I would a child or speaking in a louder voice. As I got to know her better, I

found out Rosa was in the military as a mental health nurse- she's not

mentally challenged by any means, just doesn't see as well as me. In many

ways I found she saw far better than me. It's amazing how a person's

perception changes when you see the person not the disability.

Introduction to the Setting

Osceola Campus

448 W. Donegan Avenue

Kissimmee, FL 34741

“This 9,200 square foot facility has seven

classrooms, a therapy gym and a

developmental playground. There is also

one specialized autism classroom. UCP of

Central Florida’s Osceola Campus is our

second largest center and serves a

growing need in Osceola County.”http://www.ucpcfl.org/abo-loc-osc.shtml

The pictures show one of the therapy

rooms where our puppet show took place.

The top picture is ours, the bottom is from

UCP’s website. (Listed above)

I became familiar with UCP Osceola through my grandson.

He was diagnosed with CP when he was 2 and his doctor

recommended the UCP schools- “There is one in Kissimmee.”

Since this class has a connection with the UCP Bailes center,

I knew that the UCP school would work and I wanted to do my

project where my grandson used to go. I was familiar with the

people there, it was a pleasure to go back.

Me & ucp

http://www.ucpcfl.org/abo-loc-osc.shtml

Demographics

Classroom Profile

Students Per Teacher 14

Enrollment 56

Economically Disadvantaged 41.1%

Breakdown by Ethnicity

White 21.4%

Black 5.4%

Hispanic 62.5%

Asian/Pacific Islander 3.6%http://www.schoolmatters.com/schools.aspx/q/page=sp/sid=55590

The school serves children with any

disability, including-Down Syndrome,

Visual or Hearing impairment, Speech

delayed, Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Mental

Developmental and children with no

disabilities.

The school also offers Speech,

Physical and Occupational Therapy

available by appointment to people

ages birth – 21 years who are not

enrolled in the school.

The school is for babies up to Pre-K

only; they do not have the facilities to

house any other grades.

csulb.edu

http://www.ucpcfl.org/ser-ser.shtml

A Personal Reflection:

Thirteen years ago, my younger brother was diagnosed with a particularly

aggressive brain tumor. One day, my mom’s car broke down in the

oncologist’s parking lot; she called and asked me to come help her. I

remember- as I drove into the parking lot, seeing an old man come out of a

doctor’s office and hobble across the lot and I felt sorry for him. Imagine

my shock to realize that ‘old man’ was my younger brother! I know that

cancer isn’t classified as a disability, but as his cancer progressed, it

affected his vision and mobility (he lost the use of his left arm and leg).

Through that experience and others that our family went through together, I

learned the personal nature of a disability- most important is the fact we

learned in our “Understanding Disabilities” module- “the disability does not

define the person”! My brother- his humor, character, mind etc. was in that

body and he appreciated being treated as a person of great worth- which

he was! All people are- disabled or not!

My oldest grandson was diagnosed with CP two years ago. CP does not

determine who he is, and it’s irritating to hear people say, “Poor little boy!” I

know how they feel though, and that it is said with good intentions- I used to

think or say the same thing.

Presentations

March 5

The Three Little Pigs

March 12

The TRUE Story of the Three Little

Pigs(The wolf’s side

of the story)

March 19

Little Red Riding Hood

Us and The Little Darlings

We gave three

performances the first

day. The two two-year-

old classes were first;

then the two three-year-

old classes; last- the two

four-year-old classes.

For the last two weeks, the four-

year-old classes came in

separately- so we gave four

performances on those weeks..

On average, I think we

served close to sixty

children. We had

seventy-five handouts,

but didn’t use all of them

We were not allowed to know what

disabilities the students had. The children

with Down Syndrome were easy to

determine. (as a side note- these were the

happiest children! )

The stories their way

reflections We observed their individual behavior patterns the first week, so we

were better prepared the second week to know how to communicate

with different children. After we told the first story, we asked the

children if they wanted to come play with the puppets and tell the

story. In one of the classes, there was a particularly eager little girl. It

seemed to us that when she came forward, some of the other children

moved back. We learned to ask the children individually if they

wanted to play with the puppets instead of asking the class as a

whole. This action gave the other children the encouragement they

needed to move past the little girl and take a turn. When she tried to

assert herself, we told her it was someone else’s turn at that moment.

The children remembered us when we came the second week. They

waved excitedly to us and told us about the story we presented the

week before. Some of them ran over to us to give us a hug. When it

was time for them to leave, some of them came over to us and

hugged us again.

REFLECTIONS (CON’T)

I can’t ‘lump’ the children with specific disabilities together. For

example, the children with down syndrome- “They are happy

children and were eager to participate. “ While this is true, each of

these children is an individual. They have their own personality and

characteristics.

I wasn’t sure at first if our being there was a good thing. I felt like

we disrupted their day; the children were very active! The teachers

said that the children looked forward to our show; it was a break in

their schedule. One of the teachers has a daughter in the school;

she said her daughter repeated the stories every night at bath time.

I felt better about being there when I heard this.

Overall, the classes we enjoyed performing for best were the

younger classes. They were more likely to participate with the

puppets and other props we brought; their activity level was not as

high. There was a noticeable difference but I’m not sure why.

REFLECTIONS (CON’T)

One of the four-year-old classes did NOT like Little Red Riding Hood. I

don’t know if it was the cape, the story or what it was, they were freaked

out!! So when story time was over- they hid in the cape I was wearing-

snotty noses and all!! They wanted nothing to do with the child’s cape, so

the teacher put it on. They thought this was funny.

The second week there, we presented the wolf’s version of 3 little pigs.

The children recognized the puppets and scenery; they told us they

wanted a new story- they already knew this story. When they learned it

was a different story- they were okay with hearing it. After Little Red… on

the third week, they told us they liked “the pig story better- Tell it again!”

I enjoyed the experience! Some of the children were reserved around

us, some were not. By the end of the third week, we were old friends. In

one of the classes there was a little boy who kept grabbing my hands and

lifting his legs. (He had incredible upper body strength!) I didn’t know

what he wanted- the teacher said he wanted to be held; I asked if I was

allowed. When they said yes, I picked him up. He buried his head in my

shoulder and hung on tight. The teacher said, “You’re in heaven aren’t

you, Mark?” He just looked at me and smiled.