Taking this journey of inquiry and discovery for me has been insightful and frightening. The topic, itself, is one we tend to walk around on tippy toe. As I've said before, I am not sure why; I just know we do. I also know that many, many students have posed questions to me about why people believe and what they believe so there is room for their inquiry. Social studies standards in grades 6-8 dealing with world culture and belief systems could easily be fulfilled using a MI unit on World Religions. I feel that the Multiple Intelligence model developed by Dr. Howard Gardner would provide a safe, effective unit for inquiry of this delicate subject.
When an educator begins to look for ways to incorporate the multiple intelligence theory into his or her lesson plans, it can be overwhelming, but it is always rewarding. The Four-Step Model developed for use with Dr. Howard Gardner's MI theory (Frames of Mind) can be easily adapted and used and will be a technique that I use when I present the World Religion unit to my 7 and 8th grade students. The four step model includes : the main lesson, centers (based on the different intelligences), sharing and reviewing, and individual projects implementing the multiple intelligences. The sharing and reviewing step will be pivotal; it involves journaling, oral presentation of learned materials, and large group discussions. The main lesson is a "15-20 minute multimodal overview of the topic to be studied that day. Each main lesson consists of a lecture presented by the teacher or student, including visuals, possibly kinesthetic activities, and provocative questions, many of which are left to explore" (Campbell). My plan is to use visual images that are commonly connected to faith and religion to spawn intrigue and spur inquiry.
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