Do we ever outgrow our fascination with castles and the stories that surround them? Indeed, castles remain charming relics of a remarkable past that captivate audiences of all ages. Castles evoke everything exciting, adventurous, and mysterious, which is why they are a wonderful subject matter for kindergarten students, who become everything curious, inquisitive, and enchanted.
Lake Forest Country Day School granted us funds to further our professional growth in a unique and rejuvenating way. We were fortunate to travel to Great Britain to study the incredible history and architecture of some of the most well-known castles of the world, as a way of extending our magical study of fairy tales in senior kindergarten.
Through literature, imaginative play, art, music, and innovative technology, we designed an extraordinary unit of study with our senior kindergarten team. To emulate life in a castle, we transformed our classrooms into royal residences. Imagine the children’s excitement as they walked through pristine gardens and then crossed over a drawbridge to enter their classroom. The room within was reminiscent of a palace, with art decorating the walls created by the royal princes and princesses that resided there. The children enjoyed majestic play wearing authentic dress-ups (purchased at those irresistible gift shops strategically found at the end of each of our tours). The unit wrapped up with an enchanting royal feast, complete with court entertainment and delicious victuals.
Reminiscing about our visits to these castles and palaces has been unbelievably enchanting. Learning through experiencing has provided us with knowledge and understanding hardly comparable to what you find in a book or on the Internet. It is our mission as educators to develop ways to provide inspirational education to our youth, the future leaders of our nation.