03 October, 2008

Stereotypically Speaking

In the class I observed yesterday, we talked about stereotypes. English vs. Italian stereotypes, that is. Latetia (the teacher) showed them this video that had me laughing as much as the kids:



After the video, she had the kids imagine what the English would think about the French, and the kids came up with this list of stereotypes:

-Always with a baguette (true, according to Chris Holt)
-Good cooks and good food
-Bad drivers
-Eating snails and frog legs
-Paris is romantic
-Bad at other languages
-Everyone wears a beret

Then she asked me if they left anything out. "Well," I said, "You forgot that you smoke all the time, you're snobs, and...oh, yeah, and you hate all Americans."

It was a truly Andy-inspired moment of sass, and the kids loved it! They saw that making fun of yourself and others is OK, as long as you understand that stereotypes are not truths.

After all, no one in class was wearing a beret.

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