Street Rats and Fat Cats: A Discussion About Poverty and Privilege

Poor characters in children’s films are often depicted as energetic and physically healthy. Furthermore, said characters often overcome their poverty by some magical/mystical force or sensational turn of events. Yet, in reality, poverty is incredibly difficult to escape without family, community, and policy supports. What parts of the story are not making it into the script? This class will help learners distinguish fiction from facts surrounding the issue of poverty. 

This class will unfold as follows: 
1. Learners will discuss the general storyline/plot of a Disney film (Aladdin) that depicted a young man living in poverty. In doing so, learners will see what city (Baghdad) the creators used to inspire the fictional city, "Agrabah." Learners will also identify what external factors and circumstances that shape the protagonist's path and choices through an interactive game called "why though?" 
2. Learners will expand their understanding of poverty by discussing characters in the film who have power and privilege, whether they be villainous or complicit.
3. Learners will be provided with visual cues to help them distinguish between "absolute poverty" (depicted in Aladdin) and "relative poverty" (which is more common in developed countries).
4. Learners will discuss broadly what family, community, and government policy supports would help someone escape poverty. 
5. If time permits, learners will end the class by providing feedback on what aspects of the class they liked and what they would like to learn more about in the future. 

My teaching style is highly interactive and encourages learner participation. Learners will interact with me and the other learners through engagement in class discussions. Specifically, learners will be invited to use their voice and hand signals in this class.  All learners will be encouraged to participate vocally in the class. 

Learners will be guided by a google slides presentation with many photos and questions embedded to promote engagement and maintain interest. One short clip (2:30 in length) suitable for a general audience will be played in class from the original (1992) movie.