May-June 2021

New Heights Educational Group
From the world of imagination:
a day in the park with preschool students
By Daniela Silva dos Santos
On a sunny morning
a group of preschoolers
went to the park
with their teachers.
Two students, Arthur
and Peter, after playing
a lot in the park
with their toys, found
a large cardboard
box that was in the
school’s recyclables.
Arthur looked at Peter
Education on Star Trek
By Khrista Cendana
www.NewHeightsEducation.org
Photo credit: Sunder_59OK http://photopin.com
of joy exclaimed:
and with bright eyes
Have you ever wondered if watching Star Trek is good for kids? I started watching Star Trek back in the middle of
“Peter, why don’t we take this box and build a spaceship so we can travel to space and visit different planets?”
the ’90s as a kid, and as of right now, I am still hooked on the fandom. Besides the awesome characters, episodes
and music, did you know that there’s also an educational element within the Star Trek series? Star Trek is good
Without hesitation, Peter ran enthusiastically toward the box and carried it in his arms gave it to his friend.
for kids to watch, and adults can watch it with them if you think the episode may be too graphic. Here are some
things kids can learn from watching Star Trek:
Under the watchful eyes of the class, Arthur and Peter decided to tore the back of the box, and suddenly the object
looked like a sleigh. Then Arthur, looking at Peter, suggested:
“Our spaceship is almost done; now all we have to do is to add fuel.”
So Peter started collecting some sand with his bucket and dumped it into the box. Excited, he turned to Arthur
and said:
“All set. Countdown to takeoff!”
Holding a branch in his hands, Arthur sat at the front of the “spaceship” and, with the help of his co-pilot Peter,
began to announce aloud to the other children in the park:
“Guys, we’ll visit other planets with our spacecraft. Who wants to go with us? Come on take your seat and let’s
take a trip!”
Little by little, other children began to sit down in a row inside the box and, with the help of the teachers, started
the countdown to launch:
“10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2,1. Takeoff”.
1.Culture
Star Trek is technically about living in space and meeting new civilizations “to seek out new life and civilizations”
(James T. Kirk). The characters encounter different cultures, and even before landing on their planet, they have to
learn what the customs are. For instance:
Greetings - hand salute (Vulcuns, humans)
Language - Kardasi, English, Klingon
Race - Cardassian, Humans, Bajorans, Klingons
Just like in the show, in real life we have different cultures that we have to abide by. In school, we will learn the
basic language, like Spanish, Chinese, or Japanese. We even learn the basic greetings: buenos dias (Spanish), Nihao
(Chinese), konnichiwa (Japanese). Lastly, we learn about the foods, history, etc. of the people who speak Spanish,
Chinese, and Japanese.
Laughing, the children began to wave to the teachers and to the other students in the park, saying:
“Bye, bye, see you later!”
“Bye, bye guys. Have a safe trip and have fun, teachers replied”.
The episodes that teach about culture will sometimes let the viewers see how to meet and greet someone they
don’t know for the first time.
And this was undoubtedly an amazing trip around the world. From the world of imagination...
2.Education
Besides culture, there are even some real-life topics on the TV series that kids could learn about if they watch
enough Star Trek episodes:
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