The first time I took my daughter to the movie theater she was and the movie was “Bambi” I’m a movies lover, so I had chosen it carefully and thought a cartoon movie would be an effective introduction to the Seventh Art World Everything was going just fine until Bambi’s mother was shot and killed My daughter got anguished and asked to go home in the middle of the movie Fortunately later choices turned out OK and she likes movies as much as I My point is: are cartoons really safe for kids? Or parents need to pay attention to the type of cartoons kids are watching during their spare time? Once I sat on the sofa to watch a cartoon with my 8-year-old son and got completely dumbfounded when I realized a cartoon character was agonizing right in front of us, bleeding as if it was an action adult movie! Everybody knows that the cartoon “The Simpsons” doesn’t spread nice manners or behavior, but what about the “kid stuff” they display in the afternoon for young children? The next time you take a kid to the movies maybe a cartoon doesn’t make the best choice, unless you take the time to watch it and analyze its content first Or you take the risk of exposing your child to messages s/he isn’t prepared to get yet According to the text: Bambi is a cartoon movie ( ) true ( ) false There isn’t violence in cartoon movies ( ) true ( ) false Bambi’s father is killed in the movie ( ) true ( ) false Children are exposed to violence content watching cartoons ( ) true ( ) false Parents shouldn’t worry about the cartoons content ( ) true ( ) false “The Simpsons” spreads nice manners and behavior ( ) true ( ) false Young children may feel anguished when they are exposed to things they are not prepared to deal with ( ) true ( ) false Before taking a child to the movies, it’s important to check the movie content ( ) true ( ) false Cartoons are for kids, so they are safe ( ) true ( ) false Are cartoon characters always nice? Support your answer _ Have you ever been shocked by something you say in cartoons? What was it? _ _ Are cartoons classified by age in your country? (If aff.) Do you know the criteria used to classify them? _ _ In some countries movies are classified from 12 to 18 and every movie classified under 12 is allowed for children of any age Do you think the content that is OK for a 12-year-old child is always proper for younger kids? Why? _ _ What’s your favorite cartoon? Why you like it? _ There were two actions in the past: I had chosen carefully a movie (first action in the past) I took my daughter to the movie theater (second action in the past) As you see, we use the past perfect to describe the action that happened before another action when both happened in the past Complete with the simple past / past simple of the verbs given: We missed the plane because when we _ to the airport, the plane _ [to get / to take off] I was stuck in traffic because when I _ about the wreck on Main Avenue on the radio I it [to hear / to take] I woke up early today As a matter of fact, when the alarm clock I _ [to go on / to get up] I couldn’t give Mary your message because when she to the office yesterday I _ [to return / to leave] TEACHER’S KEYS ACTIVITIES SUGGESTED: According to the text: Students watch some cartoons and try to Bambi is a cartoon movie ( X ) true ( ) false detect inappropriate scenes / message / language, etc There isn’t violence in cartoon movies ( ) true ( X ) false cartoons and prepare a classification by Bambi’s father is killed in the movie ( ) true ( X ) false Children are Students make a list of the most popular age Students discuss their opinions about the exposed to violence watching cartoons ( X ) true content ( ) false most popular cartoons or their main characters’ behavior, and label them with Parents shouldn’t worry about the cartoons appropriate / inappropriate content ( ) true Students try to remember examples of “The ( X ) false Simpsons” spreads nice manners behavior ( ) true and ( X ) false scenes they saw in cartoons and make an evaluation of its appropriateness for Young children may feel anguished when they are young children (Example: that Simpsons exposed to things they are not prepared to deal episode, when the boy cheated on the with ( X ) true test and his father told him it was OK.) ( ) false Before taking a child to the movies, it’s The teacher shows some scenes / videos important to check the movie content taken from popular cartoon movies and ( X ) true asks the students to evaluate them ( ) false Cartoons are for kids, so they are safe ( ) true ( X ) false Students discuss the criteria used to classify movies in their country, agree / disagree / support their opinion Complete with the simple past / past simple of the verbs given: We missed the plane because when we GOT to the airport, the plane HAD TAKEN OFF [to get / to take off] I was stuck in traffic because when I HEARD about the wreck on Main Avenue on the radio I HAD TAKEN it [to hear / to take] I woke up early today As a matter of fact, when the alarm clock WENT ON I HAD GOTTEN UP [to go on / to get up] I couldn’t give Mary your message because when she RETURNED to the office yesterday I HAD LEFT [to return / to leave]