There are several different ways students utilize their senses to acquire and retain information, often referred to as learning styles or learning modalities. Four learning styles educators commonly employ are auditory, visual, tactile and kinesthetic. Most students learn well using all four modalities, but have one or more way in which they learn best. Presenting the material in a variety of ways is an effective tool to reach all students. Because of this, many programs and educational materials have been created over the years to aid students in the learning process.
For many teachers of the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s, the animated songs of School House Rock® (Trademark Registration No 1293368) became a way for teachers to reach students across all learning styles. Schoolhouse Rock was created by David McCall, part owner of the New York City based advertising agency McCaffery & McCall. McCall noticed his son was having difficulty memorizing his multiplication tables but had no problems remembering the lyrics to popular rock songs. McCall brought in jazz musician Bob Dorough to create a medium that would incorporate music as a learning tool. The first song Dorough came up with was “Three is a Magic Number” and things grew from there. David McCall and his team took their storyboard to Michael Eisner, ABC’s Vice President for Children’s Programming, and Eisner bought the cartoon on the spot.
The first episode of Schoolhouse Rock premiered January 6, 1973, as a three-minute short played between cartoons. The series was originally called “Scholastic Rock” but that was altered when the publishing company Scholastic Inc. hired a lawyer demanding the name be changed. The show has been so successful that many governmental and lobbyist groups have their staffers watch “I’m Just a Bill” as part of their training. “Telegraph Line” is used to introduce first-year medical students to the nervous system at the University of Michigan Medical School as well as Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Sesame Street® (Trademark Registration Nos. 1025725 and 0974205) is another show that allows students to learn through different avenues. Lloyd Morrisett, Vice President, at the time, of the Carnegie Corporation, noticed how much time his young daughter was spending in front of the television and he wanted to find a way to stimulate learning while providing entertainment. He reached out to Joan Cooley, a public-television producer, and from there the two created Sesame Street, the longest running American children’s series.
Sesame Street premiered on November 9, 1969, and was described by CBS news writer Norman Morris as a “[concept] that will literally channel children’s avid interest in television into preparation for the educational journey so vital to their lives,” the show’s goal was to encourage “intellectual and cultural growth” and to teach children specific academic skills. The show uses images, songs, like the popular “One of These Things (Is Not Like the Other)”, short films, humor and the infamous cast of Muppets to convey an educational message to its viewers.
At home, many parents struggle with assisting their children with various learning issues. One father, saddened to see his son struggle with reading, became determined to find a way to make reading less stressful and more fun. That determination led to the creation of Hooked on Phonics® (Trademark Registration No. 1876555) which launched in 1987. The program uses systematic phonics and support stories to teach letter-sound correlations. The program soon became a household name and had a memorable tagline “Hooked on Phonics worked for me” as well as the trademarked phone number 1-800-ABCDEFG® (Trademark Registration No. 1877587).
According to the Hooked on Phonics website, “over three million families and thousands of schools have turned to our award-winning products to help their children and students reach their full potential.” The Hooked on Phonics brand has branched out to over 30 countries and has educational tools in areas such as math, handwriting and foreign language. Hooked on Phonics also created a comprehensive learning approach, Hooked on School Success® (Trademark Registration No. 2629995) covering all areas of school from test taking strategies to study habits. To accommodate on-the-go lifestyles, the company created apps for iOS and Android mobile devices.
With all these learning tools, people who live on “Sesame Street” can get “Hooked on Phonics” and make the “School House Rock.”