The KITE Model
![Picture](/uploads/5/2/5/1/52518197/8875122.jpg?391)
The KITE Model is an educational model for teaching Scripture in Catholic Schools. It was developed by Barbara Stead during the 1990's as she believed that an approach was needed that focused on the five essential principles to the use of Scripture in Catholic Primary Schools (Hyde & Rymarz, 2009).
These five principles are:
1. Children should be introduced to the Bible story as it is, not "Bible stories".
2. Children’s first understanding of the story will be literal. But they should be taught these stories by teachers who have moved beyond this.
3. Teachers are not using the Bible stories as they have a lack of knowledge and understanding about the Scripture.
4. The problems experienced when teaching Scripture will be solved by teachers who know and love the word of God.
5. Scripture can only be used with children after the teacher has fully explored the text for themselves (Hyde & Rymarz, 2009).
Stead designed and created the KITE Model, to assist in catering for these principles (Stead, 1994; Hyde & Rymarz, 2009). KITE is an acronym that outlines four steps for teachers to follow when teaching Scripture (Stead, 1994). They are outlined below:
These five principles are:
1. Children should be introduced to the Bible story as it is, not "Bible stories".
2. Children’s first understanding of the story will be literal. But they should be taught these stories by teachers who have moved beyond this.
3. Teachers are not using the Bible stories as they have a lack of knowledge and understanding about the Scripture.
4. The problems experienced when teaching Scripture will be solved by teachers who know and love the word of God.
5. Scripture can only be used with children after the teacher has fully explored the text for themselves (Hyde & Rymarz, 2009).
Stead designed and created the KITE Model, to assist in catering for these principles (Stead, 1994; Hyde & Rymarz, 2009). KITE is an acronym that outlines four steps for teachers to follow when teaching Scripture (Stead, 1994). They are outlined below:
Method/Process:
![Picture](/uploads/5/2/5/1/52518197/5495310.jpg?247)
Know the Text:
Knowing the text encourages teachers to focus on the actual text and have a sound knowledge of its meaning (Carswell, M. (2010). Teachers are able to teach a scripture passage well when they come to terms with what they are teaching, not just how to teach it (Stead, 1994). Engaging in the background and meaning of the text will assist in developing students' "knowledge of the text and of the world of Jesus" (Carswell, 2010). This will give students a greater chance of understanding the text as the teacher can transfer and communicate their knowledge to them. Teachers should read the text carefully, taking particular notice of the setting, characters, customs, context, speech and structure (Stead, 1994). Knowing each of these features will assist in teaching any biblical narrative to children (Stead, 1994). Researching and comparing different translations and versions of the story will be helpful in grasping an understanding (Stead, 1994).
Inspire the Imagination:
Inspiring the imagination invited students to "engage imaginatively with the text" (Carswell, 2010). Students need to imagine and experience the feelings and thoughts of characters in the story and to allow the subconscious to come to life (Stead, 1994).
The imagination of students must be inspired to receive the word of God and to discover it meaning for everyone (Stead, 1994).
Translate to Life:
In translate to life, Stead insists children be lead to 'the realisation that the self revelation of God to the men and women in the Bible continues into our lives' (Stead, 1994). This means that The Gospels can only have meaning in the lives of students if they "explain, purify and multiply our depth experiences" (Stead, 1994). To make the Scripture relevant and meaningful, we must seek the questions and life experiences of the students (Stead, 1994). Then we can use the stories of Scripture to interpret and uplift these questions and experiences (Stead, 1994). Asking personalised questions that involve the student in the story and empathise with the characters will help them understand it with added perspective (Stead, 1994).
Express the Heart:
Express the heart focuses on praying the scripture and discovering it as a source of prayer (Stead, 1994). Students are encouraged to reflect on the text that they have come to understand, through prayer (Carswell, 2010). Knowledge of the scripture text should lead into reflection and meditation, according to Stead (1994). She states that children should be gradually introduced to meditation and the use of mantra at this point, as well as chants and silence (Stead, 1994; Carswell, 2010).
Knowing the text encourages teachers to focus on the actual text and have a sound knowledge of its meaning (Carswell, M. (2010). Teachers are able to teach a scripture passage well when they come to terms with what they are teaching, not just how to teach it (Stead, 1994). Engaging in the background and meaning of the text will assist in developing students' "knowledge of the text and of the world of Jesus" (Carswell, 2010). This will give students a greater chance of understanding the text as the teacher can transfer and communicate their knowledge to them. Teachers should read the text carefully, taking particular notice of the setting, characters, customs, context, speech and structure (Stead, 1994). Knowing each of these features will assist in teaching any biblical narrative to children (Stead, 1994). Researching and comparing different translations and versions of the story will be helpful in grasping an understanding (Stead, 1994).
Inspire the Imagination:
Inspiring the imagination invited students to "engage imaginatively with the text" (Carswell, 2010). Students need to imagine and experience the feelings and thoughts of characters in the story and to allow the subconscious to come to life (Stead, 1994).
The imagination of students must be inspired to receive the word of God and to discover it meaning for everyone (Stead, 1994).
Translate to Life:
In translate to life, Stead insists children be lead to 'the realisation that the self revelation of God to the men and women in the Bible continues into our lives' (Stead, 1994). This means that The Gospels can only have meaning in the lives of students if they "explain, purify and multiply our depth experiences" (Stead, 1994). To make the Scripture relevant and meaningful, we must seek the questions and life experiences of the students (Stead, 1994). Then we can use the stories of Scripture to interpret and uplift these questions and experiences (Stead, 1994). Asking personalised questions that involve the student in the story and empathise with the characters will help them understand it with added perspective (Stead, 1994).
Express the Heart:
Express the heart focuses on praying the scripture and discovering it as a source of prayer (Stead, 1994). Students are encouraged to reflect on the text that they have come to understand, through prayer (Carswell, 2010). Knowledge of the scripture text should lead into reflection and meditation, according to Stead (1994). She states that children should be gradually introduced to meditation and the use of mantra at this point, as well as chants and silence (Stead, 1994; Carswell, 2010).
Theoretical Underpinnings
The KITE Model is based on the conviction that "sound biblical scholarship should precede teaching (Carswell, 2010). Barbara Stead developed the KITE Model as she believed that teachers must be knowledgeable about what they are teaching to their students, including Scripture (Stead, n.d.). Therefore, all teachers in Catholic Schools must know the Bible well if they are to teach their students about it and through it (Stead, n.d.). Stead's acronym 'KITE' was designed to help teachers use the Bible and make it relevant. She believed that educators were not adapting the biblical scripture in order to help students understand it (Stead, n.d.).
Stead advocates that all teachers have interpretative skills when it comes to reading the bible, and that they must be able to identify the setting, customs, characters, structure, speech and the context of the scripture text and the context of the entire bible (Stead, 1994; Stead, n.d.). She insists that the scripture text should be "actively taught rather than simply used with students" in order to teach it effectively (Carswell, 2010). She, therefore, argues that teachers must engage with vital, interpretive study of the Bible before teaching any text to their students (Carswell, 2010).
Stead advocates that all teachers have interpretative skills when it comes to reading the bible, and that they must be able to identify the setting, customs, characters, structure, speech and the context of the scripture text and the context of the entire bible (Stead, 1994; Stead, n.d.). She insists that the scripture text should be "actively taught rather than simply used with students" in order to teach it effectively (Carswell, 2010). She, therefore, argues that teachers must engage with vital, interpretive study of the Bible before teaching any text to their students (Carswell, 2010).