Superheroes are, in most cases, the good guys. If you are a superhero you are supposed to be on the side of good. That’s a big part of what makes them superheroes; they do the right thing when no one else will because they can.
But we’ve been teaching children that superheroes are the ones who should save us from evil and the bad guys for decades, and it seems to me that we need to let children know that they can be superheroes too.
I’ve met several people who say things like “I’m just an ordinary person,” or “I’m no hero.” But all of those people have also done something heroic at some point in their life; whether it was going out of their way to help someone or risking themselves for someone else. They just don’t think of themselves as heroes because they don’t think that they’re a superhero like Superman or Batman.
But the truth is, if you do something heroic, you’re a superhero. You don’t need a cape or a mask or a secret identity; you just have to do the right thing when faced with a difficult situation.
I think as a teacher, one of the most important things we can pass on to our students is a sense of values. A moral code to live by. I don’t necessarily want my students to live by MY rules or my code of conduct, but I do want them to know what it means to do the right thing and how important it is. I want them to be brave enough to stand up for what they believe in and respectful enough to treat others with kindness and equality.
I’m not naive enough to think that my influence as a teacher is all they will ever have, but I am hopeful that if I can teach them something about being good people, they will carry that with them always.
Of course there are many ways we can do this: through discussion and debate, role play, personal stories… But superheroes can help us too!
I remember when I was a kid, my favourite Superhero was Batman. One day I went to a costume shop and bought the Batman costume. I came home and showed it to my mum. She was so excited she took me straight away to the park so that I could wear it and show it off.
I was so happy wearing the Batman costume. I felt like a hero, as if even though I was just a kid, no one could harm me or scare me because I had all these cool powers and abilities that could protect me.
When we got to the park some kids came up to me and asked me if they could play with me. They were all dressed up as their favourite superheroes too! It was great, we all pretended we were fighting against the bad guys! We had such great fun that day!
All this happened a long time ago when I was young but it got me thinking, why do kids love Superheroes? What is it about them that makes them so popular among kids? And what is it about superheroes that can teach us how to be better people?
I will answer these questions in my blog posts.
The superhero genre is a valuable teaching tool for children and adults alike, in that it gives us something to aspire to. In many ways, the superhero genre is about what it means to be human: our abilities and limitations, our potential for good and evil, the way we deal with adversity. Batman is probably the most human of all superheroes because he has no superpowers. He doesn’t even have extraordinary strength – he’s just an ordinary guy with a lot of money.
And that may be what makes him so interesting: if Batman can have such a profound impact on the world around him, then surely we can too. I don’t know if this blog will have any kind of impact but it’s certainly worth a shot.
The superhero genre is also useful in helping us understand ourselves better. When we read comics or watch movies or TV shows about superheroes, we often identify with them and their struggles to save the day. The hero overcomes tremendous odds to defeat a villain who threatens our very way of life; the hero sacrifices his own happiness for the greater good; the hero is willing to do whatever it takes to save those close to him; the hero does not give up, even when all hope seems lost.
Perhaps these ideas seem corny or unrealistic,
We’re all familiar with the stereotypical superhero, a caped crusader with a mask, an alter ego and a cause. But who is this masked man and what causes are he fighting for?
While it’s true that many superheroes fight for justice, some fight for good, others for their own personal vendettas or for selfish reasons, such as money or even power. So how does our hero make it on to the list of role models for children?
What makes a hero?
The reason Batman is a great superhero is because he’s human. The thing about Batman, unlike other superheroes, is that he doesn’t have any superpowers. He’s just a regular guy with a cape. So it comes down to his intelligence, his willpower, and his compassion for others.
The cape isn’t some magical cloak bestowed upon him by fate or destiny; it’s just a symbol of who he is as a person. It’s not what makes him great, but rather it serves as a reminder of what he could be and the choices he has made to get there.
There are no shortcuts in life and that’s why Bruce Wayne is the best superhero ever created-because he knows this! He knows that you can’t just put on a mask and start fighting crime without doing all of the hard work first. You have to train your mind, body, soul and spirit – only then will you become truly unstoppable!
The other reason why Bruce Wayne is so awesome? Because he cares about people. He wants to help them and make their lives better-not just save them from certain death or destruction at every turn! He has this innate desire to do good in this world because it’s the right thing to do…not because someone told him so or
Batman, who has always been a hero that I am familiar with, is one of my favorites. Not only does he have an all black costume (which as a kid, I thought was really cool), but he was also one of the first heroes that I ever saw. At the time, I was too young to understand the significance of his all black attire and the fact that he was a rich guy who helped people who were less fortunate. As a kid, it did not matter to me why he wore the outfit or how he could afford all the gadgets and vehicles. As far as I was concerned, Batman was just plain cool!