The Interdisciplinary Aesthetic Education Excellence Pilot Program held a teacher training seminar on "Enjoying the Essence of Literature—Interdisciplinary Aesthetic Curriculum Design and Teaching in Children's Literature" on May 3rd (Saturday) at National Taichung University of Education. Assistant Professor Kao Ching-yao, a member of the teacher training committee, invited two program practitioners from Hualien and Pingtung to guide trainees in exploring the possibilities of integrating reading and aesthetics, human rights, and creativity into their curricula.

The morning session featured Ms. Hsu Hui-chen, a retired teacher from Mingyi Elementary School in Hualien and a Ministry of Education reading promotion teacher. She shared her rich experience from three years of participation in the project, titled "Story Remedies," and demonstrated how she uses 10 minutes of quiet reading time before lunch break each day to guide students into the world of books, further cultivating a daily 20-minute reading habit. Ms. Hsu led the whole class in reading together, using a carefully selected book list to cultivate students' reading tastes, gradually accumulating reading goals to complete 50 literary books before graduation.

This reading journey not only expands students' language skills but also cultivates their creative thinking abilities. She emphasizes that reading is not just about absorbing knowledge, but also about being a companion in life—when children face self-doubt, interpersonal conflicts, or even bullying on their journey of growth, books become a source of comfort and support. Through reading, they see themselves in stories, understand others, and develop self-awareness, empathy, and the ability to connect with others, making reading a nourishing remedy of stories for life.

The afternoon session featured a lecture by Ms. Huang Bi-zhi from the National Pingtung University Affiliated Experimental Elementary School on "Interdisciplinary Aesthetic Teaching Design," focusing on the lesson plan "Pan to Japan: A Human Rights Performance." She shared how to integrate human rights education, international issues, and digital expertise to create teaching actions with a global perspective. Ms. Huang also guided teacher trainees to brainstorm interdisciplinary activities using curriculum design forms, stimulating their initial imagination and practice in aesthetic curriculum design through hands-on experience and exchange.

Professor Chuang Min-jen, the co-host of the project, also attended the event and commended the two speakers for their interdisciplinary practice combining reading promotion with human rights issues. He encouraged the teacher trainees to broaden their horizons, learn humbly, and see more possibilities in education where art and diverse disciplines intersect. This excellent lecture was very rewarding for the teacher trainees, allowing them to learn by standing on the shoulders of giants and broaden and deepen their perspectives.