Blog #353: The 4 Best Adaptations of “Alice in Wonderland” to Show Special Education Stu
- Jeffrey Snyder
- Aug 9, 2023
- 5 min read
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When it comes to classic stories that are studied in school, no one looks more further than Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland.” Written in 1865, the story follows a curious young girl who ends up in a world that can only be entered through a rabbit hole. Some of you might consider the story whimsical, others a frightfest and others a complete waste of time. However, there is much educational value that is in “Alice in Wonderland” and that includes it’s many film and television adaptations.
For this blog, I’m going to go over the 4 best versions of “Alice in Wonderland” that should be shown to special education students. Each of these 4 adaptations will be ranked based on my experience and what I believe special education students will get out of. If you know of any other adaptations that are best for special education students, please put them in the comments below.
Anyways, let’s get started!!
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#4: “Alice in Wonderland” (1933)
To begin at #4, I might as well say let’s just get this version of “Alice in Wonderland” out of the way because while this is educational, it is very nightmare inducing for some students and even teachers.
The 1933 version of “Alice in Wonderland” is a sort of mixed bag on the account that the visuals are very bizzare to look at. If you take a look at some of the characters, you will see that they are almost mutated and very unappealing. However, you must understand that this version of “Alice” is actually Hollywood’s first attempt at doing a lavish film based on a popular children’s novel. It wouldn’t be until “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) six years later did Hollywood get the formula right. Now, another factor you may notice in this adaptation and the other three films featured in this blog is that the cast is mostly compromised of A-list actors and actresses from that era.
In this case, the cast features Charlotte Henry as Alice, Edward Everett Horton as the Mad Hatter, Cary Grant as the Mock Turtle, Ned Sparks as the Caterpillar and Gary Cooper as the White Knight.
I put this at the bottom of my recommendations on account that the visuals will detract the students from the story. However, if you do want to show this version, I recommend maybe asking the students if they are comfortable.
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#3: Alice in Wonderland (1985)
For #3, we are going to be looking at one of two television adaptations of “Alice” that I think can engage special education students greatly. Produced as a 2 part television special and one of the last to be filmed at the Metro Goldwyn Mayer studio lot, the 1985 version does make some slight modifications such as making Alice’s dress more orange than blue and giving a more significant presence to the Jabberwocky who acts at the main anatgonist in this version. It also divides the story into two parts with the first part dedicated to “Alice in Wonderland” and part 2 to “Through the Looking Glass.”
In fact, this version treats it’s audience to a cliffhanger on account that the Jabberwock stalks Alice at the conclusion of Part 1. This gives the students the idea of why we have cliffhangers which is to get the audience the chance to beg for more. But most importantly, it teaches the audience to face their fears because the Jabberwocky is just that, a personification of our fears that can be easily defeated whether its in an educational, employment or everyday life scenario.
In a way, this kind of reminds me of “The Pagemaster” (1994) with Macaulay Culkin which has a similar premise of using familiar story characters to help the protagonist face his fear.
As for the cast, Natalie Gregory (who would go on to voice Jenny in Disney’s Oliver and Company) stars as Alice, Red Buttons as the White Rabbit, Anthony Newley as the Mad Hatter and Roddy McDowall as the March Hare.
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#2: “Alice in Wonderland” I1999)
For #2, we are going to be looking at one of the final “Alice” adaptations to stay true to the story (and no, we are not looking at the Tim Burton version of 2010). First airing on NBC in 1999, this version of “Alice in Wonderland” stars future “Napoleon Dynamite” star Tina Majorino as Alice who is trying to face her fears of performing on stage at a garden party. Much like the 1985 film, this version has the inhabitants of Wonderland trying to help Alice conquer her fears and build her self-confidence. But it goes to show you more that there are other sources out there that are looking out for our own best interests. In a way, teachers can connect with the Wonderland inhabitants in this version because the inhabitants are a reflection of the teachers themselves and Alice represents the students that they are teaching.
In addition to Majorino, the cast also features Miranda Richardson as the Queen of Hearts, Martin Short as the Mad Hatter, Whoopi Goldberg as the Cheshire Cat and in one of his final film roles, Gene Wilder as the Mock Turtle.
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#1. “Alice in Wonderland” (1951)
You knew that this was going to happen, didn’t you? Well, out of all the adaptations of “Alice in Wonderland,” the 1951 Disney version is the one that special education students will connect to the most.
But what you may find interesting about this version is that when it was first released, it was a box office failure. But that is beside the point. The point is that this version teaches the important of listening to advice and not letting your imagination getting the better of you. This is also the version that teaches the viewer what happens when your curiosity gets the better of you. Students will put themselves in the shoes of Alice in this version and will ask themselves should I or should I not follow the advice that is given to them and also whether or not they should control their curiosity.
Now, there is nothing wrong with being curious. But Alice in this version can serve as an example to special education students that curiosity can lead to trouble and that while Alice’s adventures are nothing but a dream, the adventures in real life can be somewhat different.
As for the casting, this version has Kathryn Beaumont as Alice, Ed Wynn as the Mad Hatter, Jerry Colonna as the March Hare, Richard Haydn as the Caterpillar and Verna Felton as the Queen of Hearts.
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So, in conclusion, there are many versions of “Alice in Wonderland” to choose from, but these are the four that will leap out at you the most. But it also goes to show that while every version brings its own unique charm and substance, the message is still the same that imagination is crucial, yet it can go off in different directions. Special education students can often relate to the individual characters whether they are curious like Alice, crazy like the Mad Hatter and the March Hare or loud and bossy like the Queen of Hearts.
But the message remains the same that the world can be crazy at times just as Lewis Carroll himself saw it when he first wrote “Alice” back in 1865.
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Catch you all later!!
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