Art for Gorillas

Category: Art of Conservation (AoC) | Date: Jul 28 2009 | By: Julie

Hi, this is Danielle. School is back in session…

Students return this week after a three week break. Now I get the opportunity to teach with AoC.

Fahad, Innocent, Eric, and I plan the class agenda. Photo Michael Young 2009.

Everyday is a new day and the team of Art of Conservation tries to plan for everything. This not only includes the lesson plans but also how a lesson will be translated, the visual aids we can use, and most importantly an art project. This helps the children express what they have learned through a different method besides writing and speaking. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with all the team members because without them our lessons would not go as smooth as they do. It has been a challenging and great learning experience for me to coordinate with a translator. This experience has taught me to listen carefully and most importantly to be patient.

This photo is of the students working with a map of Africa.

For today’s lesson we emphasized the difference between countries and continents. We also went over relative location and how to use a compass. The goal of the lesson was for the children to walk out of the classroom having a greater understanding of where in the world they live and why Africa and Rwanda are unique places in the world.

Art projects are always fun for children.

Being able to express yourself through art not only gives the child a sense of comfort but also gives them a freedom they can not have through other types of expression. We gave a broad theme for them to decorate their envelopes with: What do you think is unique about Africa and/or Rwanda. The theme tied into the lesson so we could inspire the children to think of geography as not only maps and text but as a piece of art work.

Tags: conservation education, mountain gorillas, rwanda