School speakers wanted The Captive Animals' Protection Trust www.animalprotection.org.uk, an educational charity established by CAPS, reports on their work: Over the past year we have been working on putting together a range of new educational materials, specially aimed at schools and designed to fit in with the National Curriculum. The first step is to get out there and get into schools and colleges spreading the message that wild animals should not be in captivity: to be stared at, made to do tricks, or to sell us soft drinks! And that's where you come in: If you feel passionately about the plight of captive animals and would like to help, why not become a speaker and help spread the message? Yes, standing in front of a class of 30 kids can seem like a daunting prospect at first, but it can also be one of the most rewarding things you will ever do! To make things easy, one of the first resources we have produced is a pre-written, professional-looking 15-minute school-talk about zoos, which is available on CD for use with the school's Powerpoint display system (almost all schools have these and helpful technicians to set them all up for you). Once you get a bit more confident, you can adapt the talk to suit your own style. The talk can be used on its own or alongside 'Sad Eyes and Empty Lives', a video produced by CAPS to highlight the plight of animals in zoos supposedly furthering conservation or education. We can also provide you with leaflets and factsheets to distribute. We will follow this up shortly with powerpoint presentations on animal circuses and on captive animal issues generally. We are also working on lesson plans for teachers in Science, English and Citizenship. Unfortunately, many schools visit zoos as part of their curriculum and receive a very one-sided industry picture. It is up to those of us who care, to tell the other side of the story: of futile suffering and conservation myths. We now have several people around Britain who are available for giving talks about our work to schools, as well as other venues - social clubs, care homes, etc. As one of our volunteers told us: "having carried out many school-talks on different animal issues, I can honestly say that reaching even one or two kids in a class, and allowing them to see animals as beings deserving compassion and respect in their own right, is worth a few butterflies in the stomach beforehand." Some of our speakers have had no previous experience in giving public presentations, but have found it a rewarding experience. If you would like to get involved, please contact CAPT at trust@animalprotection.org.uk or phone 0845 330 3911. |
