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Lots of parents of adopted kids get the opportunity to give a presentation at their child’s elementary school to help their child’s classmates get a little better acquainted with the country their child is from. This can be a great opportunity to talk about adoption if you desire, or just to share some neat things about Ethiopia.
Part 1: Show and Tell
You can begin with a very brief talk about Ethiopia. Show the children where Ethiopia is on the map, and tell a little of what you know about the country. Try to balance positive and negative. For example, along with mentioning that many children in Ethiopia aren’t able to go to school, you can mention the skills that children there learn at a very young age.
As you speak, you can pass around an Ethiopian item or two, maybe a hand-woven scarf or a small basket. Items like these are sturdy and probably won’t suffer damage while being passed around. Tell how you got these things. You might enjoy giving a short demonstration of the Ethiopian coffee ceremony .
Part 2: Craft
After you’ve talked a little to the children about the country, move on to a simple craft. You could bring yarn and have the children practice braiding to represent the way many people in Ethiopia wear their hair braided. Or you could use paper or sticks to let kids practice weaving. See the end of this article for more ideas.
Part 3: Snack
A great ending note is a snack. Easy snacks to bring for the kids to sample include:
-Dabo Kolo, a pretzel-like bread. You might want to make a mild version and a spicy version so children can decide which type they would like to sample.
-Ethiopian Ambasha, a loaf-type bread with spices in it. You may want to cut one loaf into small pieces ahead of time for sampling and leave another loaf uncut so people can see how it looks.
You’ll probably find that teachers are interested in the food just as much as the kids. If you’re really on the ball, you may enjoy making copies of the recipes for people to bring home.
For more ideas to jazz up presentations on Ethiopia you may want to visit these sites:
-Teacher’s Guide To African Art
