From September 2010 to January 2012, a classroom of 3rd grade students at the Merriam School in Acton and students at the Caserio  Helen School in Ilobasco, El Salvador participated in an ongoing cultural exchange through school-based projects. The program, Sharing Biodiversity and Culture, was developed by The Discovery Musueums in Acton, in partnership with a Salvadorian children's museum, Tin Marin Museo de los Ninos. The two museums were proud recipients of a MCCA grant that enabled the development of this year-long program.

"Can you communicate with another country where you don't speak the language? That's the whole project."   - Denise LeBlanc, Director of Learning Experiences for The Discovery Museums

    

Getting to Know Each Other

Students from both schools were assigned partners. They did autobiographies and also wrote letters to each other. Some even drew pictures of their families.

Virtual Friendships

Digital and internet technology was provided to the school in Ilobasco, and both schools used WebEx online meeting software (thanks to Cisco Systems) to interact online, sharing experiences, language and science curriculum projects. Watch Video

Incorporating Biodiversity

Leah Richardson, the third -and fourth-grade teacher whose class participated in the program, said the exchange added to the regular third grade science curriculum, when students normally study soil and the web of life. One new opportunity is to 'adopt' a plant or tree to study, involving drawing and photographing it over time.

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Check out these special Biodiversity and Culture events:

Volcano Camping Trip               Celebratory Event               ES Mosaic Installation               US Mosaic Installation

                                                                                     

Other Media & Press here >>

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The program was developed by The Discovery Museums in Acton in partnership with the Tin Marin Children’s Museum in San Salvador, and generously funded by the Museums & Community Collaborations Abroad (MCCA) program, made possible by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and administered by the American Association of Museums.