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Humane Education at Animal Friends
Click here for a current list of classes at Animal Friends.
We offer eight weeks of summer camp at Animal Friends and are unable to offer children’s tours during the summer. Our calendar for off-site presentations for the summer of 2010 is now full.
If you are interested in a humane education presentation or children's tour, please note that we usually take reservations several months in advance and run a waiting list every school year. We make visits to schools on Thursdays or Fridays. Shelter tours are held Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays mornings. (Some Tuesdays are available on-site for groups serving special-needs or at-risk children.) Our presentations/tours are offered free of charge, but we ask that each child bring in a gift for our animals from our supply drive form. Click here to see our supply drive form.
Important: Please click here to read our complete Reservation Guidelines before submitting a reservation request for your group to come to Animal Friends.
Please email beginning on June 29 if you would like to schedule a presentation, children’s tour, or assembly for the 2010-2011 school year. Please type “2010-2011 (name of organization) request” in the subject line. In your email please number 1- 6 and include:
1. your name
2. the name of your organization
3. complete mailing address
4. phone number(s)
5. number of children
6. the grade level(s) of the children
After receipt of the initial email, you will be contacted within a week to discuss possible dates/times for your group.
We welcome monetary donations from children’s groups. Please click here for more information on our Kind Kids program – and how your children’s group can name an Animal Friends animal.
We offer a Junior Girl Scout Pet Care Badge Day in the fall and the spring. Our Badge Days sell out quickly. Please check the Animal Friends University page of our website regularly for Badge Day listings.
Presentations at your School
Our presentations meet Pennsylvania Academic Standards 10.2.3.A, 10.2.3.E, 10.3.3.A, and 10.3.3.B.
• We must see a minimum of 30 students to travel to your facility.
• Teachers must stay in the room and monitor the behavior of the students.
• Visits to individual Kindergarten or Life Skills classrooms with no more than 25 students per classroom; dog safety lesson and dog interaction (30 minutes per classroom); optional additional lesson on responsible pet care (15 minutes)
• Visits to individual Physical Education classes with no more than 25 students per class; dog safety lesson and dog interaction (30 minutes per class)
• We show a Powerpoint presentation during grade-level and school-wide assemblies. The school must provide a laptop, projector, screen, and teacher who is able to troubleshoot any technical difficulties. The Powerpoint presentation gives an overview of Animal Friends’ work, teaches the importance of spaying and neutering, and teaches animal body language and bite prevention.
• One grade-level assembly (45 minutes) for grades 1-8 followed by visits to individual grade-level classrooms for brief dog interaction (5-10 minutes per grade-level classroom)
• School-wide assembly for grades 1-8 (can be combined with above Kindergarten program); 45 minutes; we can give up to two assemblies if the school would like us to present to half of the students at a time; does not include an animal interaction
There is no question that there is a link between humans and animals. Our mission in Humane Education is to teach members of our community:
- Compassion and respect for all life
- How animals care for people
- How people care for animals
- Proper care and handling of animals
- Safety around animals
Groups that we serve
- Preschool (age 4+)
- Kindergarten
- Primary, Elementary, Middle School, High School - in-school and after-school programs
- Scouts
- Children with special needs or emotional and behavorial issues
- Community groups - faith-based groups, libraries, etc.
Our volunteers give presentations in schools with their own authorized companion animals or here at the shelter with approved shelter residents. We’ll provide the lesson plan and materials. You provide a desire to impact the future by helping children grow up to be responsible pet owners. Prior experience with children is also helpful.
The requirements for Humane Education Volunteers include the following:
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public speaking skills
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general volunteer orientation (dates available several times a month)
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Humane Education Orientation
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ability to provide own transportation in private vehicle to and from site
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availability Saturdays and/or evenings to assist with tours or
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availability Tuesday - Friday during school hours for presentations
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Pennsylvania criminal record and child abuse security clearances
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pet approved by Animal Friends’ Behavior Coordinator
Don’t have a pet of your own? One of our approved shelter animals could be your four-legged presentation buddy. But first you would also need to complete our dog and cat handling classes.
Links for Kids
See below to download the free brochures from the American Veterinary Medical Association's website, http://www.avma.org/:
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Animal Friends' Kids' Club
Click here for more information about Animal Friends’ Kids’ Club. We are currently accepting applications for our 2010-2011 Kids’ Club. Click here to print out the application. The application deadline is August 15, 2010. Please do not send any tuition with your application. Please note that attendance, dress code, and behavior guidelines will apply to members. Please print the Policies and Permission information form, sign it, and submit it with your application. Students will be notified before Labor Day, via mail, as to whether or not they have been accepted for membership. At that time, those students chosen for membership will receive additional information regarding submitting the tuition.
:
September 25, 10:15 – 11:00, Kick-off for Members and Parents
Monthly Club Meetings for Members, Saturdays, 10:15 – 12:15
October 16
November 27
December 18
January 15
February 19
March 19
April 16
May 21
Poetry by Young Animal Lovers
Young poets at Pine-Richland Middle School were inspired by Animal Friends’ work. Read their poetry about Animal Friends here.
Be Kind to Animals Week Poster Contest 2010
Our first place winners for 2010 are:
1. Elizabeth Groetsch, Providence Heights Alpha School
2. Saksham Premi, Hyde Elementary
3. Stephanie Manasterski, Allard Elementary
4. Viktoria Probeck, Wyland Elementary
5. Elizabeth Sickles, Allard Elementary
6. Miranda Miller, Word of God School
7. Julia Manganello, St. Teresa of Avila School
8. Sydney Brooks, Pine-Richland Middle School
We received 494 posters, and our judges chose 8 first place winners and 50 Honorable Mention winners. During Be Kind to Animals Week, winning students and their families and teachers attended a dessert reception at Animal Friends. First place winners received a certificate, gift bag, and the opportunity to name an Animal Friends resident. Honorable Mention winners received certificates. Winning posters will be displayed at Animal Friends throughout the remainder of 2010. Details about the 2011 contest will be available on the website in December of 2010.
Support our Education Program
Donate
Animal Friends depends on donations from the community to make our work possible. You can support our Education Program with a general donation by clicking the button below.
You can also give the gift of kindness by adopting a classroom. Your gift of $25 will underwrite the cost of bi-monthly educational materials for a classroom served by Animal Friends' Humane Education program. Each tax-deductible donation underwrites five issues of the KIND News, which teaches elementary school children to treat people, animals, and the environment with kindness and respect. You can even adopt a specific classroom. Click here!
Reading with Rover
Our Education department houses our Reading With Rover program, a unique, canine-focused approach to literacy! Through this program, Animal Friends pairs young readers with certified, specially-trained dogs for remarkable results. Teachers and parents report that when students practice reading aloud to our dogs, the students show increased fluency and an increased desire to read for pleasure. Click here to check out our list of recommended books (grades 1-3).
Please click here to learn more about our Reading With Rover Program.
Please email dschultz@ThinkingOutsideTheCage.org if you have a dog with a Canine Good Citizen Certificate and would like to attend the next Reading with Rover orientation!
Kids and Volunteering
Kids ages 13-15 can volunteer with our animals only when accompanied one-on-one by a parent or guardian who has also completed Volunteer Orientation. Please speak with our Volunteer Coordinator about this option. Our Volunteer Coordinator can also assist with orientations for those 16 and older who would like to volunteer in the cat room or those 18 and older who would like to walk dogs.
Because of insurance considerations and state regulations, we are restricted in our ability to provide hands-on animal projects for children. Kids 12 and under can support the shelter in other ways such as:
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making treats for the animals to eat (Click here for recipes!)
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distributing the Petsburgh Press
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assisting with our newspaper collection
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bringing aluminum cans to the shelter to be recycled
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organizing a school fundraiser or supply drive ( click here to print out a supply drive form)
- Make blankets for the dogs (click here to learn how!)
- Make toys for the dogs and cats (click here to learn how!)
Contact Our Education ProgramDana Schultz
Education Coordinator
412.847.7033
dschultz@ThinkingOutsideTheCage.org
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