Last Wednesday (13th of February) was a very special day for the children in Grade 1 as they took part in a Virtual Field Trip to Tennessee. They were able to live Skype call with a Microsoft Educator called Todd Montgomery. He works at the Elephant Sanctuary which is based in Tennessee. They house many female elephants who have retired from their captive life.
Todd discussed the different types of elephants and pointed out their similarities and differences. The children learned about their tusks, trunks and teeth. Todd showed a real elephant tooth which is huge!
The children learned about the elephant sanctuary and what is the meaning of ‘sanctuary’. Todd introduced all of the elephants and told the children where they all came from.
They also learned about the causes of endangerment of elephants which are hunting for their tusks and the loss of their habitat. Grade 1 students pledged to “always say no to ivory”. This is the action that our students will take during and after this unit of inquiry, ‘Save the Animals’.
Individuals were able to pose questions to Todd and he answered each and every one! We would like to extend a huge thank you to the Elephant Sanctuary and Todd himself for being so flexible with us. It was nighttime in Tennessee and early morning for us.
Please visit www.elephants.com to find out more about the sanctuary. You can also visit the Elecams between around 4pm and 2am (Qatar time) to see the elephants in their natural habitat.
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