Kids Explore Global Cultures through “Passport to the World Camp” July 11-15 at UMaine Page Farm and Home Museum
Contact: Patty Henner, 581-4100
George Manlove, 581-3756
ORONO — Twenty-two area children, ages 5-10 years, are learning about foreign countries and other cultures this week during “Passport to the World Camp” at the UMaine Page Farm and Home Museum.
From July 11 through July 15, the children visit the museum on the Orono campus from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily to explore cultures, traditions, food and songs from central Europe, Scandinavia, South and Central America and the United States. Program coordinators are Stillwater Montessori School teacher Joanne Alex and local parents Elisabeth Daub, Sally Healey and Rebecca Green.
“Passport to the World Camp” at the Page Farm and Home Museum was created to take advantage on Friday afternoon (July 15) of the international experiences being shared during the three-week the Children’s International Summer Village program currently being held at the Joseph A. Leonard Middle School in Old Town. At 1 p.m. Friday, the local children scheduled to end the week with a trip to the Leonard middle school to meet children from around the world who are participating in the international summer village camp.
Each day this week at UMaine, local students “visit” a different global region, mark the countries in home-crafted passports, read stories and learn songs from various cultures and engage in associated art projects. The children have made T-shirts, are working on a quilt and, on Thursday, will build a model Eiffel Tower as they study Germany, France and Canada, according to museum director Patricia Henner. Children’s afternoon snacks take on the flavor of the countries they are visiting. Thursday, for instance, when they visit South and Central America, they’ll have guacamole and tortilla chips. On Monday, they made their own butter to go with lunch.
On Friday, the focus is the USA. Children will cover American life and experience a session in the museum’s one-room schoolhouse from 9-10 a.m. with Henner. They’ll also spend an hour cleaning the school as part of a service-learning component.
“It’s a real nice human interest story,” Henner says. “It’s really cute what they’re doing.”
Information and schedules for activities at the Page Farm and Home Museum are available by calling Patricia Henner at the farm and home museum at 581-3756.