1. Map Study

Locate Africa on a globe or world map. Then invite a child to find Angola on the map of Africa (PDF file, 230 kb) on the back of the poster. Ask him or her to color in Angola.
(Materials: globe or world map, Africa map on poster, crayon)

2. Mobile

The children will be working on individual mobiles over the four sessions. It will have four pictures on it, one for each story in Build a Better World: Africa. Options for making pictures for the mobiles:

Trace the outline of the country for each story from the map on the back of the poster.
Go to the CWS website and download the coloring pictures for each story. These can
be found at www.buildavillage.org. Use some portion of each picture to create a scene for each story that is glued to construction paper shapes.
Have the children draw their own pictures for each story.

Save the pictures until they have one for each story. The directions for constructing the mobile can be found on the Journey to Kenya activities page.
(Materials: map of Africa or website coloring pictures or drawing paper, construction paper, glue, and crayons)

3. Poster

Show the children the colored poster (PDF file, 525 kb) from Build a Better World: Africa. Ask them to find scenes that show some of the good things happening in Adelino's community.
(Materials: Build a Better World: Africa poster)

4. African Proverb Book

Begin making a book of African proverbs. Staple together six sheets of plain paper. On the cover, write the title of the book, such as "African Proverbs." During each session ask your children to print the proverb used in the story on a page and draw a picture illustrating that proverb on the opposite page - for younger children you may want to write in the proverbs. Begin with the proverb in this story, Knowledge is like a garden. If it is not cultivated, it cannot be harvested. After talking about the proverb, ask the children, "What would you plant in a garden for knowledge?" List their ideas on newsprint (studying, asking questions, talking with others, for example). Then have them write the proverb and draw a "knowledge garden" in their booklet.
(Materials: plain paper, stapler and staples, markers or crayons).

5. African Game

Children in Gabon, another country in Africa, play "Star Catchers." Find Gabon on the map of Africa. Any number of children can play. Draw or mark with masking tape two lines about 20 feet apart. Choose one-fourth of the children to be the catchers. Everyone else is a star. The stars stand on one of the lines (either one). The catchers stand in the middle and say:

Star light, star bright,
How many stars are out tonight?

The stars answer, "More than you can catch!" The stars run to the opposite lines as the catchers try to catch them. Any star that is caught becomes a catcher. The last star caught becomes the first catcher for the next game and selects assistant catchers.
(Materials: map of Africa, chalk or masking tape)

6. Knowledge Gardens

Make small planters that the children can sell to support the work of CWS during your mission fair. Print the African proverb on a strip of paper and glue it to the pot. Fill the pots with potting soil and plant a few seeds of marigolds or other fast-growing small plants.
(Materials: clay pots, paper and markers, potting soil, flower seeds or plants)