On April 9, 2009, Helping 100 held its Animal Ark Service Learning Conference for 140 students in grades 6 from Northfield School District. The focus of the Animal Ark Conference wass to educate and increase awareness of animal abandoned and homeless issues, as well as help aide in the decline of these problems. In the Animal Ark Conference, 6th grade students met professionals from the Ocean City and Atlantic County Humane Societies, who spoke on animal welfare issues. In addition, students participated in workshops led by Helping 100. The conference ended with a service learning project where we taught 6th grade students how to make small fleece blankets to put in the dog and cat cages for local animal shelters. We made 100 blankets, cat nip toys and dog biscuits! It was a lot of fun. The students loved it and learned a lot, based on their reflection sheets!!
We believe that teaching young students about this crisis and making them aware of the sheer magnitude of the problem will inspire them to embrace a life of service and stewardship to our world.
