POSTED December 8, 2017
A puppet show with a special message
A CCFC project helped children learn about issues, such as nutrition, sanitation and sexual reproductive health
By Rosanna Menchaca, CCFC communications manager, Paraguay
(with files from Sandra Taboada, Global Infancia, Paraguay)
Sara, 11, (pictured in white t-shirt) and her friends may appear to be preparing a delicious meal, but what they’re “cooking up” will last far beyond suppertime.
Using their creativity — along with glue and scraps of newspaper — these children are making puppets as part of Christian Children’s Fund of Canada’s (CCFC) Healthy Communities, Healthy Lives project in Paraguay.
This community has struggled with low awareness of the health issues affecting them — concerns around nutrition, sanitation and sexual reproductive health, including HIV/AIDS. Thanks to your monthly support, this is changing for the better.
“Being part [of this program] makes me feel good.” — Christopher, 11
Through workshops with children, teens and young adults, a collection of child-friendly storybooks, audio-visual materials and other tools were developed.
The materials were packed into kits and shared with 100 community groups in the area, including social-health agents (the local Department of Family Health) and CCFC partners. Now, nearly 5,000 people can benefit from the tools in these awareness-raising kits, through better understanding of health and nutrition.
Meanwhile, Sara and her peers learned about their health and used their voice to make a difference in their community by writing a script for a health-promotion puppet show to be shared with community groups of all ages.
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