Book gives kids’ eye view of the city
It’s not all too often children under the age of 10 get to share their opinions and perspective on anything, let alone the city they live in.
On Saturday, a large group of Hatters of all ages held the book launch for a “Children’s Guide to the City” which was written and drawn by a large number of children from around the city, allowing them to share their views on their city and on events that have taken place in it, like the flood from a few years back.
Early education teacher at Medicine Hat College Deborah Forbes is one of the people who got the idea to create a book like this and bring it to life, and she says it has been a very long, yet rewarding process.
“It actually started many years ago on a teacher-student trip to Reggio Emilia, Italy,” she said. “The book itself has been in the works for about four-and-a-half years, so today is really exciting for a lot of people in the city.”
The group behind the book aimed to create a ‘collective voice,’ says River Heights Elementary kindergarten teacher Laura Gale, and she says she believes they have succeeded.
“I can see that children know this belongs to them, even if their drawings or writing may not have been in it,” she said. “We were hoping to create something that shared to collective voice of all of the children in Medicine Hat, I think we did that.”
The book is nearly 50 pages long and features drawings and writing by hundreds of Hat children, aging from three to six years old depending on the time of the contribution. There are also small bit of writing from adults, to add a little more context to the stories the children tell. Gale says the book is meant for everyone to enjoy, not just children.
“One of our main goals was to get the book into the hands of children, but we want everyone to read it” said Gale. “We’ve sent out copies to schools and day-care centres around the city in the hopes it can just get to children, and also families, so it can be enjoyed by everyone.”
Both Gale and Forbes agree the main purpose of the book is to help the children get their ideas and thoughts out there, and accessible to everyone.
“The children have some really beautiful ideas and views of the city — it’s important that we see them,” said Forbes. “On a grand scale, children aren’t heard all that much, so giving them that voice is pretty neat.”
The book will be on exhibit at the library, alongside some of the children’s artwork.
It will also be touring 10 different venues later in the year through the southeast region with the Esplanade’s Travelling Exhibition Program, in hopes of spreading the idea to other cities.
Copies of the book can be purchased for $10 at various locations around the city including the library, the Esplanade, Police Point Park and Medalta.