World Fest at UM-Flint

The University of Michigan-Flint will be hosting nearly 500 elementary students who will participate in a program to promote cultural awareness at an early age. WORLD FEST helps students develop a better understanding of global interdependence and their role in the economy.

The WORLD FEST program is a four month project that begins with an international education teacher workshop for grades 4-7 in November, and culminates with WORLD FEST 2010 to be held on March 9^th. Each teacher chose a country for their class to research, and was provided with a publication from The Council on Economic Education and several other lesson plans to take back to their classroom.

During the months leading up to WORLD FEST 2010, each classroom will be researching such topics as economics, geography, culture, and political systems as they relate to their chosen nation. Then, on March 9, 2010 the classrooms will gather on the campus of UM-Flint to share their displays and engage in a day of celebrating international education.

Some of the activities planned include:

HALL OF NATIONS: Students will visit the country displays and using their "passports" will go on a scavenger hunt to find specific information on each country that is represented.

EARTH DOME: Students will walk through the Earth Dome, a 22 foot diameter inflatable globe with satellite images of the world. They will observe such features as continents, landforms, time zones, and more.

WORLD FEST 2010 is sponsored by the University of Michigan-Flint, Center for Economic Education, Department of Economics, College of Arts and Sciences, and by The Council for Economic Education through funding from the United States Department of Education Office of Innovation and Improvement.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010:

9 a.m. Opening in UM-Flint Theatre

After the opening, students will move to the UCEN and REC Center. Larger displays will be in the REC Center.

1:30 p.m. program ends