Before I explain what we did with Kiva in Spanish 1, I have to say that I got this idea from Kristy Placido and Carrie Toth, who did this with their Spanish 3 and 4 classes. I went to Carrie's presentation at CSCTFL and had been wanting to do something similar for a while.If you don't know what Kiva is, it is a micro-financing site that gives micro-loans to people, mostly in the developing world, who cannot get a loan at a traditional bank. Kiva works with community organizations to distribute the loans.
After doing a story called Irene (as part of our "school unit") with the video below (resources and idea from Elena López), students were a bit sad and probably a bit more appreciative of what they have and where they go to school. Before they saw the twist at the end many were asking, "Why is she so happy to be going to school?"
So, with that idea in their heads, I decided this was a good opportunity to do something. So we watched "Living on One Dollar" (available on YouTube and Netflix). Here is the trailer:
After we watched the documentary, I shared the slideshow below to explain (in Spanish) what Kiva is and then I explained what we were going to do to help someone like Irene. Instead of making a video about a person (like Kristy and Carrie's students did), students had to make a simple slide describing who the person is, what he/she looks like, how old he/she is, and why he/she needs the loan. We had $200 from one class and $100 for the other class (I donated $100, my mom donated $100, a paraprofessional donated $50 and a couple of students donated money as well). The next day we looked at the slides and decided who to loan the money to.
The slideshow explains what Kiva is and what we were going to do. Also, within the slideshow below is a story (different background) created by Dustin Williamson that was very helpful to explain what Kiva is and does.
After seeing the slideshow, most students were very engaged and interested in exploring the Kiva site.
The slideshow explains what Kiva is and what we were going to do. Also, within the slideshow below is a story (different background) created by Dustin Williamson that was very helpful to explain what Kiva is and does.
After seeing the slideshow, most students were very engaged and interested in exploring the Kiva site.
**Important Note** I investigated a bit and there are some conflicting reports about Kiva, micro-financing and how much good it actually does. Also, I would look carefully at the lending institution in the country (the "middle man"). I decided that is still worth doing with a Spanish 1 class in rural New Hampshire, for the following reasons:
- They learn about global poverty.
- They expand their view of the world.
- They learn about an option of loaning and not just giving.
- They see the power of technology.
- They see people trying to do good with technology.
- They learn to appreciate what they have.
- They feel good about helping people and might do it again in the future.
Here are the two slideshows from my classes. As is typical with Spanish 1 (in my school), about a third of them did not complete the assignment for homework.
