Philosophical Humans

What informs our views, misconceptions and ethical codes around animal welfare?

This activity will encourage children to put themselves in the `shoes¿ of other creatures to encourage compassion and empathy.

Children work in small groups to consider one of the questions below. Using their ideas, children create a representation of their response to the question through art work, journal writing, scrapbooking, a film, animation, drama or story. You could start with the simpler questions as a class and build up.

Try the activity below that helps explore the concept of compassion:

Would you rather...?

• Be a dog or a cat?
• Care for an injured crocodile or catch mosquitoes?
• Have wings or a tail?

Do you agree of disagree that...?

• A peakcock knows it is beautiful?
• All animals play
• Animals can talk
• All animals dream
• People are animals

How do your answers to these questions help you understand that animals have thoughts, feelings and needs?

Would it be good or bad if...?

• Ants are litter?
• People hatched from eggs?
• Monkeys went to school?
• Giants kept people as pets?

How do your answers to these questions help you understand the responsibilities that humans have to protect animals from harm and keep them happy and healthy?

If only they could talk.

Imagine you can interview a lion in a zoo and a lion in the wild. What would they both say about their lives? How do they spend their time and what do they eat?