By Donna Lednicky | Director of Marketing and Development
Sai Thatsamanee is a member of the TAEC Education Team. From a rural Tai Lao family, he grew up in a village in Chomphet District, across the Mekong River from Luang Prabang. He joined the TAEC team over two years ago and welcomes visitors to TAEC, leads tours of the exhibits, and visits schools to share information about the ethnic diversity in Laos.
In the fall of 2015, Sai and the education team visited seven primary schools in Luang Prabang and these schools also visited TAEC to learn about the diverse cultures in Laos. For many of these children, their morning at TAEC was their first museum visit and provides new information on the many ethnic groups that live in rural parts of Laos. Public schools in Laos have extremely limited funding and TAEC helps to fill in the gap of resources available to the schools about the cultural heritage of Laos.
Sai says, “I am happy when I visit the schools. For a one hour visit we sing a song, teach about the ethnic diversity in Laos and solve puzzles” he explains. Children may wear a handmade Oma vest or a Tai Dam scarf and learn how Kmhmu and Hmong people use baskets and bags they make from natural materials to carry wood and other items from the forest to their homes or from their homes to the fields.
After the school visit, classes are invited to tour the TAEC exhibitions and join in a scavenger hunt.
Transportation for these visits can be a challenge, as schools in Luang Prabang do not have school buses or other ways to bring the children to visit the museum. With support from our donors, TAEC assists in paying for tuk-tuks to bring the students to visit the museum. Your support also helps to provide the simple supplies (pencils, paper, photos) we need for the visits to be successful including a pencil for every child who visits TAEC and copies of the scanvenger hunt. Thank you for your support! We look forward to welcoming more students to TAEC this spring!
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