Read all about our Pack Walk partners, The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum, North Shore Animal League America, the D.C. Public Library, the National Children's Museum, and their amazing efforts educating Adults and Children in-school and in the real world about shelter animals.
The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum
The Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum is an innovative PreK-Grade 12 program that builds on children’s affinity for animals and highlights the unique characteristics and desirability of Mutt-i-grees®, or shelter pets. The Curriculum teaches social and emotional skills and is unique in its bridging of humane education and the emerging field of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL). Developed by the NSAL’s Pet Savers Foundation in collaboration with Yale University School of the 21st Century and funded by the Millan Foundation, the goal of the Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum is to enable children to grow up to be calm, confident, and caring. It has been implemented in thousands of schools across the country and Canada.
In the Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum, the Cesar Millan Foundation found not only an innovative approach to humane education but also one that builds on the research base of social and emotional learning. Many of the principles underlying social and emotional learning–such as cultivating confidence, empathy, and compassion–are aligned with the tenets Cesar Millan upholds in his work with dogs and complement the overarching mission of the Cesar Millan Foundation. Recognizing the importance of teaching children social and emotional skills and helping every shelter animal born in this country find a loving home, the Cesar Millan Foundation graciously funded the Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum. In addition, Cesar Millan led an effort to develop a series of lessons on dog behavior for the Curriculum. These lessons, under the overarching theme of Dog Dialog, are designed to teach children about the instinctual world of dogs and enhance their ability to effectively interact with dogs.
Check out a visit from Cesar Millan when he visited the Benjamin Franklin School in Meriden, CT. See photos here and to learn more about the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum click here.
North Shore Animal League America
When it comes to saving dogs, cats, puppies and kittens, the North Shore Animal League performs the hands-on work to rescue, rehabilitate and re-home more of these wonderful animals under a no-kill policy, than any other organization. They have saved close to 1,000,000 dogs, cats, puppies and kittens to date. The Animal League is a strong, national advocate for pet adoption. Through their hands-on work with the animals, their cooperative approach with shelter and rescue partners, and media relationships, they focus national attention on the plight of shelter animals to increase adoptions.
Education is also a critical part of their goal to elevate the perception of shelter pets, increase shelter adoptions, encourage spay/neuter procedures, and teach the next generation to be more compassionate.
Our Mission:
To build our hands-on rescue, rehabilitation and adoption efforts to save the lives of as many companion animals as possible - one at a time - and promote education to increase shelter adoptions, reduce animal cruelty and advance the highest standards in animal welfare.
Our Vision:
Create a world where all companion animals find compassionate, permanent homes to end animal cruelty and euthanasia.
For more information, please visit: http://www.animalleague.org
District of Columbia Public Library
The DC Public Library, with 25 locations and counting, is a vibrant center of activity for residents and visitors in the nation’s capital. The library provides environments that invite reading, learning and community discussion and equips people to learn all their lives, to embrace diversity and to build a thriving city.
This Library is proud to be a part of the Scooby-Doo and Cesar Millan National Family Pack Walk. From story times to pet-friendly programs to our varied collection, DC Public Library aims to offer fun activities and valuable information that enriches the lives of our pooch pals and the humans who love them. In addition to participating in Pack Walk activities, the Library will also offer Pack-themed story times at our locations, leading up to the event.
The National Children's Museum
The National Children’s Museum inspires children to care about and improve the world.
Opening in Winter 2012 at National Harbor in Prince George’s County, Md., the National Children’s Museum (NCM) is a nationally recognized cultural and educational institution serving children and families onsite and through national partners and programs. The Museum’s exhibits and innovative educational programs spark the imagination and celebrate the true power of children, motivating them to become people who make a difference in the world.
Designated by the United States Congress in 2003 as the only national museum focused on children, NCM houses exhibits and programs that honor kids’ voices and reflect themes that speak to them as they learn about and engage with the world around them.
The Museum’s spaces and activities focus on six core content areas:
• The arts
• Civic engagement
• The environment
• Global citizenship
• Health and well being
• Play
The National Children’s Museum will organize a Parachute Play Zone at the 2nd Annual National Family Pack Walk for kids to learn about working together.