One Hen
How You Can Get Involved
As college students, you have the amazing ability to act as a sounding board for the causes you are most passionate about. If targeted properly, your interest in microfinance can be contagious. You can help bring the world of microlending to life for elementary school children using materials from the One Hen children’s book and curriculum. Teaching children about the benefits of microlending can make for a well-rounded educational experience and influence their effectiveness as young lenders. By adding microlending to elementary schools’ curricula now, the next generation of lenders will see microfinance as the standard for poverty alleviation rather than a revolutionary idea.
To access more information about One Hen and getting started, please visit One Hen’s comprehensive E-learning site where you will find all the resources you need, including:
- Getting started materials: teaching guide, sample letter for contacting principals, more information about One Hen
- Curriculum resources: overview of the curriculum and all seven lesson plans
- FAQ section
- Additional resources and links
See What Kids Say About One Hen
A Volunteer’s Perspective
Here’s what one university volunteer from Stanford University had to say about her experience volunteering with One Hen in East Palo Alto for the first time:
“One Hen became the best part of my week. More important than the story were the connections we established with very special fifth graders over the course of six weeks. By the end, they learned about and treated Kojo like an old friend, truly believing they could one day do what he did. I can’t wait to take part in this experience again.” – Marimar Jauregui
One Hen and Microfinance
One Hen is a powerful tool for spreading awareness about microfinance as a tool to combat poverty. College microfinance groups have brought One Hen into elementary and middle school classrooms in order to teach students about the concept of microfinance as a tool to ending poverty and so inspire students that they can make a difference and make poverty history. Additionally, One Hen provides the inspiration to encourage students that with hard work and a good idea, they can better their own lives and the lives of those around them.
How One Hen Works
One Hen equips teachers and volunteers with resources that bring world issues such as microfinance and sustainable agriculture into the classroom and allow children to learn, play and make a difference for others and themselves. For volunteers, One Hen offers a 7 lesson curriculum that comprises a book, a website, and teaching lessons that can be taught to children grades K-8 in the classroom or in after school clubs and programs.
Why should my group and I volunteer with One Hen? For this and other FAQs, please visit the FAQ page.
One Hen’s Mission
One Hen aims to help children become global citizens who succeed in school and beyond and marry that success to helping others by instilling in them the values of financial responsibility, personal initiative, global awareness and giving back.
Progress
To date, over 9,500 students and 500 teachers have used the One Hen curriculum in K-8 classrooms and summer schools across US and UK. Over 25,000 users in 114 countries have engaged with One Hen through www.onehen.org an interactive website with a virtual market where kids can earn beads and donate to match a real loan given to real entrepreneurs in Africa. Through the One Hen bead fund, over $50,000 in loans have been donated by field partner Opportunity International since March, 2008.
About
One Hen is the story of a West African boy, Kojo, who receives a small loan to buy a hen, and takes flight as an entrepreneur. He moves gradually from poverty to well-being to provider, creating opportunities for others. It’s the story of how the world undergoes change, one person, one family, and one community at a time.
Since its publication in Spring 2008, One Hen has evolved from an inspirational story into a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. One Hen, Inc. is a provider of enrichment curriculum that teaches elementary school children about world issues and how they can make a difference. Our mission is to help children become global citizens who succeed in school and beyond and marry that success to helping others by inculcating in them the values of financial responsibility, personal initiative, global awareness, and giving back. One Hen achieves this by equipping teachers with resources that bring world issues into the classroom and allow children to learn, play and make a difference for others and themselves.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to contact letters@onehen.org.
