Presentation of a video tour for students of grades 1-6

27 October 2022

The Holodomor Museum presented a new video tour for schoolchildren of grades 1-6. Participants of the event were teachers from all regions of Ukraine, who joined the event in online format on October 25-27. A new video tour, which uses elements of sand animation, will allow our youngest visitors to virtually visit the Holodomor Museum and learn more about the events that their great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers experienced as children.

“Our museum is constantly looking for new ways and means that help convey the truth about the Holodomor genocide to the Ukrainian society. Since we all want our young generation to be educated, in particular, on historical topics, many of our classes and excursions are aimed at telling children of all ages about the Holodomor. It is important because every nation has events in its past that affect the formation of its historical memory and identity. The Holodomor is precisely one of these topics for us Ukrainians. Despite all its complexity and tragedy, children need to know and understand it to use historical knowledge in the future to understand where there are manipulations or false historical facts. And also, by talking about such tragic pages of its past, the nation heals itself.” Yulia Kotsur, deputy general director of the Holodomor Museum, said during the presentation.

Yana Horodniak, head of the excursion and education department, spoke about how to talk to children about the Holodomor so as not to hurt them. In particular, she does not recommend watching documentaries and feature films about the Holodomor intended for an adult audience. It also applies to some cartoons, which are acceptable for older students but not younger children.

At the same time, visualization is the best method of conveying complex information to a children’s audience. That is why our video tour was created and designed for children of primary school age. Sand animation complements it, successfully illustrating the Holodomor events, as it resembles old photographs in style and colours.

During the excursion, children will visit our Museum virtually, see its exposition and unique exhibits, learn their stories, hear memories of the Holodomor from witnesses of those events, and learn about the main events of 1932-1933. In the video tour, the main focus is on stories about humanity, which helped Ukrainians to survive in those cruel times, and the struggle of Ukrainians who did not obey fate but fought for their freedom and rights.

The excursion and educational department of the Holodomor Museum developed the video tour. The Kyiv Theatre of Sand Animation “Golden Lion” created this sand animation. The voice of the museum excursion was Sofia Liubchenko, a member of the children’s theatre team “Incunabula” of the Kyiv Palace of Children and Youth.

Also, during the video tour, children can chat with our tour guide and ask their questions.

We invite you to visit our museum virtually!

You can register for the tour here.