Going on a Family Safari is one the best ways of spending quality time with your children whilst on holiday. Not only will your children return home bubbling with enthusiasm, with a healthy glow and some nice photographs, but they will have formed unique memories and developed an understanding of a rich culture and a diverse environment. Being able to appreciate their own existence and to contrast it to other cultures provides children with a real sense of being and their place in the world.
The learning process starts as soon as children walk into the arrivals hall. Their new surroundings affront their senses immediately. Different looking people are milling around, with a different style of dress and previously unheard languages can be heard.
Everything looks different, smells different and feels different to what children are used to at home and this alone can sharpen their awareness immediately. What better way to open up a young mind than to offer completely new experiences and a glimpse into the alternate ways in which the human race lives.
Usually, children will learn the most whilst out on safari with their family. Many lodges and camps offer special “children on safari” programmes, which are designed to hold a child’s interest and to teach them about the African bush.
With a special ‘Children’s guide’, whilst on safari children are taught about the different animals and plants that they might see during their safari and how different parts of animals or plants might be used by local tribes for medical or food purposes. Children are also encouraged to learn about tracking animals from footprints and other clues along the pathway.
During tribal village visits the demonstrations of starting a fire with sticks, making tribal adornments and food are often the delight of many children as they have a chance to try for themselves and really become involved. This whole experience teaches children about diversity which provides these young ‘soon to be adults’ with a very grounded approach to our ever evolving multi-cultural city populations.
Additionally there is of course the history of Africa to find out about. Tribes have developed and moved through countries, cities have changed immensely, and animals have adapted to changes in the landscape that have affected their migration routes. 
This rich all-encompassing story of Africa and how it’s cycles and cause and effect relationships is imparted to you bit by bit so that at the end of a family safari in Africa, you will all feel a sense of empathy with this miraculous continent.
Not only does a long haul trip to Africa, teach children about animals and culture but also of a very different topography. Simply being able to envisage the sight of an African landscape when identifying Africa on a map in school is a fantastic way of broadening a child’s understanding of the immense scope of possibility beyond the school gates. Dreams extend from local surroundings and the world becomes their oyster.
Photo Credits: Loisaba Wilderness
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
