How the Zoo Operates Workshop

To get the most out of How the Zoo Operates Workshop, we suggest studying the following aspects at school before the visit:  

To understand the students’ interests and increase motivation about the animals: 

• Make a collection of the different names and functions that zoos have had since their appearance. 
• Collect brochures, photographs, magazine articles, cards, worksheets and other materials from different zoos around the world, for example on the Internet at www.eaza.net or at www.wzo.org. 
• Debate the need to have zoos to conserve endangered species and how these institutions must develop in the future. Prepare the debate, questioning the suitability of having animals like chimpanzees, otters, lions, cows and dogs. Consult the Barcelona Zoo’s animal files, looking for examples of how conservation works at the Zoo. We recommend the file on the Père David’s deer and the European bison. 

To observe animals: 

• Visit places that house animals, like a circus, a wild animal shelter, an animal protection agency or a natural park and compare the functions of each of them (responsible ownership).  
  

As specific objectives: 

• To introduce the concept of zoos and the functions they perform: conservation, research and education. 
• To understand the complexity of preserving a collection of living animals.