Children meet illustrator Alice Coppini

In this fragile period for our society and for schools as we are accustomed to experiencing them, everyone working in education has found themselves rethinking what was already established, challenging established beliefs.
We, who have always believed in and sought to support children's multiple rights, could we not now imagine something unique for them?
And so, intertwining with some of the programs developed by the children, we have seized the opportunity to offer them precious moments of encounter, via videoconference, not only with the educational community they know well, but also with others, "special" and enriching guests who are offering children new perspectives, new ideas, new paths, and emerging "new opportunities" in this strange time.

Is it possible to continue talking about hope, desires, happiness, and beauty? We all believe so!

The first of a long series was the very dear Alice Coppini, a friendly and talented illustrator, known to the general public for the illustrations of some illustrated books including “L'erba magica di Tu Youyou” editoriale Scienza (2018), “Il signor fortunate” Giralangolo (2018).

Below is the story of the two different paths taken by the children from the nursery school and the elementary school and their encounter with the illustrator.

Preschool
At the end of January, coinciding with the media hype surrounding COVID-19, the children in the 5-6 year-old class expressed their desire to speak with their teachers and the Chinese-language workshop leader about the coronavirus: what was it? Where was it? Would it arrive in Italy?
The school found itself fielding questions, doubts, and fears from the children, and perhaps it was also its (our) responsibility to welcome them, but above all, to support them.
Our Chinese workshop leader thus decided to offer the children a picture book that interweaves Chinese culture, history, science, and, above all, hope. The Magic Herb of Tu Youyou is a picture book born from the collaboration between Chinese writer Xu Lu and Italian illustrator Alice Coppini. It tells the story of scientist Tu Youyou, winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Medicine for discovering a cure for malaria.
The story immediately captured children's interest thanks to the protagonist's strong determination and perseverance in pursuing her dreams, the extraordinary relevance of current events, and the beauty of the illustrations. The meetings in the Oriental atelier were invaluable encounters that intertwined and traced a path between cultures, languages, and science, which continued after the schools closed on our virtual platform.