Sophomore Amos Barnabas, mass communications major at College of the Ozarks, shares with S of O students his experience growing up in India

POINT LOOKOUT, MO. — School of the Ozarks fourth graders participated in a collaborative activity with students at the Anita Methodist Higher Secondary School located in Chennai, India. The students exchanged information about natural disasters that have occurred in the students’ respective parts of the world. The S of O class gathered information about how tornados affect the community, and the Anita Methodist students shared how cyclones have impacted their city.

Lindsey Hood, fourth-grade teacher at School of the Ozarks, and her class participated in the activity by brainstorming what questions they had about cyclones for the students in India and created a timeline of natural disasters in the Ozarks over the last decade. The students in India prepared a presentation of weather phenomena in their climate.   

“I have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of this collaborative experience with the school in Chennai, India,” Hood said. “This project has sparked a global interest for our students, supporting our cultural goal here at School of the Ozarks. We want to cultivate courageous, inquisitive learners who pour into our communities and the world.”

Sophomore Amos Barnabas, mass communications major at College of the Ozarks, attended the Anita Methodist School when he lived in India as a child. He assisted with bringing the Anita Methodist School and School of the Ozarks together after being contacted by his former teacher in India. Barnabas shared with the S of O students his experience growing up in India and how the climate in India compares to weather conditions in the Ozarks region.  

“In a world that typically turns to the internet for information, it is nice to see students take the time to interact with other students that live halfway across the world,” Barnabas said.

The project ended with a presentation by the C of O McDonald Armstrong Clinic to the School of the Ozark students. Brooke Kramer, campus nurse and junior Matthew Isherwood Nursing major at College of the Ozarks, trained the students on how to provide first aid and informed the students of medical situations that could arise during a tornado and how to best prepare for those situations.