Shoot With Cameras – Not Guns teaches 4th and 5th grade children basic photography skills as a tool to express their feelings and opinions about their community. These young photojournalists then capture their lives through the lens of a camera. The photographs are used in a classroom setting to initiate discussions regarding the positive and negative aspects of the children’s experiences. The children then write stories describing their photographs. At the conclusion of the program, the children create a photo journal of their photographs and stories and an exhibit of their artistic work is held for the public.

As part of the curriculum, the children are also visited by professionals as guest speakers in the classroom.  Local newspaper photographers share how powerful photography is in describing the environment and raising public awareness about important issues. Local law enforcement officers visit the classes providing the children with a unique and informal opportunity to discuss the concerns they have identified in their photographs. As an optional activity, the ideas and solutions that emerge during the program become action as the children come to a consensus about a problem and implement a community improvement activity in their neighborhood.

The program increases the children’s awareness of ways they can improve their community and also creates opportunities for children to express their feelings about their surroundings with their families through their photographs. By using photography, the children can express themselves to others, no matter what language that person may speak.  Using photographs that they have taken about their own lives motivates the children to utilize their writing skills to create their photo journals, while satisfying teachers’ needs to meet the Language Arts Content standards mandated by State Boards of Education.