The United States Department of State sponsors a bilingual magazine named "Paper Boat" which will be delivered to schoolchildren to teach them how to detect fake news and the safe use of the Internet.

According to the United States Embassy, ​​the educational program is part of the projects of its Public Diplomacy Department which finances the Carretica Cuentera educational project. The organization's name could be translated as the small cart that transports storybooks, in the English language.

The plan is to deliver the books and develop Internet management workshops for students in public schools in the provinces of San José, Puntarenas and Limón.

The magazine includes stories, trivia and activities to guide children on the importance of taking care of their personal information on the web and preventing fake news.

"As the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said, a free and independent press is literally the cornerstone of healthy democracies," Marcos Mandojana, Minister Counselor at the Embassy said during the educational program launch event.

According to Mandojana, the new generations must have the tools to critically evaluate information.

Among the contents of the magazine, the meaning of concepts such as cyberbullying, use of time on the internet, digital footprint, grooming and the elements to recognize false news are explored.

The children’s book is available on the Carretica Cuentera website.

According to the latest report from the Programme for International Student Assessment, PISA, in Latin America, only 1% of 15-year-olds know the difference between a fact and an opinion.  

Last year, the embassy sponsored the campaign "Los Ritmos de mi Comunidad" (the rhythms of my community in the English language) which was a book about music, dance, reading and writing to develop virtual activities for schoolchildren from Costa Rica and Polk County, North Carolina, U.S.A.

         

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