Legislation can be fun

Accustomed to hosting foreign dignitaries, the Knesset on Thursday welcomed an entirely different sort of visitor —  the “Kuntzonim,” a family of yellow puppets.

As part of “Democracy Experience”, an ongoing development of special educational programs, projects and tours for all ages, the Knesset’s new visitors center is now hoping to explain some of the most essential concepts about Israel’s government and legislative process to children.

For reaching the youngest audiences, politicians are not nearly as well equipped as those whom the children already know, trust and love.

Having recently established a collaboration with the children’s cable network ‘Hop!’, the Kuntzonim family came to film a series of short clips to be aired on Israel’s Independence Day.

The Kuntzonim met with Speaker of the Knesset Reuven Rivlin for a photo-op that was a far cry from the usual fare of politicians, civil servants and foreign dignitaries.

The target audience of the Kuntzonim are children aged 2-7. The clips filmed on Thursday will introduce the young viewers to some very basic elements and concepts such as the state symbol — the menorah — the need for laws, and Israel’s national anthem.

“The Knesset is the state assembly, and in order for the public — of all ages — to feel a connection to the Knesset, I believe that it is crucial to continue developing our visitors center,” Rivlin said. He noted that since the new center opened last year, the number of visitors has jumped from 50,000 per year to 150,000.