Meet The Gorilla Foundation

This video describes the history of The Gorilla Foundation which was formed several years after Dr. Penny Patterson began teaching 1-year old gorilla Koko sign language, as part of her Ph.D. dissertation in psychology at Stanford.  Project Koko spanned 47 years, and Penny’s dedication to Koko grew into a dedication to save her species, who is critically endangered in the wild and wildly misunderstood in captivity.

SIGNS (and time codes) in the above video.  Click to learn:

GORILLA (:04)
FRUIT (:20)
KOKO-LOVE (:28)
FLOWERS (:30)


Kids4Koko Video Library

Koko is The Voice of Nature

Koko asks us to protect Nature and our fellow animals.  SIGNS: Gorilla, Nature, Koko-Love, Man, Stupid,  ProtectEarth, Flowers, Time, Hurry, Look/See (2 min.)

Koko and The Power of Choice

Koko reacts to a sad movie and selects other movies to watch later.  SIGNSFrown/Sad, Mother, Love (2 min.)

Meet Koko

Koko needs our help to save her species.  SIGNS: Koko, Good, Gorilla, Sad/Frown, Help (30 secs)

Meet The Gorilla Foundation

A brief history of TGF, Koko’s home for 47  years.  SIGNS:  Koko, Help, Thanks  (3 min.)

Koko Forgives Penny

Penny forgets Koko’s drink and Koko forgives her.  SIGNS: Polite, Eat/Food, Drink, Apple, Penny (1 min.)

Koko Teaches Ape Doll to Sign

Koko molds her orangutan doll’s hands to sign DRINK. SIGNS:  Drink, Mouth, Koko-Love (30 secs)