This project was initially devised due to the anticipated need of a number of schools to make sure that the cultural heritage of our countries could be shared through art. It is envisaged that through the medium of art pupils will develop a deeper understanding of their own cultural but of also the rich variety of cultures and diversity found within Europe.The partnership was developed through the use of the E-Twinning partner finding service, personal friendships and links that had been previously developed. Together we devised an acronym for our project, @Museart. This acronym summarised our thoughts that the project would involve museums, art, technology but also amusement and fun to facilitate an exciting and challenging project. The target aims of this project are to improve achievement in relevant and high-level basic and transversal competencies in a lifelong learning perspective through the promotion of art as a universal means of learning and communication. This will be an inclusive project that involves all members of school communities regardless of ethnicity, socio-economic background or academic achievement. We aim to strengthen the profiles of our teachers by sharing the variety of excellent, didactic practice within our European Community of schools. Our aims are:To enrich our culture by experiencing the main artistic places of each community and exploring the different cultures, traditions and places associated with art and creativity. We will use art as a means of developing curriculum material to enhance the life skills and competencies of the students. Through increased motivation the children will be able to enhance a wide range of life-long learning skills such as literacy, numeracy, ICT and an appreciation for aesthetic beauty. To address inclusion within our project we will use art as a means of inclusion for all our children. Art allows all children to express their talents through a variety of media.To strengthen the profile of teachers we will improve their cultural knowledge, share innovative teaching methodologies, exchange excellent practice and provide learning opportunities and cultural stimuli. The project involves 9 schools from 8 different countries around Europe. The schools serve a wide variety of socio-economic communities and a wide variety of ethnic diversity.The designed activities will empower the European citizens of tomorrow with the knowledge, abilities and attitudes vital to create a society that appreciates the unique artistic differences between cultures and backgrounds. The dimension of communication and language skill development is a natural progression and project activities will provide scope for much creativity and innovation. In order to have sustainable impact this project has the focus of sharing and developing staff practice whilst still addressing key areas identified as European priorities and in individual schools. This project will provide entrepreneurship opportunities by creating on line resources, blogs, research tools, books, exhibitions, open laboratories and artistic creations that will be utilised by each visiting team.
Our project was originally designed to ensure that the cultural heritage of our countries could be shared through the medium of art. We had hoped that through working in the area of art the children would gain a meaningful understanding of their own cultures and also the diversity of cultures found within Europe. The project came about as partners met through E-Twinning and some former friendships from past projects. A preliminary meeting was held in Galway between the Italian, Irish and English teams. It was during this meeting that the basis of the project was formed and the application was initiated. Together we created the acronym for our project, @Museart. This summarised our main focus for the project, art, museums, ICT and amusement. By promoting and improving the skills of both teachers and children in the area of art, our objective was to allow them to use these skills in other areas of learning and life situations. We ensured that our project was inclusive and involved all members of school communities regardless of ethnicity, socio-economic background or academic achievement. Our aim to foster the continuous professional development of our teachers through the sharing of ideas and various pedagogical approaches within our European Community of schools was important. Our main aims were: To enrich the culture of each partner by exploring the main artistic places of each participating country and exploring the various cultures, traditions and places associated with art and creativity. We used art as a means of developing curricular material to improve the talents and abilities of the students. By participating in the various activities of the project, the children were enabled to develop a wide range of life-long learning skills such as literacy, ICT and a appreciation for aesthetic beauty. The choice of art as medium for developing these skills proved to be very effective because it is inclusive by nature and allowed all of the children to express their talents. To enhance the teacher’s overall professional development we improved their cultural knowledge, shared innovative teaching methodologies, exchanged excellent practice and provided learning opportunities and cultural stimuli. The project involved 9 schools from 8 different countries around Europe. The schools serve a wide variety of socio-economic communities and a wide variety of ethnic diversity. Having completed the activities the children are equipped with the knowledge, abilities and attitudes necessary to appreciate the unique artistic differences and similarities between the various cultures of our European partners now and into the future. One of the outcomes of the various activities and workshops was the development and improvement of and language skills which was evident during workshops, meetings and school visits. This project provided entrepreneurship opportunities by creating on-line resources, videos, exhibitions, workshops and artistic creations that were utilised by each visiting team. The long term benefits of the project are plentiful. As well as creating a lifelong friendship between partners, it has deepened our understanding of one another’s culture. The children’s immersion into the project has allowed them to develop friendships and understanding for a wider European community, the importance of its unity but also to recognise their own important culture.