Context Stories represent holistic approaches to teaching and learning that allow children's involvement with rich, authentic material. Stories are an essential communication tool for experiential learning because they have the power to safely move participants from their comfort zones to encounter something totally new. They offer a whole new imaginary world created by language that children can gain access to and learn to enjoy, while also acquiring language on the way. More than anything, our children need something to spurt their creative capacity. The project idea was developed as a result of the needs identified in all partner schools - that of helping students to get to know their cultural heritage and the European cultural heritage, while also boosting and exploring their creativity through the medium of stories. Our students come from a wide variety of backgrounds - mainstream, minorities, students with SEN, students with behaviour problems, high achievers, students in orphanages. The main priority of our initiative is to create a culture of acceptance and respect among these. By involving them in activities related to stories, they will be able to acquire values and principles in a non-threatening environment. The world of stories is a world without boundaries or frontiers. Participants The target group consists of 200 students aged 13-15 in all the 5 schools. Among the students in the target group, there are students at risk of dropping out, students of Romani ethnicity, abandoned children, students with disabilities, immigrants, students with integration problems and, of course, mainstream students. Those who face difficulties represent almost one quarter of the TG. There will be 68 students who will attend the meetings, among whom 16 with special needs/financial, social or economic obstacles, cultural differences. The participating teachers are English and literature teachers, who will work to create the project outputs, but also teachers of other subjects who will be involved in the organisation of project activities. There will be 2 teachers per country accompanying the students in each exchange. Objectives: 1. to involve students in their own learning and motivate them; (minimum 50% of target group) 2. to develop students' language skills, literacy, critical and creative thinking, personal and social capability; (min. 60% target group) 3. to develop intracultural and intercultural understanding; (minimum 70%) 4. to promote European values and develop cohesion among European citizens. (measurable by analysing students' and teachers' attitudes to other cultures, as seen in the post-LTTA discussions) 5. to create an atmosphere of non-discrimination and mutual acceptance in each partner school. 6. to produce sustainable materials which will be used on a regular basis in the schools - collection of materials for teachers, set of adapted materials for SEN students, collection of stories illustrated by children. Activities M1 - coordinator meeting (planning) - Italy - Oct/Nov 2017 C1 - Bulgaria - Feb/Mar 2018; Topic: Stories from around Europe C2 - Romania - May/Jun 2018; Topic: European stories to develop interpretive skills C3 - Slovenia - Oct/Nov 2018; Topic: European stories to develop critical thinking skills C4 - Italy - Mar 2019; Topic: Developing creativity through stories - Creating the story map of Europe M2 - Coordinator meeting (evaluation and sustainability) - Turkey - May 2019 Results and impact Project results include the website, eTwinning account, Facebook page, CDs, calendars, initial and final evaluation documents, progress and final reports, dissemination materials, certificates of attendance, Europass certificates, collection of stories from all around Europe, collection of activities for developing interpretative skills (special activities for SEN students), collection of creative activities starting from stories around Europe (special activities for SEN students), collection of activities and tasks developing critical thinking skills, map of European story characters. The impact will be observable at the level of students (cultural awareness, acquisition of European values, development of skills, acquisition of knowledge, improvement of school results, self-confidence), teachers (better cultural awareness, improvement of leadership, communication, presentation skills, experience in projects), institutions (improvement of human resources, increased group cohesion, positive image). Long-term benefits The results will be used during current class work by English teachers and the schools will also set up story clubs, in which students will cooperate with their peers, read common stories, discuss them, create artwork based on them. Schools will improve material basis and will earn Erasmus+ management experience, so that they can apply for new project in the future years.
Context The world of stories is a world without boundaries or frontiers. Stories have represented the right frame in which the different cultures involved have interacted during the two years' collaboration among partners from Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia,Turkey and Italy. Stories worked as a tool, the right teaching method to pass on knowledge in different social contexts. Stories taught us about life, about ourselves and about others. Storytelling was a unique way for students to develop understanding, respect and appreciation for other cultures, and promoted a positive attitude to people from different lands, races and religions. Storytelling enhanced intercultural understanding and communication. Stories allowed our students to: - explore their own cultural roots; - experience different cultures; - offer insights into different traditions and values; - consider new ideas; - reveal differences and similarities among cultures around the world. Background of the Project Our students came from a wide variety of backgrounds - mainstream, minorities, students with SEN, students with behaviour problems, high achievers, students in orphanages. The main priority of our initiative was to create a culture of acceptance and respect these differences. By involving them in activities related to stories, they were able to acquire values and principles in a non-threatening environment. Participants The target group consisted of 400 students aged 13-15 in all the 5 schools. Among the students in the target group, there were students at risk of dropping out, abandoned children, students with disabilities, immigrants, with special needs, financial, social or economic obstacles, students with integration problems and, of course, mainstream students. Those who face difficulties represented almost one quarter of the Target Group. The participating teachers were English and literature teachers, who worked to create the project outputs, but also teachers of other subjects who were involved in the organization of project activities and exchanges. In general there were 2 teachers per country accompanying the students in each exchange. Objectives attained: 1. students were involved in their own learning; 2. students' language skills, literacy, critical and creative thinking, personal and social capability were developed; 3. intra-cultural and intercultural understanding were attained; 4. European values and cohesion among European citizens were promoted (measured by analyzing students' and teachers' attitudes to other cultures, as seen during the LTTA activities and discussions); 5. a better awareness of European cultural heritage was attained; 6. an atmosphere of non-discrimination and mutual acceptance in each partner school was created; 7. better school results were reached; 8. values of tolerance and acceptance among students were spread; 9. a decrease of drop-out rates was obtained; 10. students' motivation and self-esteem increased. Activities TPM1 - Italy - December 2017- Coordinator meeting: Start of the Project C1 - Bulgaria - April 2018; Topic: Stories from around Europe C2 - Romania - June 2018; Topic: European stories to develop interpretive skills C3 - Slovenia - October 2018; Topic: European stories to develop critical thinking skills C4 - Italy - Mar 2019; Topic: Developing creativity through stories - Creating the story map of Europe TPM2 - Turkey - May 2019 - Coordinator meeting: Evaluation and sustainability. Results and impact Project results included the creation of a common website, an eTwinning account, a Facebook page, CDs, a calendar, initial and final evaluation documents, dissemination materials such as brochures, ppts, videos, certificates of attendance, Europass certificates, collection of stories from all around Europe in a common Story Book, creative activities starting from stories around Europe (special activities for SEN students), activities and tasks developing critical thinking skills, map of European story characters; collection of materials for teachers, set of adapted materials for SEN students, creation of stories illustrated by children, progress and final reports. The impact was observable at different levels: Students -cultural awareness, acquisition of European values, development of skills, acquisition of knowledge, improvement of school results, self-confidence; Teachers -better cultural awareness, improvement of leadership, communication, presentation skills, experience in exchange of best practice; Institutions -improvement of human resources, increased group cohesion, positive image. Long-term benefits All the products will be used during lessons.