Written in Stone

The main objectives of the Written in Stone project were to build a new relationship between young people in Europe, improve the involvement of young people, especially those at risk of leaving out of school, and focus on local history, castles and regional stories, promote CLIL teaching and prepare sets of materials for teaching regional history using the CLIL method in the form of specific preparations for lessons with demonstrations (heraldry, art and drama in medieval castles, ghost stories). This project aimed to boost people's interest in local history and increase their knowledge of the region's cultural heritage. We think that just as we prepare our students for subsequent academic and professional life, it is also important to educate them in practical skills about past culture, local heritage, local history and local literature. Once students become aware of the beauty of their surroundings, they also automatically realize their importance. This will have a clear impact on students' cultural skills and awareness. We wanted to achieve this through active learning methods, involving pupils and teachers at every step and also through the involvement of local authorities (libraries, archives, museums). During the project, students and teachers expanded their professional profile and is expected to incorporate new teaching methods or tools and thus expand their digital competences. These include the skills acquired during virtual mobilities, especially working with Padlet, Kahoot, Mentimeter, Google forms, Zen maps, etc.The project activities promoted creativity, cooperation, equality, partnership and cooperation with local authorities. The project was designed to compare and contrast ways of life at different times in different regions in order to promote the cultural awareness of students and staff. We understand that English is the best tool and most commonly used language for global communication in history, entertainment, culture, traditions, etc., which means that developing and improving our English language skills is extremely important. Our project was based on common themes that motivated students and staff to explore, exchange experiences about cultural and historical richness in Europe. Cooperation between the partner schools also provided an opportunity for all participants to explore the diverse and rich European cultures, although we only visited Italy and Romania virtually. Our project involved students in planning, implementation and evaluation, which led to improved ability to work independently and also strengthened self-confidence and motivation to learn. The new and creative approaches provided by the school partnership provide added value for traditional learning and teaching. The integration of a cross-cutting European theme into students' school life has increased the motivation to study from this attractive perspective and achieved the set goals. As part of the Written in Stone project, we have set the following goals (1) to open our borders, (2) to involve all members of our community, (3) to do something innovative and special - CLIL material from teaching regional history, (4) to list all our resources and (5) make our work accessible to other countries and thus unify our cultures. Primary school pupils aged 11-15 were involved in the project, and 208 pupils in partner schools and virtual mobilities were directly involved. Pupils with specific learning difficulties were also involved (especially pupils with dyslexia, dysgraphia, pupils from socially unstimulating backgrounds).Pupils and school staff are after completing the project:- able to carry out projects and campaigns to spread awareness of regional history through various activities (visiting local castles, museums, archives, libraries, interviews with experts, playing drama and musicals, etc.)- design and make coat of arms, catapults and stained glass- prepare a troubadour game- prepare research on different types of coats of arms in castles in the region (tour of local castles, photography of different coats of arms) and create analysis using various ICT tools- create materials, lesson plans for other teachers using the CLIL approach;- use English in the preparation of performances and poetry;- prepare and organize special school days for pupils, teachers and local communities- a press release describing our research, work, interview, etc.- create website design and project logosAll of the original plan of 40 activities were fulfilled by the partner countries.Out of the total number of 7 meetings of pupils and teachers , 5 were held in person and 2 were virtual. Out of the total number of 3 international meetings of teachers, 2 were held in person and 1 in virtual.Thus, all objectives, activities and mobility in the project plan were met.