Footprints in Europe Erasmus Project

Project Title

Footprints in Europe

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Environment and climate change; Teaching and learning of foreign languages; EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy

Project Summary

During the work on a previous eTwinning project in 2018 the participating schools got to know small pieces of each other’s cultural heritage and way of life. Students detected some similarities we would like to explore more deeply. Starting from a traditional potato dish, which seems to be similar in both places we will explore what traces/footprints we leave on the European map. What do we share? What is different? What is worth keeping? And last but not least, we want to find out if and how we have influenced each other’s heritage.

With the help of this Erasmus+ project we want to enable students to broaden their knowledge and to collaboratively explore Lithuanian and German cultural heritage. With regard to Germany we will mostly concentrate on Thuringia as there live as many inhabitants as in Lithuania.
We will not only learn about cultural heritage (culture, traditions, society) but also feel cultural heritage by sharing the life of our partners for some days, cooking, singing, dancing, and doing arts together. After each transnational learning activity students will collaboratively produce an issue of our online magazine called “Footprints in Europe”

We will use the metaphor of the ‘footprint’ to reflect on influences on each other’s cultural heritage and on what our countries contribute to a European identity.
We will present all our findings in a creative way, in the form of footprints, which in their printed form can be presented on the floors or walls of the participating schools. Our footprints will also be presented on the Twinspace of the accompanying eTwinning project and several online publications,cf. cookbook and e-magazine.

The main objective of the project is to empower students to become confident, tolerant European citizens by learning about European cultural heritage. The project will help students to learn about the partner country, understand similarities and differences, see how the history of both countries is interwoven and which ways societies went in the 20th and 21st centuries. Working on the project, they will appreciate democratic developments within the European Union. Students will also recognise the value of each member state of the European Union leaving unique traces that form a colourful map of European identity.

The project will also deal with environmental problems. Referring to the traditional potato dish mentioned above, we will also draw students’ attention to the positive effect using regional produce has on the environment. Students will do research on the origins of their main food and ,during transnational learning activities, they will engage in workshops on traditional cuisine based on regional products.

In the course of the project Olympic Winter Games will be held (February 2020). Students will check the sportive footprints their partners are leaving during this event. They will also reflect on the effects climate change has on the winters in their countries. The topic of environment and climate change will be linked to several topics and thus make students aware of the fact that climate change has effects on our lives as a whole. Even the way we travel to transnational learning activities – no flights – will focus on the environment.

The project is a great opportunity to support the learning and teaching of foreign languages. Students and teachers communicate with their partners in a foreign language, English. All products will be created in English too. We plan to involve 350 students (age 14-17) and 18 teachers of all subjects.
Students and teachers not participating in the project can use the created products as material for reading comprehension or content- and language – integrated learning (CLIL) activities in their subjects. The projects brings a United Europe into the classroom and, at the same time, opens the classroom to Europe.

Shared learning experiences with partners and friends from another European country allows students to see and feel themselves as European citizens, and prepares them for the future world of work.

Project Website

https://twinspace.etwinning.net/112338

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 65868 Eur

Project Coordinator

Staatliches Gymnasium Georgianum & Country: DE

Project Partners

• Telšių “Džiugo” gimnazija