Two Rivers, Two Countries – One Europe Erasmus Project

Project Title

Two Rivers, Two Countries – One 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 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning; Regional dimension and cooperation; Teaching and learning of foreign languages

Project Summary

A new partnership of Oberschule Trebsen and Aizkraukles Novada Vidusskola came to life thanks to Erasmus + project. The projet topic “Two rivers, two countries – one Europe“ extends as the major thread throughout the entire project period.
August 2019 became the starting point of the first activities in the preparation of the project. Both schools completed the project groups.
In order to attune themselves for the new project, our students did their first online research for the basic information of the new partner’s country. They got acquainted with the foreign culture and typical national characteristics. In order to find out more about one another, students created individual profiles of themselves in English. Skillfully designed letters were sent to by the traditional mail to the partners. Latvian students received an additional quiz „German challenge“, a small task in German language for the partners in Aizkraukle.
In October 2019, a preparatory meeting was fixed with our Latvian colleagues. We set the further objectives and their implementation. A rough outline of the first mobility was arranged. The exchange of the students’ profiles at the beginning awoke the first deeper interest in the project partners. Further contacts via social media followed between the students in a natural way. A common project logo was chosen by the participating students after several votings in a democratic way.
The main activity in November was to get a short insight into the school life of the partner. Students took detail pictures of their school and sent these to the partners who created a wall newspaper in a collage technique.
The next step was to prepare the first mobility. The students worked out the route of a sightseeing tour in their school town Trebsen located on the banks of the river Mulde. Our students prepared themselves for the role of the guides. The main topic of each sightseeing tour was our connection to the river Mulde. Our direct location close to the river made it easy to implement.
December was the time for creating individual Christmas cards. The students worked highly motivated and included short stories and anecdotes in their greetings.
At the same time, there began the work on the presentations about the central topic of the project – the valley of the river Mulde. The activity lasted until February 2020. Devided into five groups, our students did the research in the following topics: the local plant life and animal life, culture, economy and the sights of the region in Muldental and near the Daugava.
February was intensively used to rehearse the presentations and the sightseeing tours. Each group worked out a short additional quiz for the visitors.
It was March and the time had come. The Latvian partners visited Trebsen. It was an unforgettable week full of action. All the students checked in at the youth hostel Grillensee in Naunhof. The ice was quickly broken and a very active language and cultural exchange took place. Additionally to the common leasure time activities such as outdoor games, board games and the party night, there was a range of cultural highlights. We visited Dresden and its landmark the Frauenkirche on a sightseeing tour and found out more fascinating things about our human senses at the Hygienemuseum. Our visitors gained an insight into the school life of Trebsen by attending several lessons and spending the breaks together on the schoolyard. The hosts showed their hometown and their school. In order to deepen the project topic, we organized a geological workshop at the manor Rittergut Trebsen. After having listened to the fascinating history of the volcanic origins of the local area and particularly the valley of the Mulde, students designed a „friendship stone“ in a form of a pendant. Our students had gathered the pebbles on the banks of the river beforehand. It was a wonderful and highly educational week with emotional farewell tears for many students.
In the time period between April 2020 and August 2021, due to the new hygiene regulations our students cooked some traditional and beloved German and Latvian dishes. The students cooking videos and a cookery book. The slow Internet connection at our school in Trebsen made it impossible for us to meet online with our Latvian friends. Luckily, the social networks Instagram and Snapchat did the job.
All in all it was a fantastic experience. The students and the teachers gained a lot through the project, even if it could not be fully realized. All participants widened their knowledge not only about one’s own countrie’s culture, history and economy. In the same way they deepened their knowledge about the partner’s native country. As for the language and communication skills, there was a noticeable positive impact on the self-confidence of the students. It was interesting to compare the differences in the learning process and learning environment in both schools and generally in both countries.

Project Website

http://www.oberschule-trebsen.de

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 30007,06 Eur

Project Coordinator

Oberschule Trebsen & Country: DE

Project Partners

• Aizkraukles novada vidusskola