First joint staff training event – a five-day online training activity
Day 1
Monday (Nov. 23, 2020) was the first day of the online joint staff training event. The training was organized as a MOODLE course and was hosted on the servers of the Portuguese partner Instituto Politecnico de Santarem. The participating teachers were introduced to the project idea and the created Resource Pack which was to be used in extracurricular training activities with primary school students. We got to know each other by playing games (Well done, Iva , Moni
and Paschalina
) and learned more about the non-formal educational tools used in the project.
Day 2
During the second day (Nov 24,2020) of the online joint staff training event of the YESI project the participants took part in simulations of training activities from the “Children’s rights – Human rights” module. In the “My right to opinion and expression” training resource they had the task to think of their dream about the future and present it to rest of the group as an artistic creation. The participants were split in 3 groups making use of the breakout rooms option in ZOOM.
The participants could opt to step in the shoes of a specific target group. This is the artistic work of group 3 – the group of the ‘children’ and their message to the world!
This is the message of the group of the ‘teenagers’ during the second day of the YESI online training event. This is what they want to share with the world!
Day 3
Nov 25, 2020 was the DIVERSITY AND SOCIAL INCLUSION day. The participants took part in simulations of two of the designed training resources – Religious diversity and Diversity and Stereotypes. We played the e-games designed specifically for the training resources and enjoyed watching a great video about stereotypes. Primary students would love it, but it was good fun for adults too.
Day 4
Nov 26, 2020 was dedicated to the ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP module. The participants took part in a simulation of a training activity on the topic of ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP AT SCHOOL. The training session is meant to engage students in activities to teach them the importance of being active citizens and the meaning of the sustainable development goals. Considering the age specifics of the target group, having stepped in the shoes of the primary students, the participants played games teaching them how they can contribute to the dream of living in a world with no plastic.
In PROTECTING AND RESPECTING ANIMALS training activity the teachers, once again, stepped in the shoes of students. They shared stories to learn that cats and dogs can get poisoned from seemingly innocuous items such as chocolate, cleaning products and batteries; small birds can choke on small pieces of plastic, while ducks, fish, and other creatures that live in the water, can be harmed by plastic soda rings and other trash. So the three groups planned CLEAN-UP CAMPAIGNS to protect the animals. The Serbian ‘students’ shared information about a campaign they had already organized in the park neighbouring the school. All groups had great ideas and designed inspiring posters to involve other students in their campaigns.
Nov 27, 2020 – last day of the online training event
Unfortunately, all good things come to an end . Friday was the last day of the YESI online training event. During the session we planned the following steps the teachers were expected to complete during the school year. The participants were presented to the opinion poll questions their students had to answer prior to the training course activities and after it. The questionnaires were translated in Bulgaria, Serbian, Greek and Portuguese so that students could answer in their mother tongue. The teachers also had the task to fill in feedback forms after delivering each training session. There had been created 38 feedback forms for each of the training resources in the manual. All answers were to be stored online so that the project management team could go through the teachers’ opinion and recommendations and make the necessary changes.
Due to the complicated situation resulting from the COVID 19 pandemic, we had to cancel the mobility in Santarem, Portugal. The joint staff training event will be organized online.
Second joint staff training event – Serbia
August 30th, 2021
Day 1 of the joint staff training event in Serbia was devoted to getting-to-know each other and team building activities. The participating teachers from Bulgaria, Greece, Portugal and our wonderful hosts from Serbia made us feel at home and provided excellent working conditions.
August 31st , 2021
Day 2 of the joint staff training event was dedicated to the training resources from the Children’s Rights – Human Rights module of the resource pack. We participated in two simulations: The rights of refugee children and the Right to rest, leisure and play. A really fruitful day with loads of emotions and practical ideas for activities to do with the students.
September 1st, 2021
Day 3 of the learning event in Serbia coincided with the first school day for our hosts from Osnovna Skola Hristo Botev – beautiful children and dedicated teachers! Visiting the local gymnasium was also quite impressive!
During the third day we also visited a branch of the host school located in Trnski Odorovci and implemented some of the training resources with the children, played games and had fun.
September 2nd , 2021
Day 4 was dedicated to the activities from the Diversity and social inclusion module. The participants were involved in a simulation of a training session on the topic of Bullying and social inclusion. They stepped in the shoes of students and participated in activities meant to teach them the 4 practical steps to counteract bullying. The simulation was followed by sharing experience on the topic.
We also visited a center for people with SEN in Smilovci, Caribrod region, where we learned what the trainers in the center do to support SEN children from the region.
September 3rd, 2021
The last day of the joint staff training event was the busiest one. The morning session involved the participants in activities’ simulations from the Identity, active citizenship and social involvement module.
- Simulation of IAC1: My identities
- Simulation of IAC3: AC and the protection of the environment
- Simulation of IAC8: Active citizenship and healthy living.
The afternoon session was devoted to the Implementation in schools after the training event – the Opinion poll for students and the expected feedback from the teachers. The participants also planned future eTwinning projects on the topic of Children’s’ rights, Diversity and Active citizenship and we finished the training event with visits to some cultural sites in the region.
