Our newest Erasmus Plus Project began this month in Lithuania - sadly our staff, Mr Campbell, Mrs Mitchell and Mrs Corr had to join in virtually this time but they hope to travel to Turkey next year to meet up with all the partners.
Within the scope of Erasmus+ KA201 Development of Social and Emotional Skills in Early Childhood Project (2020-1-TR01-KA201-094111), first Learning/Training/Teaching activity was held in Kaunas, Lithuania, with the pysical participation of 21 educators from Turkey (Bursa/Yıldırım İlçe Milli Eğitim Müdürlüğü ve Bursa Uludağ Üniversitesi), Lithuania (Kauno lopšelis-darželis "Giliukas"), Italy (Istituto Comprensivo Garibaldi-Leone), Hungary (Szabó Pál Általános Iskola és Alapfokú Muvészeti Iskola) and 3 educators from virtual participation of North Ireland (Windmill Integrated Primary School Limited).
At the host school Kauno lopšelis – darželis „Giliukas”, Mrs. Almeda Kmieliauskaitė, project coordinator from Lithuania and Mrs. Jūrate Stakeliūnienė, the school’s headmaster welcomed the teachers from partner countries. During the opening ceremony, the Lithuanian children surprised the participants with dance and a dramatic story role playing. When visiting the school and classrooms we observed that some of the groups adopted the R. Steiner pedagogy (Waldorf). After visiting school units, we participated two handcraft cultural workshops, Felting of wool by Mrs. Jūratė Balčiūnienė and Molding from clay by Vilma Levišauskienė. These handcraft activities was the first time of our teachers participating.
After the opening ceremony, the participants were given a pre-test on project mobility. After the pre-test was implemented, presentations on content of the SESDECE Project were made by Harun Öz, the Strategy Development Unit Branch Manager of Yıldırım District Directorate of National Education, and Betül SINIR, the project coordinator. Working as a faculty member at Uludag University, Prof.Dr. Figen Akça made presentation on what social and emotional problems are in early childhood and how they are defined. After the presentations, within the scope of ice breaking activities, meeting, communication and interaction activities between the participants were carried out using creative drama method.
Two separate sessions were held on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th days of the mobility. In the morning sessions, creative drama workshops were held by Dr. Nuray Koç and Dr. Şehnaz SUNGURTEKİN. From story to drama, from dance and motion to drama, from play to drama, which are included in the creative drama method, on the basis of social development and emotional development, experiential learning was studied on recognizing one’s own emotions and understanding the emotions of others. In the afternoon sessions, tables were formed with mixed country teams. At these tables, presentations of school adaptation processes and good practices implemented by partner institutions in their countries during the preschool period were held. These presentations were carried out in 3 different areas as preschool teachers, psychologists/psychological counselors, and school administrators. At the mixed country tables, the representatives of the partner institutions discussed the similar and different aspects of the processes applied in their own countries and shared the practices of the education systems on the school adaptation processes of the countries.
In the afternoon sessions, a follow-up meeting was held by the project coordinators of the partner institutions on project implementation and management, dissemination, and budget. Project proposals of partner institutions were evaluated on the development of the etwinning project in accordance with the main theme of the project so that children can also be included in the project. It was decided to develop an eTwinning project on emotional literacy, based on children writing their own stories and acting them using creative drama.
The 5th Day of mobility a meeting held by Prof.Dr. Figen Akça on how and at what intervals the questionnaires to be applied to Children, Teachers and Parents during the project process. On the 6th day of the mobility, the post-mobility test was applied and the participants expressed their feelings and thoughts. The distribution of participation certificates, the preparation of the signature circular and the closing speeches were made with the best wishes of the managers of the host institution. The Old Town and Trakai Castle were visited in the context of cultural events.
According to the results of the pre-test before the events, 70% of our participants participate in an Erasmus+ mobility for the first time and have less than average knowledge about Erasmus+ programs. Besides the fact that our participants have very little knowledge about the creative drama method, 84% of the participants attend a creative drama workshop for the first time. Participants consider themselves quite competent in defining social and emotional problems and skills, and stated that they were very good in school adaptation process and cooperation with families.
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