http://www.andeducation.co.uk/polaryear.htm

When they start to create the technical glossary they were surprise, because they knew all the same subject. This glossary had the proposal to share, in the 3 language, technical terms (pt, pl and it) from there curriculum, so they really enjoy it.

So, as we can see sometime the problems are not only the difference between the time zone, technical or pedagogical. You can see a complain here!

There were a lot of events during the day for all the students, the seniors and the students from the junior grammar school , as well. Mrs Gebauerová prepared a concert for older students. They could hear beautiful Irish songs, sang by Věra Klásková, the famous folk singer. The students who study German had a chance to see a play in German, students from tercie A acted in it and the play was prepared by Mrs Hronzová.

The new students in our school met our deputy headmistress Mrs Paszeková, who showed them one of the successful projects of our school called Lanterna Futuri. They will take part in it soon, too.

But also the students of our junior grammar school had an interesting programme. The etwinning room was connected on line by the SKYPE and there were international videoconferences with Poland and Greece.

Younger students watched etwinning presentations of their older friends and some classes prepared interesting events, such as The Sovenier Exhibition in the classroom, where other children had to quess where the things had come from. Sekunda A and B created posters called My favourite European country and together with the German students and the students who study French, they did the same thing, decorated the main corridor of the school. A lot of students came to read the posters. The youngest students sang the song A message in a bottle to the Polish children during the chat.

And then a new etwinning European record came. The students from kvarta B / they are fifteen/ broke the chat record. In a one-day project called The fun never ends when you write to your friends were registered 147 students,11 teachers, from the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia / our partner school from Púchov /, Hungary, The UK, Finland, France and Italy. It was a problem to work in the chat, so most of the students were routed into the Forum of the twinspace. During 45 minutes there were 223 topics and 1,215 answers. Although it was a bit chaotic, the feedback is great. Everybody loved the chat and it was worth the time we had spent while preparing the whole event.
I really have to express deep thanks to our ICT teacher Mr Dufek, who had worked hard in the new computer room, so we were able to use it today.

We also received powerpoint presentations from our chat friends about their schools. It was really a good idea. And the Finish teacher uploaded photos of the chatting students into the photogallery while we were chatting. What a nice surprise!

The last event of the day was a small present for each youngest student. It was a sticker which contained a tag line of the European day of languages in a different language. The tag line is TALK TO ME. The task was to find out the name of the language in the school corridor.

Our celebration was very nice and we are looking forward to preparing the next eTwinning and European Day of languages.

Thanks to everybody, who had helped us with this successful and unforgettable day.

This is what the French teacher has written to me

My students were very enthusiasts for this chat and forum (too much for me). Some of them couldn't connect on chat or forum and I gave other solution. BUT I was so fast : they wrote fast and didn't way you write questions !!! They liked talking about football, video games (tricks)... Some of them exchanged e mail address with Polish, Italian.. students when they used private room on the chat. I never saw them use so quickly English dictionary !!!!It was great. Thank you for organizing this chat.
Love Catherine

Naděžda Kadlecová, Gymnázium Česká Lípa, Czech Republic
Visit her blog at http://et-friendship.blogspot.com/

There are various activities planned, but be sure to participate in the eTwinning Blog by continuing to post information and start discussions with others.

Best of luck for the 2007-2008 school year!

The eTwinning Team

What are the reasons of the problems to finish the project?

• the number of the students on one side is much larger than on the other side. It has happened to us with Portugal this year and my students were confused each having two Portuguese children as their pen friends. Then we preferred using the forum where all the kids talked together.

• we had a plan but we forgot about the partner’s holiday and the end of the school year. We had to change the plan and make the project shorter.

• the technical equipment of the schools was not on the same level. I had to explain to the children that they were lucky to go to our school and they had to accept the conditions of the other side. It was a problem because the children didn’t get as many letters as they had wished. But on the other hand I could use it educationally. My students were proud of our school ICT rooms more than before.

• ICT knowledge of the partner teachers wasn’t the same. It can often happen but then, the more experienced teacher can help the new friend. It happened to us with Greece, but my friend from Greece was a good student and today she is just perfect. We spent a lot of chats discussing technical problems. There are seminars in all the EU countries for the teachers who are not sure what to do. Those teachers can also use the help from their local NSSs.

• But the worst problem is when one of the partners finishes without saying a word. Then we have to tell the children and explain the situation. If it happens ones, it can be explained easily but if it happens more times, it is not easy to motivate the children for a new project. They should always feel that their work was useful.

What to do with an unfinished project?

• If the children are registered in the Twinspace in My team section, we can go on with the project as if nothing has happened. We can try to find another partner who would replace the first one, which can be a bit confusing but sometimes it is better than nothing.

• If you do not find a new partner, then you still can use the Twinspace. You can divide the children into two groups and they can choose the country they will represent. I know that it is not the same like with a real partner, but we need to finish the project. The students can still write letters, work in the Forum, and create folders and photo galleries. They can work with the Internet and create PowerPoint presentations about various details of the chosen countries. Maybe they will become interested in a new country and they will be motivated to start a new project. The only thing is that we probably will not be successful in the National or International competitions.

But what is more important? Definitely not to discourage the children from other contacts but make them happy that they had done a good job.

How to protect our partnership?

• set clear conditions at the very beginning
• discuss the school year holidays
• be in touch regularly- it is important especially at the beginning of the project
• try to get to know your partner better before you promise anything to the children
• prepare the project with the children - you can help them but they should be involved as much as possible
• keep the list of the students with their partners- they may forget them. It is useful to put the list in the Twinspace
• keep the list of the students‘ usernames and passwords for the eTwinning web page. If you do not go regularly into the Twinspace, younger children might forget them.
• be diplomatic when you chat or write to your partner. We are different nations and different mentalities and so we can hurt our friend unintentionally.

In conclusion

Be optimistic and believe that every new project will be better and more successful than the first one. The friendship which is offered to in an eTwinning project is a treasure. So do not waste it, keep it, look after it, enlarge it and you will never be alone in this world.

Naděžda Kadlecová, Gymnázium Česká Lípa, Czech Republic
Visit her blog at http://et-friendship.blogspot.com/

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpi2-MW9psA

Grâce à sa riche expérience en matière d´enseignement du FLE et de projets coopératifs par Internet, elle a mené plusieurs projets eTwinning très innovants et réussis, comme « Correspondance scolaire », « Une famille multiculturelle », « Un pont entre l´Atlantique et la Méditerranée » ou « BraZa Project – AbraZados ».

Pour réussir un projet eTwinning, elle croit en l´importance de trouver un partenaire motivé et disponible pour développer le projet. En ce qui concerne le thème du projet, pourvu qu´il corresponde au programme, elle laisse le choix aux élèves. Elle aime bien varier les outils dans ses projets (tels que blogs, wiki, podcasting etc) mais fait toujours attention à ce qu´ils soient aptes aux activités prévues. Mais, d’après elle, le mot clé de la réussite c´est l´enthousiasme: son propre enthousiasme, l´enthousiasme de ses élèves et de son partenaire du début jusque la clôture du projet.

Si vous avez envie d´en savoir plus sur son travail, allez voir son web personnel sur http://www.adelinamouravitae.com.sapo.pt (en anglais, français et portugais).