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INNOWACJE - NASZE INSPIRACJE

Grandaskoli in Reykjavik

„The proper atmosphere at school”

People who live in Iceland are influenced by nature. They have strong motivation to protect the environment and their children learn to respect it at schools. The school we visited did a project about environment. All children took part in it and they were very excited about it. That day started with showing a film. The whole school was in one room and watched it. Then they were divided into groups and they were doing different tasks. Parents brought some used bottles, plastic jars, cartons, cables and other things to recycle a day before. Everything looked like a big hill in the middle of the room. The task was to build a robot. Children learnt that we protect environment by recycling. At the same time another group was preparing a mosaic from magazines about the Earth. Some children were coloring the Earth on a big board. Others were painting. All the activities were perfectly prepared and it was a different day at school without lessons but children and teachers were happy and learnt a lot.

Icelandic schools pay a great attention to the atmosphere among children. In their view, the most significant thing is to create such conditions at schools so that pupils feel relaxed, comfortable and like at home. It gives children the grounds and the basis for good concentartion and work . Thanks to it, pupils are more effective and willing to learn and cooperate. There are some things which astonished me a lot and made a great impression on me as a teacher and which I’d like to have in Polish schools:

Kids can wear caps/hats/covers on their heads during lessons whenever they want….I asked a headmaster of one of the schools why it is so and he answered that for the stuff it’s not a problem, he added that if a child wants to wear sth on his or her head it doesn’t disturb the lesson at all , so if he or she feels more comfortable or more free in this way so let it be like that because then a child is more effective and eager to work and acquire the knowledge.

If a pupil feels it’s too loud for him or her at school or during some lessons like e.g. woodwork , he or she can put on some headphones to make the noise more bearable and to feel more silence and calm. There are special headphones/earphones available for schoolchildren in a school to fulfill this need. It is also respected in a canteen.
The other thing that impressed me really a lot was that pupils call teachers and also a headmaster by name. They don’t use the titles: Mr or Mrs or a surname . In this way, they feel more independent and respected.
When pupils feel more freedom and independence and see and know that others treat them in a respectful way and appreciate their needs, they are more open to learn and cooperate and it’s definitely easier to reach them and their educational needs.

„Practical Skills at School „

Iceland

The amazing thing is that schools in Iceland emphasize practical skills of pupils a lot. They teach them how to cook and even how to tidy up. They make schoolchildren conscious of how important is an ordinary work and engage them in a lot of practical chores. I think ,in this way, kids can get to know different duties and housework and they can be and become very responsible and skillfull in this way. Life is not based only on educational knowledge but also or even, first of all, on practical skills and abilities.

I found out that schools in Iceland are mainly foccussed on arts, crafts, woodwork, cooking, textile lessons. These lessons are very important. I think that handmade is the key word in Icelandic educational system. Children do not use so much computers but own hands and imagination.

Children learn many practicall skills which definitely be useful in their future life. And what is more, they have a great fun from these lessons.

I was surprised by the textile lesson where all children (even boys) were knitting a small ball. This activity requires good hand coordination and patience.

Fossvogsskoli School in Reykjavik

Iceland

In Icelandic schools the emphasis is placed on health. Children drink water and eat healthy food. Almost everyone has lunch at school. It is prepared carefully and consists of fish, vegetables, fruit. Students also learn to prepare meals in special room which looks like kitchen and there is all the equipment. They have practical cooking lessons and learn what is healthy and how to prepare a proper meal.

In one of the school’s I have visited I learnt about the concept of Biophillia. It was in the primary school which Bjork (famous singer) graduated from. This concept was introduced by Bjork in her last album.She made there some musical experiments which connected music with nature and technology. These connections were used in the Project that the children did last year. It was about discovering and describing the life In space. It was a great fun for them because they had to use their imagination and still learnt about the space and biology. I think that these connections are very interesting and can be successfully used In the classroom.