AGRUPAMENTO DE ESCOLAS MARTINHO ÁRIAS - SOURE ESCOLA SECUNDÁRIA / 3 MARTINHO ÁRIAS ANO LETIVO 2014/2015
Class 8A and the project "Stone Culture Rolling Over Europe" integrated in the European eTwinning Programme
Since 2009 that our school has been registered in eTwinning, a EU programme that is based on the collaborative work between schools in different European countries, using the Internet communication so that the benefits of this programme in terms of digital literacy are obvious. The fact that all contacts are held in English, the lingua franca of communication, should also be highlighted together with the added value of all intercultural dialogue provided by contacts with other European realities. This school year, Class 8A has integrated the project "Stone Culture Rolling Over Europe", whose aims include the involvement of our students, the school and local community in order to develop a more positive attitude towards the Earth, to take a more active role in promoting our cultural heritage, environmental quality and sustainable development. The focus of this project is multidisciplinary, thus involving, in addition to English, Sciences, Geography and Citizenship. In this project, the most recent initiative was a field trip to Maciço Calcário da Serra do Sicó (a limestone area) last February 25th. We left Soure about 2.30pm and the first visit – and the longest one - was to Buracas do Casmilo. Despite the proximity, few students knew the place, so pleasant for family visits, so challenging for sports, and in our case, for the observation of flora and fauna, rocks and sedimentary landscapes, ecosystem analysis and sample collection to send to our partner countries - namely Spain, Greece, Italy, Romania and Turkey.
Limited by time and with another visit planned for the same afternoon, we went to Escarpa da Senhora da Estrela, one of the main morphological accidents in the region, which presents itself as an imposing rock wall of over 200 meters. In the bottom of the slope of this fault scarp there is a doline that the students had the opportunity to observe and learn about its relevance for the environmental balance of the area. It was indeed an enriching, engaging, fun and action-oriented field trip in which all goals have been met, including the improvement of our international connections and sharing of environmental information once, by now, our sample exchange is already taking place. A final word of thanks to the Municipality of Soure for the readiness and collaboration in providing driver and transportation.
CLASS 8A
Teachers Alexandra Duarte, FĂĄtima Silvestre, JoĂŁo Carlos Martins & SĂlvia Penacho