The first Trust Kids project exchange took place in Kadirli, Turkey, from 24 to 29 November 2019, and all partner countries participated the meeting.
For four days the team worked on various issues related to project implementation such as choice of logo, activities to be developed, specific assignments for each school, dates and logistics of the various exchanges, Project website, e-Twinning page - Twinspace of the project, etc.. Pedagogical experiences were shared among all and there were also opportunities for a cultural exchange where it was possible to get a better acquaintance with the culture and habits of the Turkish people through visits to Kadirli and Adana and also through constant dialogue with the Turkish team and other Turkish people with whom the group was contacting during the stay in Kadirli.
On the first day of the program, the school welcomed the Project team with an enthusiastic ceremony of folk dances and whirling dervishes. The activities started with a guided tour of the school. Teachers Canan and Cavit guided the Project team and showed the various school spaces (library, playground, classrooms and administrative staff room).
The group had the opportunity to enter several rooms where classes were taking place and to observe some forms of teaching, which allowed a pleasant interaction with students and teachers. Both were very interested in knowing all the elements of the project team. They put several questions to the group about their countries of origin and characteristics of their schools.
Any language barrier that might have been was duly overcome by the fact that the communication was done in English, either directly with the speakers or through the translation by the teachers Canan and Cavit. Teachers had the chance to compare the education systems of countries.
On that same day, each team made a brief presentation about themselves and their school. In each presentation a number of questions were raised regarding the teaching method of each country and how schools are involved in a wide range of projects whether they are international, such as Erasmus +, or national scope. It should be noted that the exchange of information and educational experiences was, in general, a constant throughout the exchange. These shares allowed the various members of the project team to get to know each other better and thus strengthen their friendship, which began to form in this exchange.
Next, some ways of integrating Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the classroom were presented, in order to improve teaching methods and to work on project methodology in a more diversified and dynamic way.
WEB 2 Tools (Padlet, Animoto, Prezi, Kahoot, etc.) and digital media (Google apps, Skype, Whatsapp) were some of the ICT covered. The teachers were able to verify that some of these tools are very interesting, intuitive, practical and easy to use. During the implementation of the project would be very pertinent to use some of them, more specifically Padlet.
With regard to issues related to the development and implementation of the project, a number of decisions have been made, all of which have been asserted by all.
During this meeting there was always a great spirit of sharing and camaraderie among all. All teachers felt that the boundaries between each country are only on the map and not in reality.
TRUST KIDS team project is THE TEAM!
