Gastronomy in ancient Greece  Click to see

Nutrition and cognitivie development

NUTRITION AND COGNITIVE DEVOLEPMENT AYTEN AKPINAR BIOLOGY TEACHER İSTANBUL BÜYÜKÇEKMECE VOCATION AND TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

The relationship

between nutrition and

learning is important

for people who care for

children.  Cognitive

development is a term

that covers human

perception, thinking ,

and learning.

Nutrition, genes, and environment are three major factors impacting cognitive development.

Because there are many factors that impact learning, scientists cannot say, “If you eat this, you will be smarter.”

However, the role of

good nutrition in child

development and

learning is important.

Nutrition during the

early years of a child’s

life is linked to   performance

in later years.

EXPERIENCES

EXPERIENCES

All in all, participating in the Comenius project was a great experience for me and all the teachers and students that participated in it. The students learned to work with their classmates and teachers after school and share the information they gathered in order to fulfill the project. They also had the chance to meet other students, different cultures, new places, different ways of living. Thus they  felt more mature and responsible, especially when they hosted students in their homes, they practiced their English and communicated via social media. Speaking English became a practice which they continued at school and they ended up doing that even during breaks!

There were moments that are unforgetable and others that were full of anxiety and disappointment. I will never forget our trip to Riccia and the warm welcome we received by the teachers and parents and above all Pina. Our visit to Romania was great, too. Valentina and the Principal and all the teachers welcomed us in a way that I will never forget. So friendly and warm! Meeting the French teachers and especially Catherine, Roman, Christophe and Frank was something  more than pleasure. We had the chance to discuss many things and come close. It is a pity that we may not meet again.
The best days for me personally were our visit to Italy, where we had our students together and the days we hosted our partners in Kilkis. Very tiring but so nice. I was really glad to host some teachers in my home and share with them some of our special dishes,our way of life, our hospitality.
On the other hand, I feel so disappointed with the Spanish partners. After a two-day travel there was no one to welcome us in Alcala, no one spoke English and I had to use gestures to be understood. And it was our first meeting! The meeting though at school with the teachers and students was in a way compensating.
Georgia Ioannidou

PLASTIC CAPS

                                This is what we managed to collect and do with plastic caps.

Presenting our project in Alcala la Real's city hall

Link to our prezi See
Video summary (Results and activities) See
Video made by students See

Gastronomy as an Educational Resource Comenius Project: my experience.

In the beginning, some of the people who decided to participate in this project (I count myself among them) weren’t sure about what this Comenius project was exactly going to be. We were told the project had to do with gastronomy and different countries working together to create different activities which would result in new and interesting educative experiences for pupils and teachers. It didn’t sound bad at all. As time went on, I had the chance to discover all the important advantages the project would bring about for my students and for me, as a teacher. 

The project has given us the opportunity to learn vocabulary and cultural aspects related to gastronomy, but it has been more than that: it has given students and teachers the opportunity to practice the language we are studying in class in context (English, although I have been surprised to see my students speaking French, Italian… they have felt free and highly motivated to use any language to communicate with other students in the different countries they have been to).  

So, the issue of “learning languages” has been correctly tackled. But I don’t want to consider only that as a positive aspect. What about “learning from other people”? What about “learning about life”? I have been surprised by the improvement in my students’ ability to connect with people from a different culture; my students’ ability to solve problems that they had to face in a new situation and in a new country; and my students’ ability to react to problems with a smile, showing a resolute attitude in order to find a solution.

In conclusion, I can honestly say that everything in this experience has been beneficial and enjoyable. I want to thank all the people who have participated in it; all the people who have worked to create a motivating and welcoming atmosphere during these years. I think the coordinator Jose Luis Ruiz has made an incredible job, as he has shown great organizational skills (it’s complicated to meet everybody’s requirements) and a good sense of humor, which has encouraged us to work together. Thanks everyone for an extraordinary experience!

Belén Ortega

Spanish teacher

Comenius

The first thing we’d like to say is that this trip was a good thing for all of us, we had wonderful relationships with our different penfriends and their families and friends. This experience has allowed us to have another vision of Turkey, nicer and warmer than what we usually see on TV news.
One week before leaving and going to Turkey, we  were really afraid of how we would be welcomed by our penfriends and their families, how they would be when we would be in their flats.

 Even if we had spoken to  them on facebook, and created connections, we were still nervous about other people. Some of us wrote all our feelings in our travel books during the trip.  Everything was easier when we arrived and met them: all the families and penfriends were waiting for us in Buyukcekmece. We spent the whole week with them: We visited the city, the big bazar and ate in a typical Turkish restaurant. We took some photos and practised sports with teachers, this was really pleasant and funny. In the afternoons we visited monuments, factories, went on horse riding. This was so great and we visited the old Istanbul too and even a mosque. In fact, in only one week we visited wonderful places and met wonderful people. We tasted all meals which were typical Turkish meals,  some of them had bad taste but others were really good.

In a nustshell this week was filled with happiness and amazing encounters, and we discovered a country  we didn’t know anything about ; besides, now, we know some words in Turkish.

                     

Belbecir Chahrazade
Paluszkiewicz Valentine
Schliwanski Audrey