Projects play a great role in students’ socializing. So, the technology of national project-based learning is one of the most vital nowadays. I’d like to share my experience in facilitating children to use projects as means of cross cultural communication.
In 2011-2012 the publishing house "Prosveshchenie" organized and conducted an on-line-competition for students "Our country is our heritage". Two of my students got interest. The participants were aimed to write a short essay about the native place, republic, about their “small” motherland, lighting up the most important and secret – that characterizes this locality in a cultural, historical or natural context. Pictures of the described places were desirable. Thus, the students of the country made an attempt to create an interactive map of Russia in the English language. The participants of competition were people of all ages: from junior to senior schools, lyceums, gymnasia, pupils of boarding-schools for disabled children, students of military schools.
All works were compiled in a general electronic brochure, where they are located in an alphabetical order.
http://www.prosv.ru/book/book.html#features/
More than 3000 students’ creative works presented memorable and saint places, architectural monuments and buildings, picturesque places, historical events of our enormous multinational country. Due to the project everybody knows about such not popular, but not less meaningful places, as native towns Pervomaisky and Balei in Zabaikalye.
Балей http://www.prosv.ru/book/book.html#features/33 , http://www.prosv.ru/umk/spotlight/info.aspx?ob_no=35855
Шилкинский район, поселок Первомайский http://www.prosv.ru/book/book.html#features/35 , http://www.prosv.ru/umk/spotlight/info.aspx?ob_no=31189
The interactive map of Russia in English is the real well of historical facts and legends. It allows to study history and become acquainted with prominent people, exposes national features and richest cultural heritage of our boundless Motherland. The works of the competition "Our country is our heritage" are useful for foreign students and colleagues who visit Russia on an exchange or for work as well as for people who want to know more about our country.
One more site helps my students to express their attitude to different themes as “The place I would like to live in”, “An Ideal Welfare State”. S.Dementyev’s project “Kalinov Most” is about a popular Russian group. Its members were born and brought up in our town.
http://the-world-of-english-kuzovlev.blogspot.ru/p/english-10.html
http://the-world-of-english-kuzovlev.blogspot.ru/p/english-9.html
So, these projects are of great interest for representatives of the Russian culture and for foreigners. And the technology has no limits and pushes back the boundaries of learning to global.
Replies