COMENIUS MULTILATERAL PARTNERSHIP “MARE NOSTRUM” LLP LINK 2013-1-IT2-COM06-518514 N.A. NO. 13-PM-563-CT-IT

About Comenius Multilateral Project “MARE NOSTRUM” newsletter This is a newsletter dedicated to the third project meeting of the Comenius Multilateral Partnership which will guide you through all the activities that took place within the project between the 31th of March and the 4th of April in PlougastelDaoulas, France.

The multilateral project Comenius - Mare Nostrum is the result of a partnership between six schools from six different European countries: Istituto Comprensivo, Spoltore, Italy, Private Trade School, Varna, Bulgaria, Escola Básica 2,3, PiscinasPiscinas-Lisabona, Portugal, Liceul Teoretic “Ovidius”, Constanta, Romania, Collège Privé Catholique “Sainte Anne”, Plougastel Daoulas, France, 3dh High School of A char nes, Athe ns, Greece. The aim of the

project is to create a partnership between schools situated near the sea, the main theme being the study and exploration of the coastal ecosystem. The main idea is to try to replace the simple ways of teaching the students with activities that involve working in laboratories, visiting museums or doing research in the natural environment. We also aim to raise awareness about the fragile equilibrium of the coastal ecosystem. The preservation of the

sea is essential in keeping the biodiversity, the micromicro-climatic conditions and the life and health of those who leave close to it. The project is financed by the European Commission through the Lifelong Learning Project and will run its course between the years 2013 and 2015. This is the third meeting of the project, which will take place in PlougastelPlougastelDaoulas, France during the 31th of March and 4th of April, 2014.

Our trip to France started from the midnight of the 31st of March on the airport where we got into the plane. After a flight of 3 hours we finally arrived in Paris. From there we took the train to Rennes, while on the trip we had time

for a good sleep. In Rennes we changed the train to Brest. We finally arrived in the afternoon in the railway station at Brest. Even though it was a tiring journey, we had a warm welcome from the hosts who were waiting for us.

Trip to France

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COMENIUS MULTILATERAL PARTNERSHIP “MARE NOSTRUM”

Day 1: Water sports and boat trip The first day was one of the most amazing days that we spent in France during our project. In the morning we met the france team and got a big “welcome” from them. We also got to known to the people from the other delegations. Then we had a boat trip in the Brest harbor, which was an opportunity to see

the nearby sights. There was an activity with a man who dived into water and showed us the marine biodiversity of the harbor. After a break at the Kayaking Club where we ate some delicious france specialities,we went to the watersport activities. As it was very cold, we didn’t get into the water. The guests received

and an instructor prepared them for the kayak and stand up paddle. In the end we went back to school to a show with traditional brittany music and dances.

Day 2: Aquarium and “peche a pied” The guests attended to a biology lesson with their hosts.Then, all the delegations went to visit Oceanopolis aquarium to discover the creatures that can be found in Brest. After that everyone went to Lampaul Plouarzel to organize a picnic. There every

delegation participated to a game where everyone should have searched for animals— this was the “peche a pied”, traditional activity of the coast, due to the withdraw of the sea waters during the low tide. Many specie of algae, crustaceans, fish,

snails and shells have been found on the shore. With the help of the experts from Oceanopolis aquarium, the students learned a lot about the costal environment and the peculiarities of the local landscape.

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Day 3: Projects presentation On our last day of acitvities we visited the Brest city. The day started at school where each team has presented its school activities for the project, followed by the teachers metting. Every team has the chance to present its work during the last 2 months, from the previous visit. We present to the other 2 research on alien specie (species that are newly introduced in the Black Sea) and endangered species, also from the Black Sea. We also showed a really interesting animation movie made by our colleague Vlad, about the sea pollution. The other teams focused on marine mammals (Italy), oil pollution

Day 4: Departure day

(France), coastal biodiversity (Portugal). During the teachers meeting, the new tasks for the projects have been decided, and also when is going to take place the next meeting.

After saying ”good bye” to the Italian delegation we went on a city tour in Brest. We visited the old castel, where we have seen a beautiful sight of the city, and part of the commercial port. It was a great day for everyone.

The last day was one of the funniest days because we had to prepare for catching the train at due time. After we arrived in Paris we had to move very quickly to be sure we won’t miss the airplane. It was a great experience and we hope we will have another opportunity to meet all again.

Thank you to our French friends for their warm wellcome ! :)