Our herb garden

During the project day, at I. osnovna škola Bjelovar, class 7A planted a herb garden.

Our herb garden by Helena GLj

Project day at I. osnovna škola Bjelovar

On 13 April 2022 I. osnovna škola Bjelovar organized a project day. All the pupils and teachers participated. Watch the video and see what we did. 

Spanish actions

In our school we do other activities and projects that are related to this project and we want to tell you what we do.

Earth hour-26th March

 Earth Hour is the world's largest environmental campaign, with millions of people in more than 192 countries and territories symbolically turning off their lights for one hour, in support of immediate action to mitigate climate change and halt the loss of biodiversity. In response to an invitation to join Earth Hour on March 26 at 8:30 p.m., project participants turned off the lights in their homes,asserting its ❤️ against our 🌎!

Second Erasmus+ meeting in Siegburg, Germany

 

From the 26th of March to the 2nd of April, we did the second exchange of our ecological project Schools for future – be part in creating and eco-friendly world in Siegburg, Germany. After having a wonderful time in Croatia, everybody was looking forward to the exchange in Germany. The weather was despite of the location in Germany good and everything planned in detail.

After more than one year of planning and waiting for their exchange students, the German participants finally could welcome their partners from Croatia, Latvia and Spain and show them the German hospitality and way of life. They were looking forward to work together on the project and to learn, what the other schools did to make their schools more eco-friendly.

 

The exchange students arrived on Saturday and Sunday and used the weekend to get to know their host families and enjoy the time with them. On Monday the project in Siegburg started.

The first day at school we had an extended breakfast together and did a small welcoming event where the principal and mayor came to express their appreciation for the project and the guests. Afterwards the German students did a tour around the school for their exchange partners and explained the structure of German schools in general. Since only twelve of the forty participants knew each other from the time in Croatia, we used the first day to do some get to know each other games and to break the ice. The students had lots of fun and they learned the names of the other students very quickly.

After having traditional lunch in the city center, the exchange student did a Rallye around Siegburg which was planned by the German students. The Rallye included the most important sights in Siegburg, learning important German words and use them with strangers, try traditional snacks from the bakery and orientate themselves in the small town.

On the second day we started with lots of energy and motivation into the project. The students had a two-day workshop with two people who invest lots of time in the saving of the environment. They do their workshops all over Germany and are skilled in the work with students. Since the workshop was very long, they worked on different topics. First of all, they talked about climate change and problems that speed up this negative development. Afterwards the students had to draw their ‘dream school’ and think about the protection of the environment. They could create whatever they want, even if at this point it would not be able to realize it. The main part was to learn, how a good ecological project can be planned and realized. First, they talked about it in a general way and then they started planning their own project. The students really enjoyed this activity, because they learned a lot about the topic and about things, they could do in the future to protect the environment and fight for their future.

At the end of the workshop, they talked about the ideas and activities the students did at their different schools. They evaluated all of their ideas and gave advice of what has been good and what has been difficult. The discussions were long and interesting and every participant got more ideas, which they could bring home to their own schools.

 

After the hard work on the project, the students went to an adrenalin park, where they climbed trees and had to overcome obstacles five meter above the ground. They also did teambuilding activities, in which they had to communicate to solve the riddle, because only if all of them worked together they could succeed.

On the fourth day the group went to Cologne and had a tour through the city center. They learned a lot about the history, visited Roman ruins, got to know the most important sights and traditions and could even feel a bit of the famous carnival, when they tried some costumes on. Of course, they also entered the Cathedral of Cologne and climbed all of the 533 steps to the top. The view is amazing!

The last day was all about the German culture. The German participants prepared four different workshops regarding history, geography, culture and legends. The exchange students learned a lot and proved their new knowledge with some quizzes about Germany afterwards. They also got to know the legend of the ‘Nibelungensage’ and his hero Siegfried – the slayer of the dragon. This was important because after having lunch in Bonn, the group climbed the ‘Drachenfels’ – the mountain of the legend. On top of the mountain, they saw the old tower and could see the dragon which was killed by Siegfried.

The week in Germany was a mixture of work on the project and social activities. The students got along very well and became close friends. They also got lots of new ideas how to make their school more eco-friendly and what they can do to slow down the climate change. They are willing to fight for a green future and to plan project regarding this goal.

World Water Day in Croatia

World Water Day is celebrated on March 22 every year to draw the attention of people around the world to the importance of conserving drinking water. The theme of this year's celebration is "Groundwater", and the name of the campaign is "Groundwater - make it invisible".

Groundwater is invisible, but its impact is visible everywhere. They feed springs, rivers, and lakes and penetrate the seas and oceans.

Almost all liquid fresh water in the world is groundwater, and life without it is not possible. It is used for drinking water supply, sanitary systems, agriculture, industry and ecosystems. Unfortunately, human activities overuse and pollute groundwater.

What can we do? We need to protect groundwater from pollution and use it sustainably, balancing the needs of people and the world.

This year we marked World Water Day by researching water and its properties. By conducting experiments, fifth graders learned what buoyancy is and why they are "lighter" in seawater than in a swimming pool. The students discovered why fish move through the water more easily and quickly and what adaptations allow them to do so. They peeked into a drop of swamp water with a microscope and discovered various single-celled organisms. They examined the surface tension of water and how a man can destroy it by releasing detergent into the water, and how this has a detrimental effect on the living beings that live in it.

Through the research, students gained new knowledge about water - the fluid of life and its importance for all living things on Earth.

Second Erasmus + project meeting in Bjelovar, Croatia

From 7 to 11 March 2022, 1st Primary School Bjelovar hosted the second Erasmus + KA2 “Schools For Future” meeting. The school was visited by 6 teachers and 20 students from 3 partner countries - Spain, Germany, and Latvia. The purpose of the visit was to increase the environmental awareness of students and to present "green activities" that were carried out at our school.

The first day of the project meeting started in our capital with sightseeing in a very interesting way - using the “Zagreb Time Travel” application. This application, installed on tablets, led our guests to the sights where they were greeted by virtual characters and introduced to the cultural and historical significance of a particular location. The GPS system made it possible to explore the city safely. Students and their teachers answered quiz questions and took selfies as a memory of the first activity in Croatia. Upon arrival in Bjelovar, the students were warmly welcomed by their hosts, and the long-awaited meeting passed with a lot of hugs and smiles.

On the second day, students were warmly welcomed at our school by the principal Martina Supančić, and the project coordinator for our school, teacher Helena Gustović Ljubić. After the program at the school hall, the students went to the Mayor’s Office where they were warmly welcomed by the Deputy Mayor, Mr Igor Brajdić. He had words of praise for the project and welcomed our guests to Bjelovar. After the visit to the mayor’s office, students played the City Game designed by teacher Helena Gustović Ljubić and got to know our city. International teams of students solved tasks and visited the sights of Bjelovar. The group that was the first to complete all the tasks was declared the winner and awarded. After lunch in the school canteen, the 8th-grade students presented Croatia with a short presentation, and the 7th-grade students presented the activities we conducted to make our school "green" during the project. In the end, we played a Kahoot quiz about Croatia and about our project prepared by student Matija Lončarević.

On Wednesday, the participating teachers held eco-workshops for all the students. In the workshop Plastic is not so fantastic, biology teacher, Maja Puc, pointed out the harmful impact of plastic on the environment and presented how to make a bioplastic pendant. Maths teacher Jela Galunić, made a "homemade" toothpaste with the students in the workshop: Homemade, zero-waste toothpaste, and English teacher Petra Turković, during the workshop: Protection of Mine is Fine, talked to students about protected plants and animal species in Germany, Spain, Latvia and Croatia and created an interactive map with basic information on protected and endangered plants and animals. After lunch, students participated in an activity called the Biodiversity Race during which they learned about the plants and animals that surround our school.

The next day students visited the National Park - Plitvice Lakes, which delighted them with their beauty.

The last day, Friday was spent at the Excursion Site – “Na malenom brijegu” where the students were presented with the customs of the Bilogora region, taken through the Path of Amazing Creatures of Bilogora and refreshed with homemade dishes made by students themselves.

Our guests liked our school and all the places they visited during the meeting in Croatia. Satisfied, full of positive impressions and ready to work on project activities, they happily returned to their homes.