Due to Covid-19 pandemic we had to introduce a series of modifications to the project.
First of all, we lost our Italian partners as they expected the pandemic to only get worse and therefore wanted to focus on safety issues. As for the remaining four partners our preparatory meetings were also affected by restrictions connected with the number of participants in groups conferencing online with teachers from LT,TR and RO. The students could not take part until early 2021 when they physically returned to schools. As a result, we asked the NAs for one year extra to be able to complete all aims and objectives we agreed to at the beginning and with the start of school year 2021/2022 we could get on with the mobilities.
The first meeting was designed for staff of partner schools. We aimed at presenting and comparing the P.E curricula in our countries and problems connected with lessening physical activity on the part of adolescents. We had the latter presented by an expert on the subject dr Piotr Szewczyk, the deacon of Physical Activity College in Kalisz. He revealed data concerning worrisome tendencies in European Union in general and more detailed for our countries. This lecture led to a further discussion in which the teachers agreed fully on the purposefulness of the choice of the main aim of our project. Having that information in mind and adding the worsened situation after the pandemic isolation and lockdown we modified the aims and objectives so that to ensure as much physical activity as possible.
Our school is very sport-oriented and we provide excellent facilities and opportunities for children to practice sports. The final two years students have a possibility to choose from proposed disciplines to practice for two of the four lessons assigned for P.E. We shared that with our project partners as it was new to them. Also, we spent most of the week to show them around and present all possibilities connected with physical activity, not only with sports played at school. Still, we agreed that accessibility alone is not enough, what is more important is motivation and company. Our conclusion was to enable our students to meet and enjoy their physical activity.
The three (and not four) mobilities were packed with various physical activities. All participants, including accompanying English teachers and less sporty students had a wide choice of sports disciplines and other kinds of movement such as e.g. dancing. It proved to be the best ice breaker and helped everybody to get to know each other in no time. Every mobility we tried to engage different students to make it possible to participate for as many as possible. They were playing team sports like football, volleyball, basketball, they could swim, cycle, play tennis and badminton, participate in orienteering and teach their new friends how to play their local or national sports. Still, dancing was the most popular one and they taught each other their favourite, typical for their countries, dances.
