Joint curriculum projects enable schools to work collaboratively on a project of common interest. Your project must support and be integrated into the curriculum of all partner schools. The general aim of your project should be to increase understanding and an awareness of each other's countries and the wider world between young people, and this can be achieved by identifying key themes that feed into your school curriculum.

Possible themes for projects might include;-

• Literacy / language learning This could include;- story-telling, cultural heritage; development of literary traditions; creation of a story / publication;creative writing or poetry around a theme.
• Drama This might involve a joint creation of a play or dramatic event - each cluster could contribute to a partnership production.
• Art Pupils could produce artwork around a common theme, leading to a joint exhibition.
• History and Geography Partnerships could look at and compare local and regional identities; or focus on cultural heritage or local history.
• Sport This might include raising awareness of sporting culture; learning about new sports and games, or possibly running joint tournaments.
• Science One of the key issues here is the environment. This could include comparing weather in different countries, looking at ways of tackling climate change, making better use of resources
• Citizenship Here there are opportunities to focus on global citizenship; looking at themes like intercultural understanding; health, sustainability etc.

Remember a lot of the themes identified here can be cross-curricular, which is a great way of making your project work for more people across your school community.

COMPETITIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES

Connecting Classrooms is now a member of UNEP’s ‘Plant for the Planet: Billion Tree Campaign’ due to the schools’ commitment to plant trees to offset the carbon footprint created by international flights taken by members of the project, and the valiant efforts of some of our colleagues in helping to mobilise schools to do that and to send us in reports of it, which are now on the UNEP website, for more information Click Here

Connecting Classrooms and UNEP press release Click Here

• Goi Peace Foundation Essay Competition

            Please find details of the competition here-

• UNESCO YEAR OF THE PLANET EARTH - Photo Competition

This year has been declared by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as the International Year of Planet Earth. The goal for this program is to “Build safer, healthier and wealthier societies around the globe by using the knowledge of the world’s 400,000 earth scientists more effectively”. The scientists will be joined by students from around the world, selected for their creativity on the basis of geosciences contest organized in 2007. Debates will focus on three themes: Population growth and climate change: challenges for Planet Earth; Earth resources: threat or treat? Geo hazards: minimizing risk, maximizing awareness. The project strives to attract more young people to geosciences and to reach out to the general public by highlighting the central importance of Earth sciences for our future.

The first activity for the year is the photo contect on the planet earth. The contest aims to raise awareness among youth of the state of the planet. There are various categories for entries. There are several cameras and 40 book prizes to be won.

Entries close on 30 June 2008.

Download entry information  here .

Please encourage your young people to participate and lets aim for 5 entries per school.

Please note that these competitions are open internationally and therefore

quite competitive.

Good Luck

Other useful Websites recommeded by other teachers

http://www.primaryresources.co.uk

http://www.teachingideas.co.uk/maths/mathsws.htm

http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/interactive/

http://www.interactive-resources.co.uk/

http://www.mathsphere.co.uk/

http://teacher.scholastic.com/index.asp

http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/teachingandlearning/primary/primaryteachingresources/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/teachers/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2children/teachers_and_parents/worksheet.shtml    

http://www.bteducation.org/resources/?PHPSESSID=b1430306989b74f0e00ec41bbe85ac6e

http://www.10ticks.co.uk/

http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Games/