World Dance Day in the school

"The urge to dance is a natural impulse, dancers worship nature in their way, they connect with the universe and feel its juices trickle into them." 

Prof. Raftis

April 29 is the World Dance Day. World Dance Day was established in 1982 by the International Dance Council - CID of UNESCO to bring attention to the art of dance every year on April 29 birthday of Jean-Georges Noverre (1727),  a French dancer and balletmaster, generally considered the creator of ballet d'action, a precursor of the narrative ballets of the 19th century.

Education:

Wim Wenders dedicated a extraordinary documentary to Pina Bausch. I think the most beautiful tribute to the art of dance.

Dance is also a good therapy for young people in the school. Dance movement therapy and the power of dance is used to inspire, uplift and heal.

Dance is a fun and fresh integrative part in the curricula. Sir Ken Robinson's TED lectures on education and creativity are very inspiring about free expression of the kids.

There will be many performances in colleges and out of doors today. So, don't miss the opportunity to let your students express themselves by dancing in the school gardens.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com

 

"All through the year we teach dance, we rehearse, we perform within four walls. On this special day dedicated to dance, let us mark the difference by practising, teaching or performing for everyone to see. It might be cold and rainy, the floor is certainly not good enough, the wind takes the music away, but the beauty in those movements and the joy on those faces will brighten the hearts of the spontaneous audience of passers-by."

Prof. Alkis Raftis

President of the International Dance Council CID UNESCO, Paris 

G-Souto 

29.04.2011    

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

World Book and Copyright Day

http://portal.unesco.org

"Books are both object and idea. Tangible in form, intangible in content, they 

express the mind of an author and find meaning in the imagination of readers. 

Reading is this private conversation, but books are all about sharing –- sharing 

experience, knowledge and understanding." 


Irina Bokova, Director-General of  UNESCO

23 April is a symbolic date for world literature for on this date and in the same year of 1616, Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died.


It is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and Manuel Mejía Vallejo. 


It is a natural choice for UNESCO's General Conference to pay a world-wide tribute to books and authors on this date, encouraging everyone, and in particular young people, to discover the pleasure of reading and gain a renewed respect for the irreplaceable contributions of those who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity.

A Menina que Roubava Livros/ Markus Zusak 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com

The idea for this celebration originated in Catalonia where on 23 April, Saint George's Day, a rose is traditionally given as a gift for each book sold. 

The success of the World Book and Copyright Day will depend primarily on the support received from all parties concerned (authors, publishers, teachers, librarians, public and private institutions, humanitarian NGOs and the mass media), who have been mobilized in each country by UNESCO National Commissions, UNESCO Clubs, Centres and Associations, Associated Schools and Libraries, and by all those who feel motivated to work together in this world celebration of books and authors.

http://www.bprmadeira.org

Buenos Aires (Argentina) fue elegida por la UNESCO como la capital del libro 2011. Pueden acceder al sitio web para leer todas as actualidades aqui

"Books embody the human capacity to conjure up worlds of reality and imagination and to express them. They are the best voices of tolerance. They provide the strongest signs of hope. Books are pillars for free and open societies. "

Irina Bokova, Director-General of  UNESCO


G-Souto
23.04.2011
Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®


References:


UNESCO - World Book and Copyright
http://portal.unesco.org


Irina Bokova, Director- General of UNESCO (Message)
http://www.unesco.org

Google Doodle celebrates Robert Bunsen

200th Anniversary Robert Bunsen

Google Doodle

Today, Google celebrates the 200th birthday of one of the most important  chemister, Robert Wilhelm E. Bunsen. He investigated emission spectra of heated elements and discovered caesium (1860) and rubidium (1861) with Gustav Kirchhoff. Bunsen was a pioneer in photochemistry. He developed the laboratory gas burner, now popular as the "Bunsen burner" and still in use today.

Once again, Google reminds the world of the occasion, this time with an interactive chemical laboratory doodle. Do recognize the flaming Bunsen burner? Take a look on this video

Bunsen–Kirchhoff Award, named after Bunsen and his colleague Gustav Kirchhoff, is a prize awarded in recognition for "outstanding achievements" in analytical spectroscopy.

Robert Wilhelm E. Bunsen was born on March 31, 1811 in Göttingen, Germany.

Robert Bunsen statue 

Hauptstrasse, Heidelberg 

http://webpub.allegheny.edu

"Bunsen was one of the most universally admired scientists of his generation. He was a master teacher, devoted to his students, and they were equally devoted to him. 

At a time of vigorous and often caustic scientific debates, Bunsen always conducted himself as a perfect gentleman, maintaining his distance from theoretical disputes. 

He much preferred to work quietly in his laboratory, regularly enriching his science with useful discoveries. 

On a point of principle, he never took out a patent, despite the fact that his new battery and new laboratory burner would surely have brought him great wealth." Read more here

Education:

In the International Year of Chemistry what a wonderful motivation to educators and students to join the celebrations of IYC in Chemistry curriculum.

"The IYC 2011 will be a year-long celebration in which anyone can participate. You can coordinate an activity, engage in a project, or simply share an idea. Join in now and become part of something special." 

Educators can share, discuss and plan ideas for IYC 2011 here. 

Students can plan activities with their educators in the classroom and then share for IYC 2011, by country,  here

And to add an event or events to the list, go to the Activities section and submit a description of the activity. 

Don't miss the video message by Irina Bokova's, Director General of UNESCO, for the Opening of the International Year of Chemistry (IYC) 2011.

http://reich-chemistry.wikispaces.com

"Marie Curie was honoured with a Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1911). Since then, only  3 women having been honoured on this way. It's important to encourage young women to contribute their talent to this exciting field."

Irina Bokova 

 "Chemistry - our life, our future."

(The official slogan of the IYC 2011) 

G-Souto

31.03.2011

Copyright © 2010G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

References:

Robert Bunsen

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Bunsen

International Year of Chemistry 2011 

http://www.chemistry2011.org/

International Year of Chemistry 2011/UNESCO

http://www.unesco.org

International Women's Day Centenary

Photo: Viktoria Prada Moldova

Black Festimage 2009

http://www.festimage.org

8 March 2011 is being celebrated in many parts of the world as the '100th Anniversary of International Women's Day'.

It is also the first International Women’s Day for UN Women, created by the UN General Assembly on 2 July 2010.

The official theme of International Women’s Day 2011 is "Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women".

Irina Bokova/ Unesco Director-General

© UNESCO/Andrew Wheeler

http://www.unesco.org

"International Women’s Day was first honoured one hundred years ago in a handful of European countries. Since then, the celebration has become global, and much has been achieved. The 2011 International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate achievements and mobilize against the challenges that remain.

(...)

This year’s International Women’s Day is inspired by the theme of ‘Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women.’ This goes to the heart of UNESCO’s mission. We work to strengthen the bridges between education, training, science and technology and the labour market in order to promote equal opportunity to decent employment. 

This starts early, with quality education for all girls and young women from the primary to the tertiary level. It continues with vocational training and education for women who have not acquired basic skills. It proceeds with creating positive role models and career tracks – especially in such areas as science and technology."


Message from the Director-General

The Mirror/ Roby Sofer 

http://www.festimage.org

Teachers play a critical role towards the achievement of the Education for All (EFA) goal on gender equity.

In many developing countries there is a shortage of female teachers, particularly at secondary and tertiary levels and in the subjects of science and maths. Capacity development and awareness-raising are essential to empower women teachers to be both effective practitioners and gender advocates.

UNESCO also works to support gender equity in education, in terms of access and achievement through partnership with key organizations, research and production of guidelines and policy briefs. 

Minerva - Department of women's gender and sexuality studies

 at the  Ohio State University

Flickr

http://www.guardian.co.uk

G-Souto

8.03.2011

 Copyright © 2010G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Languages matter!

http://www.un.org

The International Mother Language Day was celebrated on February, 21, 2011.  Languages are the most powerful instruments of preserving and developing our tangible and intangible heritage. So, I think it always important to spread this message.

"The theme of the 2011 International Mother Language Day concerned the use of information and communication technologies for safeguarding and promoting languages and linguistic diversity.

Languages provide the software for information and communication technologies. These technologies are also a new frontier for promoting linguistic diversity. UNESCO is committed to promoting multilingualism on the Internet. These goals guide UNESCO in its work with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers."(...)

Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO

If languages do not exist, the culture will disappear. 

If we look at the statical curve measuring amounst of diverse languages on one side and the number of internet users on the other, in see that in Europe for example we have low diversity but a hifg number of Internet users.

Daniel Prado, Unión Latina

Watch the video below

"Information and communication technologies cabn be especially useful in promoting mother languages. We must harness the power of progress to protect diverse visions of the world and to promote all sources of hnowledge and forms of expression. These are the threads that weave the tapestry of humanity's story."

Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO

Message for International Mother Day 2011

"Less than a quart of all languages in the world are used in education and in cyber space."

"With today's technology every corner of the world is linked together. The  new generations are globalized."

Casa Fernando Pessoa, Lisboa, Portugal

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

If you want to know more about Portuguese Language and Literature visit the website Casa Fernando Pessoa, one of the world's best writers. Pessoa was a great defensor of the Portuguese language and culture.

Fernando Pessoa Portrait (1954)

José de Almada Negreiros

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

You can access "Fernando Pessoa digital library" here. It is online since Ocober 2011. You can access too "Poetry database" here and Fernando Pessoa Library here

"Sê plural como o universo"

Fernando Pessoa, Portuguese writer (1988-1935)

Education:

• Portuguese as second language in primary and elementary schools;
• Portuguese as foreign language in secondary school;
• Portuguese Literature studies in foreign Universities

G-Souto

24.02.2011

Copyright © 2010G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Information about the video:

The video was produced by the UNESCO Liaison Office in New York in 2010, on the occasion of the 'International Mother Language Day', to raise awareness on the importance on languages today.

References:

International Mother Language Day 2011

http://www.un.org/en/events/motherlanguageday/

UNESCO Director-General's message

http://www.un.org

Casa Fernando Pessoa

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

Biblioteca Digital de Fernando Pessoa

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

Le droit à l´éducation

Le droit à l'éducation

http://www.citrusheights.net

"En 2010, 72 millions d’enfants n’ont toujours pas accès à l’éducation. Les filles, les enfants vulnérables, en situation de handicap, issus des minorités ou des milieux les plus pauvres en sont les principaux exclus."

Aide et Action

Aide et Action est une association internationale créée en 1981 ayant un objectif majeur : donner à tous un accès à une éducation de qualité. Lisez la Charte Aide et Action ici

http://www.aide-et-action.org/

L'organisation Aide et Action favorise la scolarisation des filles pour leur permettre d'avoir une chance de s'en sortir. Elles aident les villages à créer des structures communautaires pour le soutien de l'école afin que les jeunes filles puissent apprendre à lire, écrire et compter.

http://www.aide-et-action.org/

On peut parrainer l'éducation d'un enfant.  Pour en savoir plus...

Éducation:

Le parrainage est donc un geste de solidarité et d'ouverture culturelle permettant de soutenir un projet éducatif. Il constitue également un outil pédagogique pour travailler avec les jeunes !

A. Parrainage d'école, de classe(s) 
B. Classes Solidaires

1. Correspondance scolaire (lettres) - cours de Langues;

2. Découverte et étude culturelle d'un pays - cours d'Histoire et Géographie

3. Création d'un journal au sein de classe ou de l'école (transversale)

4. Club Parrainage - permet de faire travailler les jeunes écoliers sur des compétences comme le travail en groupe, le respect, la citoyenneté, la solidarité.

http://www.unesco.org

Tous les enfants du monde doivent fréquenter l'école ou au moins avoir la possibilité d'apprendre à lire et à écrire, que ce soit garçon ou fille.

Un avenir sans livres est un avenir sombre, triste et sans poésie. L'alchimie de l'être humain passe par sa culture émotionnelle faite des mémoires de ses lectures.

Les couloirs labyrinthiques de la vie seront pénibles, épuisants, maladroits sans savoir lire et écrire.

Que l'immense horizon, éblouissant, s'ouvre devant les yeux de toutes les personnes, indépendamment d'âge, sexe ou nationalité!

(essai de GSouto)

Voilà le message de Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General, pour le 2011 World Economic Forum qui a eu lieu à Davos, Janvier dernier.

G-Souto

07.02.2011

Copyright © 2010G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com® 

Reférénces:

Aide et Éducation

http://www.aide-et-action.org/

Unesco/ Education (Unesco TV)

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/