MADRID WELCOMES YOU!

 

 

 

WHO ARE WE?

We are a group of students and teachers from Colegio Pureza de María Madrid, a catholic school. The school is located near the city centre of Madrid. Pureza de María is a private, but public funded school, owned by the Sisters of the Purity of Mary, who have been trying to put their little grain in improving education for more than fifty years now.

There are over 1300 students at the school, with ages ranging from 3-18 years, and nearly 100 teachers. You can find more information about our school here.

Do you want to know a bit more about Spain? Check out this engaging presentation made by our students:

Test your Spanish smarts with this quiz

THE PROJECT

Europe is changing quickly, with technological advances, increasing globalization, and widespread migration, creating both new opportunities and challenges. School systems play a key role in meeting this challenges by driving education forward and being at the forefront of change and innovation. We hope this Erasmus+ project will help us to advance education and training in Europe.
Our project focused on environmental issues, but the goals went a bit further. We wanted students to gain knowledge about the natural environment and raise their interest in its protection, motivate them to learn foreign languages and improve their language skills,develop multilingual interests and attitudes by learning subject contents such as natural sciences or history through the medium of a foreign language. Also, the project expected students to appreciate the cultural diversity in Europe in order to enhance societal cohesion in future European societies. By using modern technologies throughout the learning process and project communication with partners, we expected to train students to become responsible ‘digital citizens’. International exchanges also aimed at increasing the interpersonal, communication, and leadership skills of the students.

ACTIVITIES

Browsing through this webpage you will find examples of the activities carried out by our students hroughout the 2-year project.
 

Endangered Species

Spain's biodiversity is one of the most fragile in Europe with the greatest number of endangered species. Students prepared a presentation describing the species most at risk and some of the measures needed for their protection.

Flora and fauna - herbaria

Students gathered common plants and created small herbaria. The purpose of this activity was for the students to gain basic knowledge on some of the most common plant species present in our parks. Complementary to this activity, guides at a local park offered a botanical excursion, which provided an enjoyable and valuable learning experience. We believe these activities provide a great opportunity for students of all ages to further their understanding of environmental and related issues in a safe and stimulating outdoor setting.

You bet your garden!

Students planted seeds in pots and recorder the growth of the a seedling into a flowering plant. Click on the following image to download the presentation our students made from their observations.

Mobility to Latvia

A group of four students and four teacher travelled to Ogre, Latvia during the spring of 2016. Here, you can find more information about all activities we took part in.

Introduction to bird watching

Students were taken to a local city park to watch birds. We believe that an important ability in science is being able to carry out and record careful observations of the natural world and phenomena. The goal of this excursion was to help students practice their observation and recording skills by having them take part in an activity that is enjoyed by millions of people all over the world: bird-watching. We think this engaging introduction to bird-watching encouraged kids to get outdoors with a sketchbook to really look around, and hopefully instilled a sense of environmental awareness.

Spring Photography Exhibition

Students, working in teams, engaged in a photography exhibition. The topic was "the spring in your city". This aim of this cooperative activity was for the students to put their creativity to use in a safe and stimulating outdoor setting. We believe these kind of engaging activities encourage kids to get outdoors and inspire a sense of environmental awareness. Here is a sample of some of the best pictures:

Recycling I: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

The goal of this activity was to introduce students to basic concepts about the environment and individual environmental responsibility. Combining reused materials and creativity, they made posters to show how personal behavior can improve the overall environmental well-being of the family, home, and community. We believe this activity can help the students be part of cleaner and healthier communities by understanding and practicing the “3Rs” of solid waste management – reduce, reuse, and recycle.

Recycling II: Paper recycling program

As a follow up of the previous activity, students built waste paper baskets with reused materials. The overall aim of this activity was to implement a paper recycling program, as part of the environmental management plan at the school. A waste paper was built by the students for each of the secondary classrooms. The recycling program has since been ongoing successfully for a few months. We believe that supporting student-led environmental initiatives is a key aspect for them to gain environmental responsibility.

Photography Exhibition: 'Capture the beauty of nature during holidays'

Exhibition of photos taken during holidays by the students. Here is a small sample.

Mobility to Madrid.

 

In September 2016, a group of 32 students and 12 teachers from our partners in the project visited our city and our school. Here, you can find lots of pictures and detailed information about all activities we organized.

Environmental dictionary

Ever wondered how to say pollution in Croatian? Polish? Greek? Spanish? Our students can help you. They made a picture environmental dictionary with lots of useful words in all 6 languages used by the project partners. Do you need a copy? contact us or download the free online version clicking on the picture:

Slow the flow, Save H2O - Water Use and Sustainability

Drought events in the Mediterranean countries such as Spain are predicted to increase due to climate change. The need for improved sustainable water management is warranted. Students from the first year of secondary education designed cards in English and Spanish about the need for a rationale use of water, to be placed in the school restrooms. Here are some samples:

The Do's and Don'ts of Recycling - Recycling made easy!

Properly sorting recycling materials keeps your costs down and our technology running as efficiently as possible. To help you decide which bin to use, our students designed cards to teach elementary pupils at the school the proper way to sort garbage. Here is our list of do’s and don’ts:

Recyclable Paper

Do's	Don'ts
Corrugated Cardboard	Waxed Milk Cartons
Junk Mail	Waxed Paper
Magazines	No combinations of paper and plastic
Phonebooks	Soiled Paper
Chipboard (Cereal/Cracker Boxes)
Newspaper
Computer Paper
Any White Paper
Mixed paper

Recyclable Plastics

Do's	Dont's
PET: soft drink bottles, photo film canisters	Flower/Plant Containers
HDPE: detergent containers, plastic water/milk containers, pails, t-shirt bags	No Mixed Products (i.e. plastic/metal combination
PVC: sprinkler pipe
LDPE: trash can liners, shrink wrap, grocery bags
PP: yogurt containers, luggage, drinking straws
PS: plastic plates, cups egg cartons, food trays
Other: Tupperware and mixed plastic containers
Plastic Toys

Recyclable Metal

Do's	Dont's
Empty Aerosol Cans	Automotive Parts
Metal Coat Hangers	Plumbing Parts
Aluminum Cans	No Mixed Products (metal and paper)
Tin Cans
Food and Juice Jars
Empty Paint Cans (dry paint is OK)
Metal Foil

Recyclable Glass

Do's	Don'ts
Food and Beverage Bottles	Ceramic
Glass Jars and Bottles	Mirrors
House Windows	Fluorescent Tubes
Liquor, Soda and Juice Bottles	Light Bulbs
Tempered Glass	Safety Glass
Pyrex

And here are some of the cards:

 

Christmas cards

With Christmas holidays approaching, we thought it would be nice to send some cards to our partners. Of course, the cards were made out of recycled paper (remember all that 'new' paper we created during the workshops in Spain? we put it to good use!). Here are some samples:

An International Cookbook

Students in English class compiled traditional recipes to share with our partners. The best ones were chosen to be put together into an international cookbook. You can check it online here.

 

Mobility to Croatia.

In May 2017, a group of 5 students and 2 teachers visited our Croatian partners in Rijeka. Here, you can find lots of pictures and detailed information about all activities we took part in. We also would like to share a video with you about our experience there:

Easter traditions in Spain

Students wrote essays about how Easter is celebrated traditionally in Spain. If you want to read the whole article, you can download it here.

Spinning a Tale

Students from wrote together a story, with each country adding its own contribution to the tale. Would you like to read it? You can find it here.

Mobility to the Czech Republic

In September 2017, a group of 5 students and 2 teachers visited the Czech Republic. Here you can find lots of pictures and detailed information about all activities we took part in.