Portugal – Europe Day

Growing up with Values from Storytelling - Europe Day

Original article on Edifacoop’s website: edifacoop.pt/dia-da-europa

Growing up with Values from Storytelling - Europe Day

Every year, on Europe Day, commemorated on 9 May, we celebrate peace and unity on the European continent. This date marks the anniversary of the historic “Schuman Declaration”.

In a speech in Paris in 1950, Robert Schuman, the then French Foreign Minister, set out his vision of a new form of political cooperation in Europe, which would make the outbreak of war between European countries unthinkable.

His vision was to create a European institution to jointly manage coal and steel production. Less than a year later, a treaty was signed creating an entity with these functions. The current European Union is considered to have begun with Schuman’s proposal.

This year Europe Day is celebrated in a different way, through a series of online activities organised by the European institutions, which pay special tribute to citizens helping the European Union overcome the coronavirus crisis. Social distancing strengthens the Union, celebrates cooperation, stirs up creativity and invites us to do more for everyone.

Do you know...

how many people live in Europe?

Europe has over 740 million inhabitants.

how many countries does the European continent have?

There are 50 countries in Europe.

which is the largest European country?

Russia's European side is larger than any country on the continent.

which is the smallest European country?

The Vatican is not only the smallest country in Europe but also in the world.

what the most widely spoken languages in Europe are?

The five most widely spoken native languages in Europe are Russian, German, French, English, Turkish and Italian.

what the Schengen area is?

The Schengen area is one of the EU's greatest achievements. It is an area without internal borders within which European citizens and many non-EU nationals can move freely, for tourism or work, without being subject to border controls. Created in 1985, this area has gradually grown to encompass 26 nations today, including almost all EU countries and some associated countries.

Useful links

Romania – Storytelling activities

Growing up with Values from Storytelling - Romania - May 20 - Month of Labour - Storytelling activities

Third grade students celebrated International Book Day. After reading a book they had to some tasks to complete. First they presented an item of clothing or decoration which appears in the book chosen for the presentation. Then, they drew a place where an event takes place in the book. They read the excerpt chosen with the voice of a character (baby, old man, angry man), using the CHATTERPIX KIDS application. Finally, they made the face of a character in a sock filled with rice and decorated, but also a bookmark with a message / moral of the text.