You are about to read the sixth newsletter of the Good Start to School (GSS) project, which is coordinated by the Nakladatelství Dr. Josef Raabe s.r.o. publishing house. It is an international European Erasmus+ project within the Key Action 2 (KA2) with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary as participating countries. Our partners are the branches of the Raabe publishing house in Hungary and Slovakia, Masaryk University in Brno, Kindergarten Maršovice, Kindergarten Čtyřlístek in Prague, Kindergarten and Elementary School Plzeň Božkov, and Kindergarten and Elementary School Jan Amos Comenius in Bratislava, and Kindergarten Fasori Kicsinyek in Budapest.

WHAT IS NEW?

The project is nearing its final stage. The outputs are almost finished, and we are planning international dissemination conferences. We are also focusing on presenting the project on the level of the participating countries, and we would like to introduce the results of the Good Start to School project also to education institutions in those European countries that are not taking part in the project.

LAST INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MEETING

It is not so long ago when the project partners got together for the first time. Time has passed quickly, and before the end of year 2017, all GSS project participants got together for the last time – this time, they met in Prague. The international project meeting passed in a friendly atmosphere, and we managed to go through all the items on the packed agenda. What did we accomplish?

• We discussed and approved the final version of the project outputs.
• We planned three international dissemination conferences, both as regards their program, and their organization.
• We drew up a dissemination and sustainability plan for the upcoming years.

GOOD START TO SCHOOL PROJECT OUTPUTS

After intense testing of the third version of the GSS project outputs, the PREDICT tool (evaluation and diagnostic tool), the Methodology for Teachers, as well as the Handbook for Parents got their final versions. The final versions of the project outputs, whose aim it is to facilitate the social-emotional development of the child in kindergarten for the entire duration of the child’s attendance of kindergarten, and to allow for improved communication between the kindergarten and the parents, will be translated into all project languages soon. Before the end of March, the project outputs will be available in Czech, Slovak, Hungarian and English.

The PREDICT tool, the Methodology for Teachers, and the Handbook for Parents will be distributed in more than 4,500 copies to all project countries into kindergartens, and to other interested parties.

WHO HAS BEEN INFORMED OF THE GSS PROJECT?

The GSS project outputs are being introduced not only to kindergartens, but also to experts on education in all project countries. Those interested in printed versions of the project outputs will be included among the addressees of the freely disseminated outputs, so that everybody would get a chance to work with the PREDICT tool, and the other project outputs.

Who has been informed about the GSS project in the past four months?

• More than 100 teachers who participate in the OP Research, Development and Education “Supporting Pre-literacies in Pre-school Education”. 5 faculties of education from all over the Czech Republic participate in this project.
• 100 teachers who are involved in the program Further Education of Pedagogical Professionals in Brno, Liberec and Nový Jičín (CZ).
• 120 elementary school headmasters and headmistresses at the meeting held by the Association of Elementary School Headmasters in November 2017 (CZ).
• Teachers and headmasters of kindergartens participating in specialized seminars in the Central Bohemian Region.
• Headmasters of kindergartens and elementary schools of the Plzeň Region (CZ) at their meetings with their superior organizations.
• Conference participants in Slovakia: “Kindergarten Is For All Children” organized by OMEP in Košice in November 2017; “School 2017/2018” organized in November 2017 by the Raabe SK publishing house in Bratislava; “Expressive Therapies in Human-Centered Sciences” organized by the Catholic University in Rožumberok in January 2018.
• Those who attended the following conferences and fairs in the Czech Republic: “Dyskorunka” November 2017); “Approaching Inclusive Education” in Ústí nad Labem (November 2017); “Festival of Pedagogical Inspiration” in Prague (November 2017).

WHAT LIES AHEAD?

We are entering the last four project months. During this time, we will finalize all project outputs, and we will be distributing them to interested parties, and we will continue to present to the broad pedagogical public and experts on education the results of the GSS project. You can meet all project partners, including the authors of the outputs, in person at one of the international dissemination conferences to be held in Prague (17.4.2018), Budapest (17.5.2018), or in Senca (7.-8.6.2018). We look forward to meeting you.

CONTACTING US

The Good Start to School project is presented through the following channels:

• Web: http://www.goodstarttoschool.eu/cs
• Facebook – page: https://www.facebook.com/goodstarttoschool/

Follow our outputs, support our authors and give us feedback, so that we can better meet our goals!

We wish you the best for the rest of winter!