The aim of DAY 1 IN EUROPE is to develop tools enabling those involved in education to use the native languages of migrant children as a resource for all pupils, and not as a marker of difference.
Communication in the native language is one of the European Union’s key competences for lifelong learning. The migration crisis across Europe is bringing new pupils into schools, especially children, who do not speak the language of their teachers, but who will for in the near future become multilingual. These children find themselves at a disadvantage in this situation, due to a lack of training, translation and knowledge of migratory movements.
We know from research on multilingualism the importance of not creating a linguistic break in a migratory journey, in order to facilitate inclusion and successful learning.
There are tools, games, designed to facilitate the arrival of migrant children in their host class and can be used to advocate the promotion of their native language.
The Greek, Belgian, French, Italian, Irish and Maltese partners have all already worked on projects promoting the inclusion of allophone children in their host countries. By pooling the productions of their previous projects, supported by linguists, anthropologists, sociologists, philosophers and writers and backed by national education authorities, we are creating a European training space for teachers working in schools to explore native languages as a fun educational and cultural resource.
We have defined 4 workspaces in which language and culture can be expressed in all these forms: cooking and food, singing, correspondence and play.
Over a period of three years, DAY 1 IN EUROPE allows the creation of 5 intellectual outputs:
LUNCH BOX, MUSIC BOX, MAIL BOX, PLAYING BOX and LANGUAGE BOX based on experimentation, research and exchange of good practices in the sector. The final beneficiaries are children and their families, whether migrants or refugees. The target audiences are teachers working with children aged 6-11.
Website: www.dayoneproject.eu