Public holidays and celebrations are important dates in our national calendar. Some dates unite us with other nations, whilst other dates give us our unique identity. We may be different but we must learn about each other if we want to understand each other, and in understanding different cultures, we learn to appreciate them. School is where we learn about these important dates and the events associated with them. The school ‘avenues’ will be named after the public holidays and celebrations in the countries of the participating schools. The street name plaques will be designed by the students as part of the school’s mission to encourage creativity. In the case of our school (in Malta) the street names will be in Maltese in English, and in the languages of the countries of the other participating schools. The aim of this project is to: - Nurture employability through collaborative and cooperative effort - Attract students to an informal extra-curricular activity and decrease early school leaving - Expose talent and celebrate creativity - Encourage hands-on experiences - Appreciate different identities - Create networks Because of its nature, this project will expose students to the following departments, however, not excluding others: National language, English, art, history, music, religion and ethics, political and social development, social studies Nurturing employability through collaborative and cooperative effort whilst exposing talent and celebrating creativity At the end of the project, each school will have inaugurated 4 school road (paths, lanes) names created by the students participating in the project. The roads will commemorate an important historical/social/festive event in the country’s calendar. The names of the road and a short narrative about the event will be written in the languages of all the participating countries in the project on the plaque. The students together with the respective project manager and other assistants will plan, design, and organise the work thus creating a unique work of art – the fruit of a collaborative effort. Attract students to an informal extra-curricular activity and decrease early school leaving Whilst some academic and formal education oriented students and parents of students may consider participation in extracurricular activities as an alienating factor, other students will see this project as an opportunity to broaden their real-life social networks by collaborating with craftsmen, artists, designers and researchers. To encourage hands-on experiences It is a known fact that students in our schools lack hands-on experiences in creative fields. This project will encourage our students to demonstrate and put their artistic/organisational talents into practice. The students will be exposed to a healthy environment in which teenagers will facilitate the transition from instigation phase to the inception stage and finally to the materialisation stage. To appreciate different identities Culture, history and traditions make us who we are. The way we express ourselves owes itself to the environment around us, and our expressions, affect our environment in turn. This project will encourage understanding of other cultures as opposed to superficial tolerance of a foreign expression. The students will understand the importance of look for whatever can unite and catalyse ideas and expressions. Create networks Today’s social media has helped all of us in some way or another – we have come to know more people who interest us and we can turn on and turn off communication at the tap of a finger. Unfortunately, this false notion of human communication is harming our students’ social growth and development as youths who spend much time communicating easily in a virtual world find it very difficult to keep eye-contact during a real social introduction. In this project, students will be given the opportunity to understand and appreciate the different colours and shades of different cultures, understand and appreciate diverse life styles whilst finding links and creating bridges and networks with other students through communication. Students will work in a team which promotes collaboration and cooperation whilst participating in an extracurricular activity promoting ethical behaviour.