Poland, 23-29 September 2018

• Luna Nocente, Class 2 A

Dear Erasmus staff,

I’m a girl who likes travelling, discovering, visiting new natural places, going through the world  without fear. I’m a shy girl, that’s why I think that visiting  Poland with students from other countries would be the best way to socialize and overcome my shyness and when I get older, a way to remember how hard I’ve worked to reach this goal. I’m not afraid of meeting people who are different from me, because the difference is subjective and it refers  to a person’s character traits  and not necessarily to those of one or another community. I’m not a racist, I’m always ready to defend all the people because we are all human beings, we all have feelings, emotions and sensitivity; unfortunately, people often don’t realize that their actions can hurt someone; in fact, I’ve always tried to highlight this concept because I want to bring justice to the world. This project offers me the opportunity to learn to be free, to feel like an adult, to grow up together and to discover that the world is bigger than we can imagine. I don’t give up, I’ll overcome obstacles, if I fall down, I’ll rise again after pain. I’ll go on my way;  it isn’t easy, my intelligence will help me. I want to explore Poland so I hope that my letter will be chosen; I’ll be collaborative and willing.

Kind regards,

Luna

• Vito Moschini, Class 2 D

Dear Erasmus staff,

this year our school has offered us the chance to participate in the Erasmus project that will take place in Poland.

I’ve really admired those students who had already been the protagonists of this adventure, sharing new and wonderful experiences with other foreign students.

I would like to tell you the reasons why I would like to live this new adventure abroad. I’ve always been curious about what was happening in the world, far from my country (Italy, the boot shaped country), because I’ve never been to other cities but Italian ones. So, since I was told about the project, I felt motivated and I was on cloud nine. I immediately thought: “I MUST go there!” “I may finally fulfill my dream: going abroad... it would be really fantastic!”.

Furthermore, I would like to participate in this project because I’ve really appreciated the interesting activities made in my classroom. Thanks to the workshop we made, I learnt about Italian and other European social aspects and historic-political problems (for instance legality).

Everyday, I try to put in practice everything my parents have taught me, to be a good boy, to respect others, in order to avoid discriminating people around me. Maybe, thanks to this experience I could share my ideas with other students so that we could enrich our lives. I'm sure that if I go to Poland with you, I will help the Erasmus work team, thanks to my pragmatic skills.

Last but not least, I will speak the language that I've always loved, English, even if, I'm sometimes afraid of not being understood but misunderstood. When I'm alone, in my bedroom, I can speak it fluently, but in the classroom I have some doubts and anxieties that paralyze me. This experience could help me overcome all my fears. So, I hope I will fulfill my wish which is hidden in the corner of my heart.

Kind regards.

• Sara Lorusso, Class 2 A

Dear Erasmus Staff,

I’m writing this letter because I’m eager to participate in this project; this strong motivation encourages me and induces me to describe my passions and my future goals.

I like  playing, joking, reading, listening to music, helping others, creating accessories, drawing clothes, discovering new things every day, travelling and writing. I want to take part in this project because,apart from the fact that I love travelling, I would like to have a chance to meet new people, discover their habits, learn their language and their traditions. But that’s not the only reason, in fact I’m also curious to know if they experience discrimination and how they react if they are confronted with it, so that I could  compare it to our experiences. Moreover, I‘d like to understand if they make choices  on the basis of the skin colour, religions, traditions, their roots, but also considering gender and their way of thinking which is different from others; because in the end, I firmly believe that it's Okay to be different. I try not to be swayed by others and I don’t care much about what people might say about me, because I want to be me.

Hoping that this letter will convince you to choose me to  participate in this project, I wish myself good luck!

Sara

• Angela Di Gioia, Class 2 B

Dear Erasmus Staff,

I am  writing because I would like to become part of your group.

I would like to participate in this work because I want to contribute, in my little way, to achieve something big.

I have always hoped to collaborate with young people from all over the world one day and communicate in English, this will be one way to improve my linguistic knowledge. I would like to do this project to meet boys and girls of my age from different nations, to compare and improve myself because I think that confrontation is a useful way for everyone to know others and yourself.

I am a friendly girl, I do not like being alone but I prefer company: everywhere I go, I try to find new friends.

I am protective of the weak, I cannot stand it when I see someone being made  fun of for their skin colour or social class.

I cannot tolerate that a person is discriminated for being different. There are a lot of types of discrimination: racism, gender, antisemitism and homophobia.

Each of these remember long, terrible stories and a lot of people were killed or reduced to suicide.

It is not easy to show yourself and we wear a mask to hide because we want to protect ourselves but I think that being different is not a problem, everyone is different special, original, it is enough to find the best in everyone.

In class they call me “swot”, but the meaning doesn’t really represent me.

I like going out, amusing myself but in everything  I have curiosity and passion because I believe that everything you must do with heart and not mechanically, so I think that it is the spirit with which everyone of use should try to reach our objectives.

My family always tells me: “ Always be yourself even if you risk  not being liked by others, you will definitely like yourself” but with the marvellous certainty of liking yourself”.

I do not know what I want to be today: a good and responsible student that, one day, will harvest the fruits of my studies. But, above all, I want to feed my soul with strong values that my family and my teachers have taught me: honesty, friendship and sincerity.

• Delia Ressa, Class 2 C

Dear Erasmus staff,

I am writing this letter because I would like to take part in your project. I can almost imagine myself being in Poland with my friends. Travelling and exploring the world have always been my dream but I have never had the opportunity to go outside Italy. This would be the first time for me to travel, meet new people from different countries, learn new things and communicate with others in a language that isn’t my mother tongue but I’m not a stranger to either: English. Saying I have never travelled is actually a lie: I do it all the time from the comfort of my bed whenever I open a book. It’s one thing that is never missing in my suitcases. Reading has taught me many important life lessons, such as the values of love, family and friendship. However, it is vital not to limit ourselves to books only: experiences we make, especially when we are young, are what matters. In our teens we fall in love for the first time, we create strong friendship, but also make mistakes from which we learn and that stays with us for the rest of our life. Poland is a country that has always fascinated me for its history, so different from the usual tourist destination like England, Spain or France. To me, it’s a mysterious land, sacred and war torn in the past. Visiting the historical sites isn’t only important from the cultural point of view, but also the education one: it helps us to understand the history, the mindset of people and the background of the nation. All of this allows us to see and comprehend the discrimination based on race, culture, ethnicity or religion. These are difficult topics for us, young people, to deal with, but with history we can understand it better. This is the main reason why I’d like to visit Auschwitz camp: to be able to become more aware of the pain experienced by all who died there. However, let’s non limit Poland to its historical aspects, as it is also a land of beautiful landscapes, views and culture. I hope I will be able to see it in person.

Kind regards, Delia

• Gabriele Antonacci, Class 2 D

Dear Erasmus staff,

I’ve already worked for the Erasmus project in fact I’ve been one of the students involved in the workshop, but let's find out more.

I'm a twelve-year-old boy who lives in Capurso; I really like reading and travelling.

One day, my teacher entered the classroom and said that that day instead of having a lesson we would  work for the Erasmus project. I felt very excited and suddenly I had a thousand ideas to propose for the project. And I made I wish: to leave for Erasmus' destinations. It was a chance to meet different people, as regards language and culture. I’m not afraid of comparison, actually I look for it every day.I like talking and thinking about problems teens have to face.

I hope that in my life one day I will have the opportunity to tell about my adolescence and how lucky I’ve  been , taking part in an international project where all the students are important for different reasons.

I already had a little experience of a short holiday abroad. I remember that holiday and how despite all the difficulties of the language, in that case  Spanish, I could understand and make myself understood also by communicating through gestures.

I remember joyfully  that  we were so happy to be together. We were just a group, we didn’t discriminate anyone of us; the colour of our skin or our religions weren’t so important, we were just kids who had fun respecting each other.

The most important thing for us was to be together, with no kind of discrimination because we are all equal and free.

Kind regards