1.
Erasmus+ KA3 “Teachers4Europe: Setting an Agora for
Democratic Culture” (2018 - 2022)
National Dissemination Conference 2022
Monday 29 August 2022
Laskaridis Foundation, Piraeus

2.
From Syros to Paris…with
a redballoon.
Sculpting the distances in digital time.
Zoi Apostolou
apostolo@upatras.gr

3.
This presentation concern a "good practice" that
took place “face-to-face", from the beginning of the
school year 2019-2020, at the 5th Kindergarten of
Ermoupolis, Syros-Cyclades.
This “good practice" continued 'remotely’ in the
new educational setting, as shaped by the conditions
prevailing from the pandemic COVID-19.

4.
Preschool teacher, in view of the new conditions, activated
mediating digital tools that encouraged the participation of all
students in remote teaching and learning.
The program of remote teaching took into account:
• The unique needs and capabilities of each age and each
preschooler.
• The digital abilities of each preschooler.
• The peculiarities of distance education.
• Careful planning of the environment and educational
material.
Then after our return to school, in face-to-face teaching, the
program continued with new in-person actions.

5.
The asynchronous remote teaching had the following
objectives:
•Maintaining contact between teachers and students
•Maintaining students' contact with teaching and
learning
•Awareness of the particularities and requirements of
the new learning environment
•The active participation of students and cooperative
learning
•The activation of the student and the safe path to self-
activity, self-learning, maturity and knowledge
•Maintaining the cultivation of the concepts of
democracy, human rights, equality, justice, freedom

6.
With the screening (in face-to-
face teaching) of the French
short film
"The Red Balloon"
(Le balloon rouge, 1956)
preschoolers "became friends"
with the hero of the film,
developing a special
relationship, emerging from
the authentic communication
framework utilized by their
teacher.

7.
During remote teaching the relationship between
the hero of the film and preschoolers was
artificially strengthened from their teacher to
encourage:
- Continuity in the culture
- Traditions and learning experiences at home
and in kindergarten through cultural
exchanges
- Students' emotional and social skills
- Cultivation of human value system

8.
A website created
through which activities (video, images, audio,
interactive content) were promoted with the utilization
of digital tools (internet, e-mail, software, platforms,
google map, google, etc.) to support preschoolers in
their learning process.
The eight (8)participating preschoolers with the support
and guidance of their teacher and their parents
participated actively and with undiminished interest in
all activities.

9.
• Discussion about the film's hero (preschoolers themselves named
"Francois" through a voting process) and his life in Paris.
• Virtual tour of Paris and comparison of the city in its current
appearance with the Paris depicted in the film (google maps, google
earth).
• Comparison of the hero's lifestyle in Paris with the life of the young
students in Syros (quality of life, school time, interpersonal relations,
friendships, family time, etc.).
• References to common cultural elements, human rights and
democracy in these two places.
• Language activities with the initial letter of the hero, Paris, with
French words, writing and exchanging letters, electronic messages
with the little protagonist of the film.
• Numbering, matching, sorting games, etc.

10.
My dear students, Francois, our
friend with the red balloon, has
sent us a letter!
He looked up my address and sent
me a letter at home! I am sending
it to you to read and enjoy as I do!
He tells us about Paris and the red
balloon and awaits our news!
So let's send him a drawing, a
letter, a photo, a message in any
way you want.
To see Francois and his red balloon
with your loved ones, click here:
https://youtu.be/V12H2mteniE
Also listen to our favorite song
here:
https://youtu.be/ku-_rKLKyI8

11.
Preschoolers with the help of their parents answered to
the letter-call of their little friend from Paris

12.
My students!
I have news!
A letter has
arrived from
Francois…
He took your
own letters and
sent us a card,
lots of pictures
from Paris, and
he's asking for
something from
you!
Let's see...

13.
The students sent to their friend pictures of their island

14.
My dear friends, I have some
bad news to tell you. Some
kids who wanted my red
balloon stole it from me...I'm
really upset. No one has the
right to take their favorite
things from another. If they
had asked me, I would have
let them play with him for a
while. What would you do in
my position?
Bisous, François
Hello my friend Francois, I am very
happy because on Monday my school
will open and I will see my friends!
But I am very upset about what
happened to you. I'm mad with the
kids who stole your balloon. No one
has that right. As much as I want
something, I am patient and ask for
it politely. On Monday when we go
back to school we will consider about
with all my friends and we will all
write you a letter together. on our
island, however, people respect and
protect other people's things.
Your friend from Syros,
Konstantinos
My dear student’s this time Francois sent me an email.
I think someone helped him, but as you can see our dear friend
has found a way to contact us again!

15.
Then, by the opening of schools on 1st of June 2020, the actions
continued face-to-face. Preschoolers, initially upon their return to
school, showed interest to:
- Watch the film again, in a reflective mood and with the aim of
introducing their little friend to their classmates.
- Discuss and reflect on Francois' life in Paris, on the conditions
that prevailed there during the Covid19 period and comparison with
the conditions on our island.
- Reflect about what happens to their friend, the theft of the
balloon.
- Reflect about human rights and democracy in Syros and in Paris.
- Suggest and send messages to help their friend.

16.
Questions emergent:
• What is a right (good) action and what is a wrong (bad)
action?
• The theft of Francois’ balloon was a right or wrong action?
• What is human right?
• Is there democracy in Syros and Paris?
• Are people respecting the human rights in Syros and Paris?
• Do we have the right to take whatever we like/want
without permission?

17.
Messages to François
No one has
the right to
take Francois'
balloon, it is
only his
We are all
friends but
the balloon
belongs to
François
We must all
strive for
freedom
and
democracy
No one has
the right to
take from
someone
what belongs
to him
Friendship
and love
between
Paris and
Syros
In Greece
we respect
and protect
freedom
and rights of
others

18.
We are all friends
but the balloon
belongs to
François

19.
We must all strive for
freedom and democracy

20.
We are all friends!

21.
No one has the right to
take from someone what
belongs to him

22.
Love
Friendship
Game
School
Teacher
Red
balloon
They send their love,
thought and friendship to
their friend through their
drawings but also through
their try to write messages
in French.

23.
They watched the end of the movie
again and were happy that their
little friend found many friends,
many balloons and flew high

24.
Syros
Paris
Participated preschoolers :
Nefeli, Spyros,
Constantinos,
Nikos M., Nikos V.,
Marios, Katerina,
George
Friendship and love
between Paris and Syros

25.
The program entitled
"From Syros to Paris...
with a red balloon: Sculpting
distances in digital time"
was an unprecedented
experience for teachers and
mainly for preschoolers.
• Teachers and students maintained contact with each other, the
students kept in touch with teaching and learning,
• Teachers and students realized the particularities and requirements
of the new learning environment,

26.
• Preschoolers actively participated and collaborated in the context
of a new learning experience (self-activity, self-learning, maturity,
knowledge),
• There was a cultural exchange and acquaintance with another
place,
• They were bridged distances and connected cultural cultures
through intercultural exchanges, the interest in getting to know
other places, languages, attitudes, cultural elements
• Empathy, love for other people, different cultures and traditions,
friendship
• Equity, equality, respect for rights of others in the context of a
differentiated teaching and integration were cultivated
• Parents actively participated in the remote actions for its
activation interest of their children and their active participation.

27.
Preschoolers, teachers and
parents formed a community of
collaborative learning through
which diffusion of cultural
elements took place. Also, there
was activation of empathy and
interest of preschoolers for
values as
democracy, human rights,
freedom, friendship, integration,
differentiation, justice!

28.
Graphics belong to Kyriakos Mavridis