Di seguito la lettera scritta dalla nostra Dirigente Caterina Azzini, pubblicata oggi martedì 9 Febbraio 2021 sul quotidiano La Nuova Ferrara.
Questa lettera risponde all’articolo qui sotto riportato, pubblicato da La Nuova Ferrara il 4 febbraio 2021
Our budding Secondary School writers are receiving a prestigious award for ranking in the national competition, ‘Che Storia!’
The ceremony will take place on Monday 12th October at the Auditorium of the Central National Library in Rome. The event will honour the best features written by High School students and edited by teachers.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and a recent resurgence in cases, our school will not be there to receive our awards. It was a hard decision to make, but a necessary one to ensure the safety of our staff and students.
We deliberated this decision until the last minute, so that we may make a timely judgement. Although we regret not being there in person, we believe this is the best course of action. This choice in no way diminishes the pride we feel for our talented students.
We would like to congratulate our star student authors, once again: Matilde Baldassari, Andrea Ottone Berselli, Giulia Cavicchi and Fiorile Giacomoni.
Click on the link below to read their award-winning story, ‘Voci da Palazzo Gulinelli’:
Now that we are emerging, blinking in the sunlight, we look back on what we have experienced these past few months.
It’s been a school year like no other. Far apart, but learning together. Doing all we can to feel close and connected.
In 2nd Grade, the children wrote down their thoughts and drew pictures to reflect how they got through this trying time.
This project was dreamed up by their teacher, Giulia Bottura, who is so proud of how much they’ve grown. Despite the challenges they’ve faced, they show maturity and wisdom far beyond their years.
Read the inspiring and humbling examples below.
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Smiling’s 8th Grade students have graced the pages of Ferrara newspaper, Il Resto del Carlino, once more.
Budding writers from class 8A took part in the journalism project that saw their peers achieve editorial recognition.
They chose Ferrara’s unique features as the hook of their piece. As a group, they claimed this historic city should be chosen as the Italian capital of culture of 2021.
The article is written in both Italian and English, reflecting the bilingual status of Smiling International School. It also honed their writing skills in the two languages. Our promising journalists highlighted the impressive architecture, the distinctive castle and the well-preserved ancient walls.
Like class 8B, they learned how to structure an article and how to write succinctly. In groups they created the final editorial piece.
Their Italian and English teachers are immensely proud of their achievement.
Smiling English teacher, Lexi Pardee, said: “Students worked hard to keep their ideas brief and interesting. 8A is extremely proud to see themselves published in the paper and feel that their hard work has paid off.”
This project gave them a practical use for what they learned in class. Eleonora Morelli, also an English teacher at Smiling, said: “Often, students fail to see connections between their school syllabus and what is awaiting them in their future life. This project shows them how tangible and relevant their studies are.”
Italian teacher, Giada Zerbini, said the students learned teamworking skills throughout. “They have been autonomous, have worked in groups and each of them has made their own contribution,” she said.
Cecilia Vicentini, also an Italian teacher at Smiling, reinforced the importance of learning as preparation for the future. She said, “It was a useful initiative to look at writing and culture with a professional approach rather than to just get a grade in class.”
We learn for the world we live in and the international stage our students face. Thanks to the motivation of our teachers and students, their prospects for a successful future are strong.
To read their full article on Il Resto del Carlino’s site, click here.
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Smiling high school students have placed second in a national writing competition.
The third edition of, CHE STORIA!, a school writing contest aimed at secondary school students and teachers, kicked off on 30th October last year.
Its aim is challenging: combine historical research and literary fiction. Entrants had to bring events from the past to life, using stories or testimonies from sources and then transform them into a narrative.
Classes across the linguistic high school joined forces to participate in this project. From November to May, the team has been meeting every week for a couple of hours to craft their literary piece. Even the limitations posed by COVID-19 didn’t stop their enthusiasm and in fact, they made the most of distance learning.
The judging panel consisted of Accademia All’Arcadia, the Italian Historical Institute for the Modern and Contemporary Age and the Institute of Mediterranean Europe History. They received a hundred entries from all over Italy.
Our Smiling writing team included Matilde Baldassari, Andrea Ottone berselli, Giulia Cavicchi and Fiorile Giacomoni. Through words and photographs, they told the story of Palazzo Gulinelli. This special building is the home of our school and the family of the same name.
In their piece, “Of rooms – the voices of Palazzo Gulinelli”, they looked at the building’s history through the latter decades of the nineteenth century. The school is incredibly proud of the second place achieved. Equally, it marks a special moment for the teachers, who guided them along this journey.
The students took an active role in all stages of the process. They selected material, created the structure and produced the final look. Only the editing was exclusively done by the teachers.
“This was an extraordinary journey. We moved forward, step by step, students and teachers together. We had a common goal of content and style. This developed gradually, responding to the questions and interests that emerged along the way. Curiosity motivated those taking part.
“It was a collaborative project on many levels. It involved students from classes across three grades and combined research and creative writing. This gave them the creative space to embellish history with fiction. It has intertwined different languages, disciplines and methodologies from history, visual art and literature. They have developed high-level skills in specialised areas.
“The role of us teachers has been to offer the children an opportunity and to encourage them to ask questions. From there, they can consider possible answers, sometimes playing and creating.
“The students were absolutely in charge and responsible for every stage of the process. They cast light on the shadows that are hidden with the walls of Palazzo Gulinelli, our very special home. This is how these children have become authors. Between words and photography, they distilled a complex idea into an enjoyable read.
“It was remarkable for me to be at their side and support them in this exciting journey of discovery, expression and growth.”
Barbara Pizzo, teacher at Smiling International School.
“The initial choice we made as teachers in proposing this project was not to involve an entire class, but to give the students choice. They had the opportunity to decide if they wanted to take part.
“We did not want to dictate from high. Instead, we wanted to give them the chance to be free and have autonomy. The result was a small and cohesive group of very motivated students. They were not defeated by the difficulties of quarantine and continued to give their all, sharing ideas and creativity at every stage of the project.
“Today, they can be proud of the result they achieved. They truly deserve it. For them it was an opportunity to have a go at historical research, consulting archives and sources. They also had to deal with the challenge of finding and reconstructing the past when some sources were destroyed or no longer accessible.”
Cecilia Bucci, teacher at Smiling International School.
“Passion, a will to succeed, personal contributions and also a beautiful final piece have allowed students of different ages to give shape to their ideas. They also got creative with the past, narrating as “inhabitants” of the story’s building.
“Despite the tough restrictions we’ve faced the past few months, the students have worked with motivation and consistency through every stage. In their interviews and search for sources, they created an original piece of work.
“I can only say that this experience has been formative from a professional and personal point of view. I feel really proud of the work and success of our students.”
Giada Zerbini, teacher at Smiling International School
Click on this link for a downloadable version of their story:
For the full contest ranking, go here:
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ll 30 ottobre 2019 dà il via alla terza edizione del concorso di scrittura a squadre Che Storia!, rivolto agli studenti e agli insegnanti degli istituti di istruzione secondaria di secondo grado.
Il concorso sfida i ragazzi a nell’impresa ambiziosa di integrare la ricerca storica e la finzione letteraria. L’obiettivo ultimo è riuscire nella rivitalizzazione del compromesso antico da cui nasce il racconto storico, il quale si nutre di testimonianze – grandi o piccole che siano – tratte dalla storia e le trasforma in narrazione.
Smiling ha partecipato al concorso sviluppando un progetto interclasse, rivolto al liceo linguistico, a carattere seminariale, con incontri settimanali di due ore da Novembre a Maggio, nonostante i limiti posti dall’emergenza Covid-19 e quindi riuscendo a sfruttare al massimo le potenzialità della didattica a distanza.
I racconti ricevuti e valutati dall’ Accademia dell’Arcadia, dall’Istituto storico italiano per l’età moderna e contemporanea e dall’Istituto di Storia dell’Europa mediterranea del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche per il concorso sono stati un centinaio, provenienti da tutta Italia.
I liceali Smiling coinvolti – Matilde Baldassari (IVA), Andrea Ottone Berselli (VA), Giulia Cavicchi (VA), Fiorile Giacomoni (IIIA), hanno realizzato un racconto tra parola e fotografia, a partire dalla storia di Palazzo Gulinelli, che ospita la scuola, e della famiglia omonima, in particolare concentrando la propria attenzione sugli ultimi decenni dell’Ottocento. “di Stanze. Voci da Palazzo Gulinelli” ha conquistato il secondo posto nella classifica nazionale. Un grande orgoglio per la nostra Scuola e soprattutto per le Professoresse che li hanno accompagnati in questo percorso.
I ragazzi hanno partecipato attivamente a tutte le fasi, incluse quelle di selezione dei materiali tra i tanti prodotti, definizione della struttura, realizzazione dell’impaginato e revisione. Il solo editing è stato curato in esclusiva dalla docente di Letteratura Italiana.
Hanno conquistato così il secondo posto nella Classifica nazionale. A loro il plauso della Scuola e delle docenti che hanno seguito il progetto, rispetto al quale si sono cosi espresse:
<< Un viaggio straordinario: questo è stato. Condotto passo dopo passo, studenti e docenti insieme, in un percorso di co-costruzione di una meta comune, di definizione di contenuti e forma. Un viaggio che si è sviluppato man mano, in relazione alle domande e agli interessi via via emersi, concedendo ai partecipanti sempre nuovo nutrimento.
È stato un progetto trasversale, e a molti livelli. Ha coinvolto studenti afferenti alle classi di tutto il triennio e unito la dimensione della ricerca a quella della scrittura creativa, espandendo i vincoli della Storia con la possibilità della finzione narrativa. Ha intrecciato diversi linguaggi, discipline, e metodologie, dalla storia, alle arti visive, alla letteratura, consentendo ai partecipanti di sviluppare nei vari ambiti competenze alte e specifiche, attraverso la piacevolezza del fare, scoprendo e sperimentando.
Il ruolo di noi insegnanti è stato offrire ai ragazzi un’occasione e stimolarli a porsi domande e a inseguire le possibili risposte, talvolta, giocando, a crearle. Gli assoluti protagonisti sono stati gli studenti, corresponsabili di ogni fase del processo che li ha portati a reinventare le ombre che si celano tra le mura di Palazzo Gulinelli, la nostra specialissima casa. È così che i nostri ragazzi sono diventati Autori: di un racconto a otto mani tra parola e fotografia, sintesi e distillato di tutto questo.
Straordinario, per me, è stato essere al loro fianco e poterli sostenere in questo entusiasmante percorso di scoperta, di espressione e di crescita.
La scelta iniziale di noi insegnati nel proporre il progetto agli studenti è stata quella di non coinvolgere un’intera classe, ma di dare agli studenti la possibilità di decidere in totale autonomia se prendervi parte. Non volevamo che fosse un’attività imposta dall’alto, ma un’occasione per mettersi in gioco da cogliere liberamente. Il risultato è stato un gruppo ristretto e coeso di studenti motivatissimi, che non si sono lasciati abbattere nemmeno dalle difficoltà imposte dalla quarantena e che hanno continuato a partecipare con le loro idee e la loro creatività ad ogni fase del progetto. Oggi possono essere orgogliosi del risultato raggiunto, che è davvero merito loro. Per loro è stata un’occasione [..] per mettersi alla prova nell’attività di ricerca storica consultando archivi e fonti di vario tipo, confrontandosi direttamente con la difficoltà di reperirle e di ricostruire il passato qualora parte delle fonti sia stata distrutta o non sia più accessibile>>
<< Passioni, voglia di confrontarsi, contributi personali, ma anche un bellissimo lavoro di concerto, ha permesso a studenti di diverse età di dare forma alle loro idee, misurandosi con possibilità di narrare un passato vicino, in quanto “abitanti” del palazzo del racconto.
Nonostante le importanti restrizioni e difficoltà generate dalla quarantena, i ragazzi e le ragazze hanno lavorato con motivazione e costanza attraverso tutte le fasi, come interviste, ricerca di fonti e tanto altro, che li hanno portati alla redazione di un testo dalla forma assai originale.
Non potrei che concludere considerando questa esperienza come davvero formante dal punto di vista professionale e umano, sentendomi davvero orgogliosa del lavoro e del successo degli studenti e delle studentesse >>
Al link che segue è possibile trovare il racconto in formato scaricabile:
http://www.narrazionidiconfine.it/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/S_Emilia-Romagna_Ferrara_Ferrara_Smiling_Pizzo_Stanze_r.pdf
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