Himmeli art - course for teachers and youth workers in Greece, 03-07.09.2024

Another international activity is behind us, implemented as part of the project "Reducing Pollution and Empowering Youth through Himmeli Creation: A Collaborative Erasmus+ Project with Environmental and Economic Impact". On 03-07.10.2024 in Athens, a specialist training was held in the use of Himmeli sets as part of artistic education classes, aimed at developing spatial thinking skills, manual skills and logical thinking skills in young people. The training was attended by 5 representatives of each of the 3 partner organizations. The school from Poland was represented by the headmaster (acting as the project coordinator), two art teachers at ZSOiO in Pruszcz Gdański, a school pedagogue responsible for conducting pro-development classes (including artistic and manual classes) for students with educational problems and reduced intellectual potential, a teacher responsible for moderating afternoon integration and educational classes. The partner organization from North Macedonia was represented by the coordinator of international projects, 3 animators of artistic classes conducted as a free extracurricular offer in the city of Kocani and an animator of workshop classes carried out as part of youth projects implemented by the Macedonian organization. The partner organization from Greece was represented by 5 teachers (who work as art teachers in schools in Athens, while in the afternoons they conduct additional artistic classes at EVROPAIKO ETHELONTIKO KAI EKPAIDEFTIKO KENTRO). The trainer during the training was Mrs. Mirlena Charisi - an employee of the Greek partner organization, an artist, a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Athens in the field of art history. Mrs. Mirlena has many years of experience in implementing international training programs addressed to teachers, devoted to the topic of activating youth through art, since 2022 she has been involved in conducting classes using the Himmeli tool (which is regularly attended by about 30 young people from Athens). The first day of the training was devoted to the participants understanding the idea of ​​Himmeli - they learned what Himmeli sets are, how they are produced from dried reeds that are waste from agricultural production, how to connect Himmeli elements, what are the basic principles of creating structures from reed elements and string. On the second day, the participants of the training visited the local cultural center, where examples of Himmeli art created by young people during classes conducted at EVROPAIKO ETHELONTIKO KAI EKPAIDEFTIKO KENTRO are exhibited. The project participants had the opportunity to learn about the variety of Himmeli structures and ornaments that can be used on various occasions. During the visit, a brainstorming session took place regarding the spaces and activities in which we could implement the Himmeli tool (e.g. in the pre-Christmas period when preparing Christmas tree ornaments, in classes conducted in the field of landscape architecture when creating models, street and square layouts, etc., in art classes when creating abstract forms of art, in math lessons, working on manual skills in technology lessons). In the afternoon, demonstration classes were held, during which local youth played with Himmeli art. The classes were an opportunity to see how young people use Himmeli, what creativity they demonstrate, and how Himmeli play can be a pretext for serious discussions about environmental protection and responsible, sustainable use of natural resources. After the classes, the participants met with local animators, had the opportunity to exchange experiences, ask them questions. On the third day, the participants learned how to create decorations and structures from Himmeli elements on their own. At the beginning, everyone received crochet hooks, sets of reed sticks and string, and then each of them individually started to create the first triangles. From the triangles, we arranged spatial figures, such as spheres, cuboids, pyramids. Through trial and error, each participant had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with Himmeli art, see what construction possibilities it offers, how it stimulates our creativity, spatial and logical thinking.

On the fourth day of the training, the participants continued their work with Himmeli sets, but this time creating more complex structures in groups of several people. In this way, everyone could see how Himmeli can be used to develop teamwork skills, coordinate joint activities, think strategically, and choose the best and most effective ideas together by the entire group.

The fifth day of the training was devoted to discussing the possibilities of promoting work with Himmeli sets. Together with the trainer, the participants of the training created diagrams and lesson plans that could be later used, for example, in art lessons, art clubs, etc. The participants also summarized the entire training, each participant prepared a plan on how they would implement the Himmeli tool in the classes they conducted for young people.

As a result of the training, a guide for teachers and youth workers was published, which described the Himmeli tool and presented methods for implementing Himmeli in school classes (e.g. in art or technology classes), extracurricular classes conducted using informal methods (e.g. carried out in the afternoons in the school boarding school or as part of activities conducted by NGOs). The guide describes schemes for creating simple and more complex constructions from elements of wood and string, which will give teachers and youth workers who read the guide the opportunity to first learn and practice working with Himmeli on their own, and then implement this tool in their work with young people. The Greek organization also provided each of the partner organizations with self-made Himmeli sets. These sets will be used in the partner organizations to conduct classes aimed at local youth groups in the further part of the project.