Host: Finland

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DAY 1 - The Erasmus teams arrived at Kivikko School! The whole Kivikko School welcomed the guests with a warm celebration, where the king and the queen of Kemi declared the Erasmus Week open. Pre-schoolers performed a traditional song and dance and fourth graders played a song with kantele, a traditional Finninh instrument.The party culminated with over 200 participants dancing Finnish “letkajenkka” around the Finnish map drawn on the snow at the school yard.

All the Erasmus students played snowfootball and Kinball to get to know each other. In the afternoon the Erasmus group had a guided tour around Kemi and visited the historical museum and library of Kemi..

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DAY 2 - The day began with a needle felting workshop held by Kemi’s Children’s Cultural Centre for the students. The teachers had an opportunity to go and visit lessons held by Finnish teachers.

After a break outdoors the participants made presentations on “How Do We Recycle at School”. At 12.00 the vice president of Metsä Group Bioproduct Mill introduced the new bioproduct mill project. He talked about forestry and the forest industry from the point of view of sustainability and nature preservation.

in the afternoon the group visited the Snow Castle Winter Park, with snowy activities and making finnish style sausages over open fire.

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DAY 3 - Finnish pupils had made a selection of mascots for the Finnish Erasmus week. The Erasmus students got to vote and an egg carton fox won the title.

All five countries held a speech on sustainability during the panel debate.

After the break, the ‘Go Green’ workshops started. In the first workshop the pupils were encouraged to upcycle their old t-shirts into something new. The second workshop was turning waste food into great food. Food surplus from the local supermarkets was prepared into campfire foil packs, ready to use in the afternoon.

The afternoon was spent in nature, by and on the frozen sea. All the Erasmus people were introduced to ice fishing, snowshoeing, making pancakes over open fire, eating sausages and of course the campfire foil packets. 

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DAY 4 - A visit to Rovaniemi. Pilke Science Center provided us excellent hands-on experiences on forestry, sustainability in the forest industry, many new wood innovations and cultural importance of the forests for Finns. 

Arktikum Science Centre granted the visitors a lot of new insights in the features of our northern nature and culture.

The guided tour around Rovaniemi gave us a lot of information, especially about Alvar Aalto and his architecture. 

Last but not least, the long awaited stop to the Arctic Circle and Santa Claus was the peak of our road trip! 

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DAY 5 - The morning held animation workshops for the kids, opportunities to visit lessons for the adults and a meeting for the coordinators. After lunch, a bus drove all the Erasmus people to explore the Twin Cities of Tornio (Finland) and Haparanda (Sweden).

In the afternoon Kivikko’s parents’ association organized an event at the school yard for visitors and hosting families. Children and families were able to spend some time together and enjoy outdoor activities. Meanwhile the visiting teachers had a chance to try winter swimming and sauna. In the evening it was time for farewells. All of us made new friends and great memories for life.