(Mathematics / Science / Literacy)

and design a classroom activity that connects

cultural heritage with the development of life skills.

And create an animation 🎬

Let's turn the final submission into an 'Online Film Festival.' We can stream the kids' videos on Zoom and do live voting. It creates huge engagement for them and gives us killer content for social media.

Focus:

Using mathematics in everyday life and within a cultural context

Situations / Topics:

🛒 Market and trade – prices, budgeting, percentages

🍲 Traditional dishes – proportions, measurements, weights

🏛 Architecture – symmetry, geometric shapes

💃 Folk dances – rhythm, counting, time

🧵 Ornaments and patterns – repetition, symmetry, sequences

Life Skills Developed:

Logical thinking, problem-solving, decision-making

Final Product:

🎬 Student-created animation

The animation should include:

A mathematical situation

Focus:

Connecting natural phenomena with traditional knowledge

Situations / Topics:

🌿 Traditional agriculture – seasons, climate

🔥 Traditional cooking – physical and chemical changes

🌊 Water use in traditional life – sustainability and conservation

🪵 Natural materials in architecture – properties and durability

☀️ Sun and time – shadows, natural clocks

Life Skills Developed:

Inquiry skills, observation, environmental awareness

Final Product:

🎬 Student-created animation

The animation should include:

A scientific observation

Focus:

Understanding cultural identity through communication and storytelling

Situations / Topics:

📖 Folk tales and legends

📝 Writing traditional recipes

🎭 Oral traditions and storytelling

🎤 Interviews with older generations

📜 Presenting cultural heritage through text and animation

Life Skills Developed:

Communication skills, critical reading, self-expression

Final Product:

🎬 Student-created animation

The animation should include:

A literacy element (text or narration)

Focus:

Using mathematics in everyday life and within a cultural context

Situations / Topics:

🛒 Market and trade – prices, budgeting, percentages

🍲 Traditional dishes – proportions, measurements, weights

🏛 Architecture – symmetry, geometric shapes

💃 Folk dances – rhythm, counting, time

🧵 Ornaments and patterns – repetition, symmetry, sequences

Life Skills Developed:

Logical thinking, problem-solving, decision-making

Final Product:

🎬 Student-created animation

The animation should include:

A mathematical situation

Focus:

Connecting natural phenomena with traditional knowledge

Situations / Topics:

🌿 Traditional agriculture – seasons, climate

🔥 Traditional cooking – physical and chemical changes

🌊 Water use in traditional life – sustainability and conservation

🪵 Natural materials in architecture – properties and durability

☀️ Sun and time – shadows, natural clocks

Life Skills Developed:

Inquiry skills, observation, environmental awareness

Final Product:

🎬 Student-created animation

The animation should include:

A scientific observation

Focus:

Understanding cultural identity through communication and storytelling

Situations / Topics:

📖 Folk tales and legends

📝 Writing traditional recipes

🎭 Oral traditions and storytelling

🎤 Interviews with older generations

📜 Presenting cultural heritage through text and animation

Life Skills Developed:

Communication skills, critical reading, self-expression

Final Product:

🎬 Student-created animation

The animation should include:

A literacy element (text or narration)

Nona Gorgadze

Canan,Bağlıca Anatolian HighSchool,Türkiye,Leyla Çinici

Student: Sofio Shavishvili

Amirani is fighting a magical dragon with three heads and three tails.

He can cut off two heads or two tails in one blow.

However, the dragon has special powers:

*If one head is cut, one new head grows.

*If one tail is cut, two new tails grow.

*If two tails are cut, one new head appears.

*If two heads are cut, nothing grows back.

The challenge is to find the minimum number of blows Amirani needs to cut off all the heads and all the tails.

This puzzle combines strategy, logical thinking, and mathematical reasoning.

🎶 Mathematics in Motion

In this activity, we connected mathematics with our cultural heritage through folk dances. While dancing, students worked with rhythm, counting and timing all important maths concepts.

Each step followed a pattern. Each beat required counting. Different tempos helped students understand timing and fractions in a natural way. They also noticed symmetry and formations while moving together.

Through this experience, students saw that mathematics is not only in books it is in music, in movement, and in our traditions.

Horon – The Dance of the Black Sea

Horon is a traditional folk dance from Türkiye’s Black Sea region, especially in Trabzon, Rize, and Artvin. It is performed in a circle or line, with dancers holding hands and moving together.

The dance is fast and energetic, accompanied by traditional instruments like the kemençe and tulum. Quick footwork and shoulder movements show strength, unity, and joy.

Horon is more than a dance it is a symbol of community and cultural identity in the Black Sea region.

Sometimes, maths simply dances. 💃✨

Harmandalı is one of the most famous Zeybek folk dances of Western Türkiye, especially in Izmir and the Aegean region. It represents courage, pride, and dignity.

Unlike the fast Horon, Harmandalı is slower and more majestic. The dancer moves with wide, strong steps, spreading the arms like an eagle. The music is powerful and emotional, reflecting bravery and honor.

Harmandalı is often performed at national celebrations and cultural events. It is not just a dance, but a symbol of strength and independence in Turkish culture.

Halay is a traditional folk dance widely performed in Central and Eastern Türkiye, especially in cities like Gaziantep, Sivas, and Diyarbakır.

It is danced in a line or semi-circle, with people holding hands or shoulders. The movements can be slow and graceful at the beginning, then become faster and more energetic. Drums (davul) and the zurna usually accompany the dance, creating a lively rhythm.

Halay symbolizes unity, friendship, and celebration. It is commonly performed at weddings, festivals, and special gatherings, bringing people together in joy.

Here you can see one of the sundials located in the capital of Croatia, Zagreb. https://www.celestialscenes.com/sundials/img/zg-tkalca-1-20060423-skokic.jpg

Map of sundials in Croatia:

https://www.celestialscenes.com/sundials/index.php?location=Map&lng=hr

Georgian traditional dishes clearly demonstrate how important the right balance of ingredients is. Georgian cuisine is distinguished by its diverse flavors, dough dishes, and carefully selected ingredients. One of the most famous Georgian dishes is khinkali. Khinkali is made from dough and meat filling, and its preparation requires precision and experience. The dough should be elastic and thin, and the filling should be a mixture of meat, onions, spices, and water or broth in the right proportions to make khinkali juicy and delicious. It is precisely maintaining proportions that ensures that khinkali is as Georgian tradition requires.

Mariam Pachkoria

Mia Gegelashvili

Students: Elif Gumbatova, Gulnara Iskandarova

Zura Kagashvili