The first week of the new school year, according to our established tradition, was marked with interesting lessons in our “classroom without walls”. Thus, Savremena Gimnazija continues to be an inspirational environment that encourages creativity and academic development of its students outside classroom walls.
Year 1: Cruising along the Sava and Danube, searching for treasure at Kalemegdan, discovering the Danube biology
Leaving the first school day behind, having learnt about their new school, the Year 1 students of Savremena Gimnazija had the opportunity to “taste” the school life at Savremena the next Monday.
Together with their teachers, the Year 1 students set sails down the Danube and Sava so they could see Belgrade from a slightly different perspective. While they were sailing past the barracks of the Serbian River Flotilla, the War Island, Nebojša Tower, the Museum of Contemporary Art and other landmarks, the students asked numerous questions to their teachers, receiving responses on unusual facts from the rich history of the Serbian capital.
But this was not the end of the outdoor lessons, because the following Friday, the students visited Kalemegdan, where, using maps and plans, they kept solving riddles, discovered marked places and succeeded in finding treasure. While the river cruise allowed the Savremena Year 1 students to get to know each other better, the treasure hunt ignited competitiveness and the thirst for exploration. The aim of Kalemegdan treasure hunt was to enable students to learn about Kalemegdan sights as well as to trigger students’ primary education knowledge in a fun way, through teamwork, with a reward at the end of successfully solved tasks.
You can learn about this exciting treasure hunt by watching the video.
Outdoor workshops were continued at the Little Danube Centre, where our students had the opportunity to visit a public aquarium containing fish species from the Danube, a zoo with waterfowl, a small botanical garden, turtle oasis, a fisherman`s cabin - the fishery museum, a house on stilts, a corner devoted to its majesty water, the Evolution island, the corner devoted to the invisible water creatures, prehistoric fisherman’s settlement. The students could also try their luck at fishing and sail along the Little Danube and so much more.
Year 2: Hyde Park, the secrets of Topčider and Vinča
The teachers of Savremena Gimnazija carefully created a logical, but also physics-oriented game, so our students will be able to learn in a simple yet interesting way something new, while developing problem-solving thinking skills. Our geography teacher made special maps to enable the students to reach the goal as soon as possible. As with any orienteering task, maps and compasses were necessary to find exact locations. In solving the tasks, the students relied on their knowledge, strategies and skills.
While touring Topčider, the students could hear illuminating stories about one of the most beautiful Belgrade parks, about Prince Miloš’s residence, Maša’s quarry and other less known interesting places in this part of the city.
Savremena Gimnazija students visiting Vinča were not just listening attentively, but had some slightly different tasks to complete. After they read some articles and watched a film, they discussed the ice age and evolution. Together with the museum curator, they saw the current exhibition and heard some interesting stories about the exhibits, which helped the students understand the origin of humankind. The students displayed creativity, imagination and team spirit in the competition Stone Age Vs Modern Age, which enabled them to see the differences between the life in prehistoric times and the one in modern times. Our students reported that the visit made the topic of prehistoric life much more interesting. To make this time travel more fun, during the visit, the students “stepped into an ordinary Vinča inhabitant’s shoes” and inspiring associations from Vinča they described vividly in their journals.
Have a look at our history lesson in Vinča.
Year 3: Dorćol tour, visit to Jevremovac and Avala outdoor classroom
During the tour of Dorćol, which got its name after the Turkish word Dörtyol which means four roads, the students learnt that at the Turkish times, at the corner of the King Petar’s street, Tzar Dušan’s street and Dubrovnik street, there was a large crossroads of four major trade routs, leading to Istanbul, Vidin, Vienna and Dubrovnik. While walking the streets in this very old part of the city, students listened to the their teachers’ stories revealing a lot of interesting facts about the structures and monuments they pass by every day but about which they could discover so much more.
On Tuesday, the walls of the classrooms were substituted by the lavish natural oasis in the very heart of the city, the Botanical garden Jevremovac. Since 2004 there has been the Japanese garden designed in it and our students, visiting this garden, learnt that, according to the folk tradition in Japan, a stone represents a holy object because spirits dwell in it and it symbolises the triad of the heavens, earth and a man. While walking around the glass house, the students heard so many interesting stories and learnt about thousands of different tropical plants, subtropical and Mediterranean plant species organised according their geographical origin or ecological categories.
On our nearest mountain Avala, an outdoor school was organised for our students. While they were enjoying clean fresh air and magnificent view, there they could remember what they had learnt before in Serbian and English, philosophy, history and geography lessons. While on Avala, they tried out their endurance in the P.E. lesson. In their outdoor lessons, our students gave their best to demonstrate their knowledge and readiness to face challenges prepared for them.
Year 4: Zemun race, Belgrade beneath Belgrade and the secrets of Kosmaj
Our senior students had a good fun and learnt a lot while solving riddles at different historic sights in Zemun. Following the example of the reality series Amazing Race, among the competitors organised in teams, only those most resourceful and most knowledgeable reached the goal.
Walking through Belgrade underground historical sights revealed the city’s deepest secrets! Belgrade has a rich history and heritage, and the tour Underground Belgrade is one of the best and most exciting ways to discover the secrets of this city and its unusual underground sites, each of them representing the unique attraction.
The route took the students across Kalemegdan to the Roman well, whose legends will never leave anyone untouched, along the narrow corridors of the military bunker from the Informbiro times, which reveals numerous secretive political games of great powers after the World War 2, all the way to the large gunpowder warehouse, famous Barutana, with its lapidarium where the unique archaeological collection, including sarcophagi, headstones and alters from all over Belgrade and Serbia, can be seen. The visit to these historical sites presented an unusual history of Belgrade, various destinies of people and legends that have triggered curiosity of historical and cultural connoisseurs for centuries.
You can watch the video on Underground Belgrade revealed.
Those who like strolling through a forest, discovering beautiful scenery and places where battles used to be fought, not far away from Belgrade, arrived at the right place. Besides the pedestrian tour and learning about natural and man-made features (the monument dedicated to Kosmaj-Posavina partizan unit and the memorial ossuary built to commemorate casualties of the World War I), the students had their lessons in the classroom without walls. You can see what the students have learnt at the site if you watch this video.
The sports day Savremena Gimnazija style at the Sports centre Kovilovo
After mental workout, it was time for some physical exercises outdoors.
The students, accompanied by their teachers visited the Sports Centre Kovilovo, where they demonstrated their fitness, skills and abilities.
Savremena students took part in various games and competitions, such as the football played in pairs, tug-of-war, trying to get three-point hits, noughts-and-crosses dash etc. The sports day Savremena Gimnazija style was appreciated most by Year 1 and Year 2 students who tried to do their best.
The first week of the school year was exciting and memorable for out students and it will spur their motivation to be the best version of themselves and strive to get excellent results.
