The book of multicultural fairy tales From the World to the World was formally christened by foreigners living in Slovakia. Shafia, Nargis and Miguel became the godparents of the unique book, which contains fairy tales collected from foreigners living in Slovakia. These are traditional folk tales from the countries from which the foreigners come. “During the collection of the tales, it often happened that two people from different countries told me a fairy tale with the same or a similar ending. So not only people, but also fairy tales migrate,” says Silvia Mabena, who collected and edited the stories. The book wants to introduce children to people who were not born in Slovakia, but found their home here. At each tale there is a photograph of the person who told the tale and short interesting information about them. In this way, the book contributes to multicultural dialogue in Slovakia. “The book means an interesting tool for multicultural education in schools. Teachers may have developed methodologies for this type of education, but practical tools have so far been missing for them. Therefore, we see the fairy tale book From the World to the World as an interesting educational aid,” said Peter Dráľ from the Milan Šimečka Foundation, which has long been engaged in teacher training in multicultural education. “Children speak their own universal language and have no problem communicating. They can adapt amazingly well; we adults can learn from them,” says Elena Gallová Kriglerová from the Centre for Research on Ethnicity and Culture, which is engaged in research on the integration of foreign children in Slovakia. “Children bring us together everywhere, on the playground, in kindergarten or at school. Mothers will chat with each other, and it does not matter which country they come from,” says Kriglerová. As she adds, most importantly of all, conditions must be created for migrants and especially for their children. “It is not enough to teach them the language. They come from completely different cultures and need a helping hand with every decision they make,” she stated. The first step according to her should be to identify what a child’s needs are. “Very often children can manage on their own, because their creativity is immense. Teachers should help and look for solutions to make life easier for children. Not according to a template, but set everything according to the child and their needs,” says the researcher.
Not only the book can help schools in multicultural education. Nadácia Intenda, which implements the Multicultural Tales project, prepared a practical workbook to accompany the book. For each fairy tale, it includes several pedagogical activities suitable for reading, writing, art education, and civic education. The fairy tale book together with the workbook is freely available for download on the Nadácia Intenda website to everyone who is interested.
With the book, Nadácia Intenda has been conducting, for a month, shared readings of migrants with children in primary schools across Slovakia. Primary schools in Bratislava, Prešov, Vranov nad Topľou, Smižany, Trenčianska Turná, Bojná, Oravská Lesná, and Liptovský Mikuláš have joined the joint creative reading project. By the end of November, more than 20 readings will have taken place in total. The project also includes an art competition for children.
The Multicultural Tales project is financed from the state budget and the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals under the Solidarity in the Management of Migration Flows program.
Authors: Jana Kozmonová Project manager of Nadácia Intenda Martina Rybárová