Category: School life

A new concept of the Avenor’s Summer School

Posted on by Andreea Ferent

What do inventions, music, nature, fashion, hospitality and tourism have in common? At Avenor Summer Expeditions, each of these concepts becomes a theme that children can explore for a week through activities that will stimulate them to make decisions, have initiative, find solutions, but also self-assess and adapt to change. We invite you to learn more about the new concept of Avenor’s Summer School, designed by more than 20 teachers, from the text written by Cristina Farcaș, the project coordinator.

The Avenor Summer Expeditions resulted from the desire of the people who are part of the Avenor community and wish to provide educational activities that are relevant to children’s future. We have created this unique program by combining present-day themes and methods with a transdisciplinary impact with non-formal activities to ensure children an interactive educational environment all throughout the summer.

The specific themes are points of interest suitable for all learning styles. Each of them presents an equivalent in the lives of children, being relevant and useful for their future: SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), music, fashion, survival in nature, hospitality and tourism.

The learning methods used during the summer school programme stimulate children to think critically, to make decisions, to explore their point of interest, to organise themselves in teams, to lead, to evaluate their work, to find solutions, to communicate their learning outcomes and to adapt permanently.

The Project-Based Learning approach will help them acquire all these abilities while having fun working on all kinds of projects that will be presented at the end of each week, during Assembly sessions. The contact with real life will not be experienced in classes, but in real life, during carefully planned trips, or while interacting with various specialists invited among them.

Avenor Summer Expeditions is a unique educational programme designed by over 20 Avenor teachers and whose continuous check with reality is ensured by its most relevant beneficiaries: children – we start the planning process taking into account their ideas and interests in order to create the greatest learning expedition.

You can find all the details regarding the types of programmes, activities and fees included in the Avenor Summer Expeditions Presentation.

Cristina FARCAȘ
Summer School Coordinator

Avenor Scouting Summer School – a learning experience based on the scout values

Posted on by Sandra Barbu

For over 100 years the scout movement has been the largest and most relevant movement for children and teenagers because it is based on two factors that inspire those who wish to create an impact in the society through education: an educational method and values. Avenor College has incorporated this educational system for over 10 years in order to create ‘The Best Future’ for its community: students, parents, teachers, staff, and partners.

From this “Character Match”, four years ago we created the “Avenor Scouting Summer School” concept. We have let ourselves be enthused and inspired by learning in and around nature and planned weekly trips and educational activities in order to raise an appetite for exploration and knowledge among children. We primarily use the symbolic scouts’ framework “The Jungle Book”, by Rudyard Kipling, to guide children about friendship, courage, the beauty of small things, the importance of rules, and creativity during the personal development sessions. We are inspired by the scouts’ laws and the very well known scout promise to communicate to children the ideas of ‘making everything possible’, ‘to leave the world better than they found it’, to ‘always be prepared’ for action and to fulfil all of the aforementioned, not forgetting ‘One for all and all for one’. We have adopted‚ the ’learning through action’ principle in order to discover and educate future abilities in society: leadership, public speaking and teamwork.

The children who attend Avenor Scouting Summer School live a learning experience inspired by the scout movement, but they will not become scouts. Looking towards the future, we imagine that they will let themselves be inspired and will choose to contribute to a better world with the help of the scouting movement.

Avenor travels on its own path and when it encounters other travellers who aim for their best possible future, it feels even more confident that co-creation is always the best direction.

This year, Avenor Scouting Summer School will take place between July 9th  and August 10th at the nursery location. Find out more about registration, types of programme and activities by accessing this link.

By Cristina FARCAȘ

Avenor Summer School Coordinator

Deputy Educational Coordinator & Nursery Green Teacher

Our high school students have started their Cambridge exams session

Posted on by Sandra Barbu

Avenor High School students will sit more than 70 Cambridge exams this year. Our high school students started this week the written exams session, six intense weeks with tests and individual study.

At Avenor College, we have started this week the written Cambridge exams session. Students in Grades 8, 9, 10 and 11 will sit the following exams:

  • Cambridge Checkpoint

This is the evaluation exam at the end of Grade 8 for students following the Cambridge line at Avenor College. These tests highlight students’ strengths and areas where they can develop their skills further during high school. This year, there are 16 students from Avenor College taking part in the Checkpoint examinations in Mathematics and English as a Second Language.

  • Cambridge IGCSE

This is the most popular international certification for pupils aged 14-16. It is recognised by major universities around the world, employers worldwide, and it represents an international passport for development and success.

IGCSE exams are taken this year by 14 Grade 10 students, 18 Grade 9 students and one student from Grade 8. In total, our students will sit 42 IGCSE written examinations on 17 syllabuses:

Biology, Computer Science, Coordinated Sciences, English as a Second Language (Speaking Endorsement), Enterprise, First Language English, Foreign Language German, Foreign Language Italian, Foreign Language Spanish, Global Perspectives, History, Literature, Mathematics (Without Coursework), Music, Physics, Art and Design.

Another 7 oral examinations were held in March and April: IGCSE Speaking and IGCSE Art and Design.

  • Cambridge Advanced

This is designed for students aged between 16 and 19 who need advanced studies to prepare for university. It includes two stages: Cambridge International AS and A2 Level. Universities around the world appreciate and recognise the Cambridge International AS and A Level certificates.

Avenor International High School is hosting for the first time an AS Level Exam session. This year, 16 Grade 11 students sit the AS Level exams on the following subjects:

Computer Science, Economics, History, Literature in English, Mathematics, Media Studies, Physics, Psychology, Spanish Language, Art and Design.

Also this week, the AS Level Speaking exam will be held.

At last year’s IGCSE exams, 80% of our students received scores ranging from A * to C, achieving a 100% pass rate. You can find more information about our students’ results can be found here.

Skills or results? Both

Posted on by Dana Papadima

Over the last 20 years or so, in global pedagogy acquiring skills is considered the ultimate goal of learning. And rightly so. What is the use of knowledge, information, definitions, specialised terminology if not to help develop general and specific skills? It is common sense. This shift of attention from “knowledge” to “learn to do” to “learn to be” completely transformed different educational systems, even the Romanian system, with all its awkwardness and inconsistencies.

It is also a fact that insinuated itself gradually, despicably, unobserved and not only into the highly competitive world of Romanian education but also in larger American, English, even Nordic communities and became the (unwritten) rule of the game for the evaluation process in schools, ranking graduates only by results. In theory, we are referring to the pedagogy of happiness, learning by discovery, the pleasure to come and stay in school. In practice, we construct and deconstruct rankings for performant schools, prestigious universities, maybe even for nursery schools that promise Harvard candidates and have waiting lists composed before the future students were even planned to be born. We live in a paradox, are we not?

Avenor College has been making its way in this paradoxical world for 10 years. Because we really believe and put into practice a system of learning directed towards competencies, learning with joy and love, enquiry and discovery are considered essential steps in shaping future adults. However, since our first grade 8 students graduated and many families started to aspire to Avenor for any type of class, the situation of the results comes up quite often in the conversations that are part of the admission process: “We have been following you. You are always in the top 10 schools in Bucharest. We care about our child’s happiness, but it is no secret that we are also interested in the results at the end of this cycle of continuous happiness”.

I think it is a very honest point of view, without any type of hypocrisy. The situation is not limited to strictly monitoring the results of our students at the National Evaluation exams but involves also monitoring every year the scores for the Cambridge Checkpoint exams, mandatory for the admission at Avenor International High School.

Skills or test scores? This year, all of our Grade eight graduates have achieved exceptional results either at the Cambridge Checkpoint exam – 5.8 at Maths and 5.9 at English on a scale of maximum 6.0 points – or at the National Evaluation: 10 in Romanian, 9.85 in Mathematics. Skills, therefore results!

The joy of the Winter shows

Posted on by Ana-Caterina Ciușcă

by Ana-Caterina Ciușcă and Natalia Maria Dan

Tuesday, December 9th, everyone had a great time: we all enjoyed seeing Avenor students showing their talents, singing, playing instruments and dancing.

There were lots of performances: every class came up with a special Christmas moment for us to enjoy. Mostly, we sang carols, because Christmas was on its way.

We had plenty of moments: each class had its own song or songs, but there were also solo parts, when children who take singing classes filled our hearts with joy. The percussion club also had a special moment and the barrel’s beats cheered up the audience.

Moreover, this day was very special because it was the first time when Avenor College was live on Facebook, so the parents, the siblings, everyone could watch us perform and listen to us from work, from home, from wherever they were.

Overall, we had an amazing time at Avenor Winter Show. We had the opportunity to appreciate each and every talent from our school, to support and help our students to follow their dreams.

We are already looking forward to Avenor Winter Shows 2017.

Science teacher Gareth is the new Grade 9 Form Tutor

Posted on by Avenor College

Starting in September, our Science teacher Gareth will be the Grade 9 form tutor at Avenor International High School. He is very excited to make students feel part of a well-knit team and be like a third parent, demanding but also very supportive. He will continue to teach Science in a way that will allow students to understand the world they live in and how they can change it. He is also going back to school, to improve his Romanian.

You will be the Form Tutor for Grade 9 next year and many of the students who know you are very excited about that. What should they expect from you?

Form tutors are an important figure in the development of the student, they are like the third parent based at the school. They create links and harmony between the parents at home, the management of the school and the academic life of both the students and the subject teachers who deliver their education. The role of the tutor is to facilitate and support the students in their social and emotional development so that they are best equipped to deal with their job of learning. They are the ones that students turn to first when they need help, someone who they can trust and someone they know will support them. The form tutor must set very high expectations for the students both morally and academically.

I have a very close relationship with the students that finished Grade 8. I worked to prepare them for chemistry and physics in the Romanian system, as well as in applied science in the Cambridge system. I taught them more hours per week than other teachers and developed a mutual respect. They helped me and I helped them.

It is important that new students and existing students all feel a part of the Grade 9 team. This will not be difficult since the atmosphere at Avenor is very welcoming and community focused. I’ve always developed very close-knit tutor groups that can rely on each other as well as on me for support. I also have a lot of experience in helping students with the difficulties of growing up and finding their place in the world. It’s a challenging time in the student’s life and the expectations of today are very different. The world is changing so fast sometimes students are unsure of their place in it. There are also the same issues that all teenagers face regardless of school or country like boyfriends/girlfriends, what’s cool, how others perceive their image etc. I will be there for all students any time they need help. My door is always open.

Science is one of the classes Avenor students enjoy the most. How would you describe your Science classes to our new and prospective high school students?

The science programme for the students is fun and develops the key skills of scientific enquiry but also teaches areas that are fun and relevant to students. In addition to the topics covered in the Romanian system, students also learn about renewable energy for the future, drugs, alcohol, and health, as well as new materials that can be used to fabricate the technology of the future.

The science classes at Avenor are based on the Cambridge system of scientific enquiry and problem solving, whereas the Romanian system is based on memory recall. I’ve talked a lot in the past about the differences in the educational systems, but it boils down to a few main points.

  • Very few students will actually use science knowledge directly in their future and it’s a waste of time to just remember endless pages of facts (although very good for winning a pub-quiz). It’s the scientific skills that are valued.
  • The scientific method of observing something that happened, deciding why it might have happened, researching and testing to see if you were correct and readjusting your ideas/theories based on observable evidence are very important in all areas of employment. For example, many of our students want to work in enterprise and business and the ability to analyse what products have sold, why they sold and develop strategies to increase sales are a form of the scientific method. In short, our science programme teaches students how to observe the world around them and what they can do to change it. This is a very powerful tool to have.
  • Finally, having practical experiments for students makes the learning more real and fun. It allows students to relate to content that might not always be clear from a book. As humans, we learn best by interacting with our environment. You could always teach a baby to walk by showing them a formula for balance and explaining where they need to generate force by pushing against the ground, but they will learn best by trying, failing, and trying again.

You are also going to school for Romanian classes. What made you decide to learn Romanian and how is that going so far?

From a practical perspective, it makes sense to learn Romanian to make life easier. However, for me it’s more than this. I am not an international teacher that just happened to come to Romania because there was a job here. I specifically chose to come here.  It’s my first international position. I had many Romanian friends at university and visited the country often, eight times in five years, before working here. In order to understand a culture, it’s important to get an understanding of the language. Culture and arts are what make life worth living. I want to be able to have a conversation with an old person about what life use to be like, to read some poetry, or express my views on current political trends or a piece of art. I know it’s said never make politics or religion a topic of conversation, but sometimes it’s nice to break the mould.

I’ve not developed as fast as I wanted to over the last year. I therefore made a decision to improve this over the summer holidays. I’ve attended a two-week intensive course for beginners. Studying in a classroom for three hours each day was quite enlightening since it’s been a few years since I was on the receiving end of education. I also have a better understanding of what people mean when they talk about the didactic teaching methods used in the Romanian state system. You really have to be at the top of the class or risk falling behind very quickly!

The course was aimed at beginners and had a strong focus on grammar, which is actually what I needed. I passed the A1 course with high in each section (speaking, listening, reading, and writing) and I am now looking to take the A2 course.

Avenor College Cafeteria becomes Stradale Avenor

Posted on by Avenor College

Flavours Catering is the new partner providing the school meals for Avenor students. Starting in the academic year 2016-2017, Avenor College Cafeteria becomes Stradale Avenor, a place where the Flavours team will cook and serve lunch and snack for our students.

We have always been concerned with the children’s nutrition, over the years we have worked with several catering companies in search of better solutions. The feedback we constantly received from students and parents encouraged us to make an important change: having our own kitchen, in order to make sure that the meals are fresh and served at optimal temperature.

The dishes will be prepared with carefully selected ingredients from providers that are visited and verified by the Flavours team. The meals will be cooked according to recipes specially created for Stradale Avenor by Chef Foa, one of the creators of Flavours. Also, the new kitchen will have a dedicated staff, provided by our partners: head chef, pastry chef, assistants and cafeteria manager.

“We are always careful to keep a perfect balance between taste and health, so we can adapt our menus according to the needs of every child”, Stradale Avenor manager Daniel Obretin explains. “We are prepared to offer children and teenagers nutritional information and are open to suggestions regarding their favourite dishes. Chef Foa will also be present in the cafeteria, whenever possible, to speak to students about healthy eating and teach them how to enjoy tasty and healthy food cooked correctly.”

The daily menu for students will take into account the Avenor nutritional policy and will include:

Lunch

  • 2 types of soup (meat / vegetarian)
  • 3 main courses (white meat / red meat / vegetarian) with side dish and salad

Snack (sweet or salty) and a fruit

To be able to make all these changes, we needed to reorganise the space in the Cafeteria. We have also created a coffee shop for parents, a place where they can have snacks, coffee and tea.

The investment necessary for setting up the new kitchen stands at more than 130.000 euro, an amount covered in partnership by Flavours Catering and Avenor Foundation.

Flavours Food & Catering is a concept created in 2002, based on the following principles: a love for food, the authenticity of the recipes and the respect for high standards. You can find more details about the company here.

We are confident that the partnership with Flavours Catering, a company with excellent references, that also has a similar project at the American International School of Bucharest, will be successful.

Introducing the new Head of Avenor International High School

Posted on by Avenor College

We are happy to welcome our new Head of Avenor International High School, Andrew Kearns. He has been teaching for 11 years, mainly in the UK and he is coming to Bucharest after managing an international school in Mandalay, Myanmar. He will be taking over the management of the Avenor International High School starting September 2016. His goal is to make sure that our high school students manage to exceed their expectations and gain the necessary skills for their next level of education. We let him introduce himself:

I am delighted to be joining Avenor College at this very exciting time. I will make it my job to ensure that our students exceed their expectations and garner the skills required for their next level of education – those of independent learning, research skills, questioning abilities and the ability to challenge, the skill of leadership and the ability to enforce change.

I treat pupils as individuals and they will become aware of their own personal strengths and areas for development. No child will be left behind as they learn to take responsibility for their own learning. They will be made to understand that making mistakes demonstrates effort and they will learn that while knowledge is power, the ability to question and challenge are the skills of influence.

We are responsible for tomorrows’ game changers in this beautiful country and our pupils will be the movers and shakers in what they will make an amazing Romania, a country whose success in Europe and the wider world will depend on our pupils.

I will teach at Avenor College as I believe it is vital that senior management remain in contact with the learners in the school. I will model outstanding teaching methods and help nurture the citizens of tomorrow.

I keep up to date with teaching methodologies and I will ensure that the teaching team that is responsible for your children is constantly learning the best ways to teach. There will not be a “life raft” dependency on textbooks – although they do remain a vital part of the learning process – but teachers will become fluent in group-work and games, learning outside of the classroom, the use of media in the classroom, philosophy for learning, self study, investigation, “blue sky” learning and debate. If teachers stop learning, then children stop learning.

I graduated from Liverpool University in 2004 and I was one of the first on Britain’s Graduate Teaching Programme where graduates learn to teach ‘on the job’ and this baptism of fire has made me a very strong teacher and subsequent leader of education. I have been teaching for 11 years, mainly in the UK and I come to you from managing a very similar school in Mandalay, Myanmar. I also have a background in business management and this has helped shape my leadership style.

Away from work, I read and I enjoy all areas of the performing arts and in another life I would have been in Duran Duran. I am a keen cook and I am a huge skier so you will find me frequently in the ski resorts of the Carpathian Mountains. I enjoy travelling and have been blessed to have been to many different countries and to have experienced many different cultures.

Andrew says farewell to his students from Myanmar
Andrew says farewell to his students from Myanmar

How to become a “Builder of the Future”

Posted on by Avenor College

In the Avenor family we pay close attention to details. We all have a common objective, ‘learning’. We are all involved with the responsibility to build each child’s skills, without forgetting about the character.

We intend to prepare our students for a changing world, to become the leaders of tomorrow, no matter which field they choose their future to be in. We were delighted to find those students, who have already been admitted at Avenor International High School, as individuals who are not afraid to dream, who have chosen a future career path and know what they have to do to achieve their dreams.

Some of our students have been part of our family since middle school, the first generation of Grade 8 students who took the Cambridge Checkpoint at Avenor College. The results of these tests were exceptional: The maximum score in the international system is 6.0 and our students got an average of 6.0 in Maths (100%) and 5.9 in English (98%).

Those who come from other schools have already demonstrated, during the admissions process, that they have academic abilities, leadership and entrepreneurial skills or artistic inclinations. We are proud of each of them!

For the 2016-2017 academic year, we have only three places left at Avenor International High School. Sign up now if you also want A* in Future!

You can read below some of the stories of our future high school students who have decided they want to be “Builders of the Future”:


maya

Some of the things I want to learn in my high school years are how to be a better person every day, how every second of life is worth living and should be lived and finally, how I can always help the people around me to achieve their dreams and goals.

Avenor College is a great place where everyone is very supportive. However big your dreams and goals are, at Avenor High School no one will tell you they are impossible. They will say the facts as they are and they will be straight and honest with you. Avenor College has helped me over the past two years and I am sure it will keep supporting me in the future. – Maya


tudor
My biggest passion lies in cars. My dream would be to study car design at one of the world’s best universities because I would like to contribute to creating more efficient, ergonomic, ecological and… why not? Better looking cars!

In my four years at Avenor High School I want to become a better person by improving my drawing skills, doing sports, studying Maths at a superior level and playing the piano. On top of that I would like to study business because I want to become an entrepreneur in my domain and above all be a happy person.

I chose Avenor College because I like the friendly atmosphere and the fact that the teachers are really close to the students. Also the students are supported in their studies and appreciated for their passions and talents. I think the facilities, environment and the resources are much better than at the local school. I feel more at home here. I believe that Avenor College will help me develop the skills needed for achieving my goals and also provide a friendly environment in which I can study. I think that Avenor College can help me fulfill my dreams. – Tudor

 

In my high school years I would really like to learn my second foreign language really well. I chose Spanish and I am really excited to actually be able to speak fluently one of my favourite languages. And I honestly think that Avenor High School will really help me to achieve my goals because the students here are able to attend classes and learn many new things from a big variety of topics, all of them helping us to achieve what we really want. – Ana

leon

My passions are sports, chemistry and foreign languages. My favourite sport, which I have been pursuing since I was three years old, is swimming. I’m one of the best swimmers in the country (member of the Bucharest Sport Club team), having won many national and international medals. My dream is to be part of the Romanian Olympic team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. It is a thought that cannot be accomplished without the support of a school that understands what performance means, providing personalised support for the needs of a champion. This is one of the reasons I chose Avenor College. Another reason worth mentioning is the Cambridge system, which I consider superior to the Romanian educational system that formed me for the past eight years. The program, the school curriculum and the teachers promise to be my allies on my journey to the future. Thus, I hope I can carry out my training in good conditions, to have the opportunity to develop my knowledge in the field of Science, to cultivate my language and to develop my other talents. More talents imply more dreams and considering the life of a sportsman is relatively short, I would like to improve my knowledge in IT and perhaps become an acclaimed game developer. – Leon

I want to become a scientist. This means I want to be a Chemistry teacher (maybe even a Dean of a famous science university) and a researcher in a lab. In my years of high school I want to learn more about Chemistry, the British culture, the history of the world and about people. I also hope I will make friends and get in touch with students from the UK because I want to go to a British university. I have chosen Avenor High School because it is an environment where I can learn at high academic standards thanks to the Cambridge curriculum that allows students to better understand the subjects by applying them to the real world. Here I will learn from well prepared teachers, along with intelligent and friendly students. – Vlad

 

In high school I want to learn how to be a part of a community of new people, I also want to find out how to excel in the arts and as well as business. I think that Avenor High School will help me do what I love and I will learn better because the Cambridge way of solving problems is totally different from the Romanian learning system. I believe it will help me in near future. – Vanessa.

maria

I want to fulfill my dream of living a happy life doing what I like to do (architecture, design). In my four years of high school I want to perfect my English and prepare for the day I’ll make my own business. 

I chose Avenor College because I like the way each lesson takes place here. The teachers and students are very nice and I feel like the school is a very welcoming place. I think that Avenor College will help me achieve my goals by teaching me that school is a great place to learn and that I can have a good time at school with the help of very nice people (teachers and students). I think that Avenor High School will not only help me prepare for my important exams, but also help me enjoy school much more than before. – Maria


daniel
In my high school years I want to learn how to create a business, to find out what type of business I like the most and to learn many things about maths and the stock exchange. I want to become a stock broker or a business man, so I really think that Enterprise and Maths classes at Avenor High School will be very useful. I also think that Languages and Global Perspectives will help me to interact and create relationships with different people around the world. At the same time, Avenor encourages you to follow your passions during trips and sports/arts contests. – Daniel

“Builders of the Future” series: Invitation into the world of books

Posted on by Selin Ersoydan

The year 2000 has been filled with events. According to the Chinese calendar, this year was the year of the Golden Dragon. It has been a special year because mankind has celebrated the beginning of the new millenium. Yet, for me, the significance of this year has been totally different. This was the year when a girl with passions and huge ambitions was born.

Everybody believes that people experience only what they are meant to live in the real life, but I don’t agree with this statement. Every time I want to teleport to another world and live the adventures of those times, all I need to do is to shake out the meanings from the pages of a book. Of course, there are many other scientifically proven ways in which books help you: improving the memory, stimulating the brain, enriching the vocabulary, etc. but in my opinion, the most important feature of a book is that it can send you into a whole new world and reveals a whole new perspective on life.

I became aware of the grandeur of books when I was very young, that is why I had a great desire to learn how to read before my classmates. Reading is an essential part of my life; reading relaxes me, entertains me and teaches me to discover new perspectives.

One day, I would really like to write my own book, where I could express my opinions on different critical aspects of the world. In any case, I am perfectly aware that I have a lot to read in order to enrich my knowledge just to be able to offer truly pertinent opinions.

When I was little, I always used to scribble on pieces of paper. In time, these scribbles turned into real drawings, paintings and even sculptures filled with my thoughts, emotions and feelings. Art has become my hobby, one that I feel I cannot live without.

“I want to help people. I want to be the helping hand extended to help them”. This is what I constantly tell myself and those around me. When I discovered the wonders of science, I decided I wanted to combine my desire to help others with this subject and this is how I came to set my goal: I want to become a doctor. Therefore, I think I’ve found the meaning I want to give my life.

Talking about meaning, I realised the meaning of education at a very young age and the search for a valuable education brought me to Avenor College. I feel that this is the school that encourages my passions and guides me on my way to one of the best universities in the world – University of Oxford. This University has one of the libraries I would like to visit. The reasons why this library fascinates me are its age and beauty and also its resemblance to Hogwarts, which would make me feel I am entering a fantastic world.

I will end my article with a short list of books I would recommend to everyone:

To Kill a Mockingbird

This book perfectly illustrates the racial inequality from the period and this problem is approached in a very emotional and intriguing manner.

Macbeth

It is essential to read at least one of Shakespeare’s works in order to understand why he is considered such an extraordinary author. Romeo and Juliet, although a love story, is a very creative book and is a real pleasure to read it.  Moreover, Macbeth has a very special place in my heart because I had the opportunity to play a part in its performance.

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

This book tells a profoundy sad and shocking story and yet, it represents the perfect manner for learning about the history of the Holocaust, in a pleasant and intriguing way.

Divergent

This book offers a possible answer to the question: what would happen if the human species would end up manipulated and an experiment would try to create the perfect human being? Divergent is a book written in the “dystopian” style, which engages the reader,  offering at the same time an idea on what the future would be like. It has a lot of science references, the subject which interests me the most, this book  has managed to fascinate me.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is an author I’ve read and about whom I know a lot of things. I think I owe him gratitude because my existance as a free woman is due to his efforts and achievements. He was the one who supported the development through education and everybody knows that thanks to his actions I, a Turkish girl, can now go to school and pursue my dream of becoming an honorable doctor.