4 ELEMENTS

Project logo
Improve the foreign language learning and intercultural competences of adults through e-learning

The project

FOUR ELEMENTS is an initiative called to raise awareness and appreciation of the importance of culture and heritage as well as to train educators working with adult learners who want to improve their skills and competences necessary in today’s EU labour market.

The project will take advantage of the potential of the common European cultural values associated to the 4 elements earth, water, air and fire) to empower adults to improve their digital, foreign language and intercultural competences.

The partnership expects to develop and deliver innovative teaching materials presented in a culturally accessible E-book consisting of European legends and stories – giving visibility to the underlying common EU values and principles, especially adapted to learners with special needs.

To achieved such objectives, partners will develop:

An interactive map: a collection of legends and stories related to earth, water, air and fire, in different EU countries.

Digital Books with national legends and stories related to the four elements.

Methodological recommendations for adult educators.

To find more information, access the Four Elements platform here.

Digital books

The nations of Europe all have rich cultures of myth and folklore which give the different regions their particular individual flavour. Here we have grouped traditional stories from Belgium, Estonia, France, Greece, Italy, Slovenia and Spain according to the four elements: earth, air, wind and fire.

They are specially adapted to adult learners and can be used to develop language or ICT skills among your students while enhancing intercultural understanding.

Alongside the stories, this digital book contains interactive exercises and is in Easy Read format. All the material in it can be downloaded and printed. Teachers and trainers will find tips and suggestions for how to use it on the Recommendations section of this site.

European partnership

Four Elements is an Erasmus+ KA204 project designed to highlight the importance of culture and heritage at European Union level. It aims to train educators working with adult learners to enable them to acquire the skills and competences, including linguistic and digital skills and competences, required in the European labour market.

The project is coordinated by : CVO EduKempen (Belgium). The partnership also includes DomSpain Consulting (Spain), The Central Library of Võru County (Estonia), Les Apprimeurs (France), Istituto dei Sordi di Torino (Italy), Slovenian Third Age University (Slovenia), MyArtist (Greece).

Erasmus+ project

Erasmus logo The European Commission's support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Waking up the Wind

FAIRY TALE

Main element: Air

Language of the original: Estonian

Date of origin: 1955

To find more information about the legend, access the Four Elements platform here.

Once the wind lay down for a rest and fell asleep. His slumber was neither long nor short, but all the people, animals and plants began to miss him greatly. Since the wind failed to appear around any corner, all animals, both big and small, started to look for him. But the wind was nowhere to be found. In the end, a spider went out in search of him. He wandered far and wide, climbing over high mountains, and discovered the wind sleeping by a huge rock. The spider wove his web over the wind and then woke him.

The wind woke up and learned from the spider how much everyone missed him and how eagerly they were waiting for him to return. The wind was glad to hear this and wanted to get up and hurry home, but warned the tiny spider beforehand, “When I get up, be sure to stay out of my way!”

The spider said, “Wait a moment, dear wind. Please wait until I return to my home over the mountains – then you can rise and blow as strongly as you can!”

The wind promised to grant his wish. On the very top of the highest mountain, the spider met a fly. “Hey, fly!”

“Hey, hey!”

“You know, I found the wind. He was sleeping by a huge rock on the other side of the mountain!”

In a blink the fly flew back and announced to everybody that he had found the wind and had woken him up from his sleep. As a reward, the fly was granted the privilege of being the first to taste any food.

Finally the spider himself returned, and heard that the fly had already received the reward for waking up the wind. No one believed that it had actually been the spider who had done the deed. The spider received no word for thanks whatsoever. From that day on, spiders weave their webs everywhere in order to catch flies and feast on them with great pleasure.

Tuule äratamine unest

MUISNAJUTT

Element: Õhk

Originaalkeel: Eesti

Pärinemise aeg: 1955

Rohkem infot legendi kohta leiad 4 elemendi veebilehelt siit.

Tuul heitis kord puhkama ja jäigi magama. Uni ei olnud pikk, ei olnud ka lühike, aga inimestel, loomadel ja taimedel oli tuulest suur puudus. Et tuult ikka veel kuskilt välja ei tulnud, hakkasid kõik loomad, suuremast kuni väiksemani, tuult taga otsima. Keegi aga ei leidnud.

Viimaks läks ämblik omakorda tuult otsima. Ta läks kaugele üle suure mäe ja leidiski tuule suure kivi kõrval magamas. Ämblik vedas võrgu tuulest üle ja äratas ta siis üles.

Tuul ärkas ning kuulis ämblikult, kui suurt puudust temast kõik tunnevad ja kuidas teda koju tagasi oodatakse. Tuul tahtis kohe tõusta, hoiatas aga enne väikest ämblikku: „Kui ma siit nüüd tõusen, siis hoia aga alt!“

Ämblik palus: „Oota natuke, tuuleke! Kannata seni, kuni olen tagasi üle mäe koju jõudnud, siis tõuse ja puhu, kuis jaksad!“

Tuul lubas ämbliku palve täita.

Keset mäge lendas ämblikule kärbes vastu.

„Tere, kärbes!“ hüüdis ämblik.

„Tere, tere!“

„Kas tead, ma leidsin tuule üles! Ta magas teisel pool mäge, suure kivi kõrval!“

Kärbes lendas silmapilk tagasi ja teatas teistele loomadele, et tema leidis tuule üles ja äratas ta unest. Loomad otsustasid tema vaeva tasuda. Tänutäheks lubati kärbsele siitpeale olla kõikide toitude esimeseks maitsjaks.

Viimaks jõudis ka ämblik pärale ja nüüd selgus, et kärbsele on juba tuule äratamise eest tasu makstud. Mitte keegi ei uskunud, et hoopis tema tuule oli leidnud. Ämblik ei saanud ainustki tänusõna.

Sellest ajast saadik punuvadki ämblikud oma võrkusid igale poole, et kärbsed sinna kinni jääksid ja ämblikud neid suure mõnuga nahka pista saaksid.

Päär, P., Türnpu, A. and Einasto, H. (2005). Estonian folktales. Tallinn: Varrak.