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.

Charles V's pot

LEGEND

Main element: Water

Language of the original: Dutch

Date of origin: 16th century

Origin of the legend: The painting "Boerendans" of Pieter Bruegel the Old had a man on it with a pot with three handles.

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

Typical story of the village of Olen.

Did you know Charles V was a great beer lover? According to the legends, he always brought a barrel of beer on his travels. And he never refused a glass of beer at the inns he used to stay in.

In Olen, where he used to hunt, they still like to talk about the legend of "the three-handled pot". The market place in Olen has even dedicated a statue to him. The farmers of Olen, who usually drank their beer from a pot without handles, wanted to show Charles V they were well-mannered too and made him a pot with one handle. When he arrived on his horse at the inn, the innkeeper’s wife came outside carrying a pot of beer with a thick layer of foam. She held it by the handle and handed it to him. Charles V was forced to take hold of the pot itself. He told her, "Madam, next year you’ll need a pot with two handles, that will be a lot easier." And that’s exactly what happened.

The next year, the innkeeper’s wife handed Charles V a pot with two handles, but she held onto both of them. "This still doesn’t work, madam. Next year, you will need one with three handles. That will be more convenient," Charles V said.

When Charles V stopped at the inn for the third year in a row, the woman welcomed him with a pot with three handles. Again, she held two of the handles, and the third handle was turned toward her chest. Charles V grabbed onto the third handle by reaching underneath the pot.

"Well, madam, it would have been as difficult as last year, had I not known there was a third handle," Charles said.

De pot van Keizer Karel

LEGENDE

Element: Water

Originele taal: Nederlands

Datum van ontstaan: 16e eeuw

Oorsprong van de legende: The painting "Boerendans" of Pieter Bruegel the Old had a man on it with a pot with three handles.

Om meer informatie te vinden over de legende, ga langs deze weg naar het 4elements platform.

Wist je dat Keizer Karel een groot liefhebber was van bier ? Volgens de legendes bracht hij altijd een bierton mee op zijn reizen. En hij weigerde nooit een glas bier in de herbergen waar hij verbleef. In Olen, waar hij regelmatig ging jagen, spreekt men nog altijd over de Pot van Keizer Karel. Op het marktplein is er een standbeeld voor hem opgericht. De boeren van Olen die hun bier dronken uit potten zonder oren, wilden aan Keizer Karel laten zien dat ze ook welgemanierd waren en maakten voor hem een pot met één oor. Toen hij op zijn paard toekwam aan de herberg ging de dienster naar buiten met een pot met bier met een dikke laag schuim. Ze hield de pot vast bij het oor en gaf deze aan hem. Keizer Karel was verplicht om de pot zelf vast te nemen. "Mevrouw, volgend jaar zal je een pot met 2 oren nodig hebben zodat het voor mij gemakkelijker is". En dat is precies wat er gebeurde. Het volgende jaar gaf de dienster een pot met 2 oren aan Kiezer Karel, maar ze hield beide oren met haar 2 handen vast. "Dit werkt nog steeds niet, mevrouw. Volgend jaar zal je een pot met 2 oren nodig hebben. Dit zal handiger zijn" zei Keizer Karel. Wanneer Keizer Karel voor het derde jaar op een rij stopte aan de herberg, verwelkomde de vrouw hem met een pot met 3 oren. Ook nu weer hield ze de pot vast aan 2 oren en met het derde oor naar haar lichaam gericht. Keizer Karel greep naar het derde oor langs de onderkant van de pot. "Wel mevrouw, het zou even moeilijk geweest zijn als vorig jaar, als ik niet geweten zou hebben dat er een derde oor zou zijn" zei Keizer Karel.

Author, Dimitri Goosens. 2015-12-18. Fans of Flanders: once upon a time: De pot van Olen.