Activities organised to occupy children while their parents are at work during school holidays. A range of play, sports and cultural activities are offered, and usually take place at the same times as classes would on a normal school day. The activities are organised by each school's AMPA / association of parents of pupils and approved by its Consell Escolar / school council. Various Entitats d'educació en el lleure / Spare-time education organisations also organise summer activity programmes.
Centres for sociocultural activities. Their aims are to promote public-spiritedness, to cooperate with associations and to provide spaces and resources for participation and exchanges among citizens and groups. Each centre organises its own quarterly programme of social and recreational activities. Such centres also offer workshops on aspects of popular culture, including Sardanes / Sardana dances and traditional activities.
Groups that act out a popular Catalan tradition involving erecting and taking down human towers, which can be as many as 9 levels high. Each type of tower has a specific name, depending on its height and the number of people on each level.
Organisations that promote familiarity with and respect for an area through mountain sports, complemented by environmental, cultural and recreational activities.
Private organisations set up in a specific area or neighbourhood, and which are recognised by the authorities and the corresponding federation. The members of such clubs are people who share an interest and certain characteristics, and who join together and support their teams at different sports events.
A form of cooperation involving immigrants acting as a driving force behind development in their countries of origin. Immigrants' contributions and initiatives enrich their societies of origin economically and culturally, thus strengthening cooperation between their native and host countries.
An expression that refers to citizens' bonds with one another, as individuals and as a group.
Correfocs or nighttime processions of groups of devils and fantastic beasts (dragons, eagles, etc.) are a popular tradition in Catalonia. During such processions, the devils and beasts set off lots of fireworks while people dance around them to the rhythm of drums.
Activities organised by Entitats d'educació en el lleure / Spare-time education organisations and ONG / NGOs, consisting of a stay lasting a few days in a building called a casa de colònies, in a natural environment. The activities in question are recreational and are designed for school holidays. They focus on values such as friendship, team spirit and respect for nature, whilst aiding children's personal growth. The term campaments is used when children actually sleep in tents rather than in a casa de colònies.
Traditional trade, which revolves around profits and market rules, underlines the poverty that exists in developing countries. Fair trade, on the other hand, is a means of cooperation based on an alternative system of commerce, which offers producers direct access to the markets of countries in the north, and fair, equal working and trading conditions that guarantee them a sustainable livelihood. The main principles of fair trade are decent wages, non-exploitation of child labour, sexual equality, respect for the environment and labour-related rights for workers. Fair trade products are available in specialised shops and are becoming more and more common in supermarkets in Catalonia.
A concept intended to emphasise the involvement of families in their children's learning process. Education does not only take place at school. Families have a vital supporting role to play in order for the education process to be complete. Families are part of a school and therefore participate in it through its various representative bodies. See the Education section of this website.
An expression that refers to the time-related difficulties that people who work face in their everyday life. Such reconciliation involves people, and women in particular, having more time to look after their family, without that entailing any kind of work-related discrimination. Lawmakers are beginning to introduce a number of legal measures for the protection of workers' rights, in addition to establishing rules on and applying benefits for businesses in order to promote employment.
The governing body of a primary or secondary school. It is formed by representatives of teaching staff, administrative and other non-teaching staff, pupils, parents and the association of parents of pupils, plus a representative of the town or city council.
An advisory body that aims to involve different sectors of a town or city in the process of establishing municipal policies. A wide range of interests are represented within such councils, due to there being a large number of participants from highly varied backgrounds. A municipal advisory council's work is carried out at full council sessions and through a standing committee and work groups. Based on analysis, reflection and debate, the work groups draw conclusions and propose measures to be approved by the council. The council then passes on information on the measures it approves to the different municipal bodies responsible for the corresponding areas.