The goal of the project entitled “The School Adopts a Monument” is to make the new generations aware of the protection and safeguarding of historical heritage sights, through the adoption of a monument by the schools and the consequent involvement of the students. The Institution of Turin for Responsible Education (ITER, original acronym) of the Municipal Department of Education is the organisation responsible for coordinating this initiative in the city.

The project is addressed to all the schools in primary and secondary education in the city. Each school involved in the project is responsible for a monument for a period of three years. Under the auspices of the teachers, the students become the protagonists of the activities that will be carried out in order to learn about the adopted monument in depth, and, later, explain this information to the citizens. To do so, the students make a historical, cultural and environmental study of the monument and then design a program for its care and appreciation.

The promotion of the monument is carried out through events, exhibitions and guided tours led by the students themselves. Likewise, exchange visits are made among students of different schools involved in the project in order for them to learn about other monuments.

The adopted monuments are churches, museums, historical palaces, fountains, statutes, etc., but also streets and squares that have a historical and relevant emotional meaning for the community. During the 2013-14 school-year, 49 monuments have been adopted by 45 schools, with more than 3,000 students participating.

“The School Adopts a Monument” it started with the involvement of different schools in Naples and later it began to spread in different Italian cities. At this time more than 80 Italian cities are involved in this initiative and, it has also spread in about 15 cities in Europe.

More information is available here.