For Paola's vocational school, May is its busiest months: a number of students were involved in three mobility studies, all pertaining to three different European projects. Teachers, learning support assistants and pupils benefited from unique educational experiences thanks to Erasmus projects. This was the wrapping up of the first year of these three projects, from which twenty-six students benefited from the various mobility studies held throughout this scholastic year. This was a very enriching experience for the students as apart from being exposed to culturally diverse backgrounds, for many of them, this was their first experience abroad.

In the first mobility, ten students, accompanied by their teachers and learning support assistants, visited  the Italian town of Viterbo, as guests of the Istituto Orioli.   There, the students and their teachers were involved in various activities which fall under the spectrum of the project title 'Truly Independent'. Activities ranged from learning the art of making Italian pizzas and preparing lasagne to the cooking of other types of Italian pastries. Students followed intensive courses in how to serve these types of Italian food.  A second batch of students, together with two teachers, flew to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. This was also the result of another Erasmus project, entitled, 'Personalised Teaching: the Key to Success in Education- Tools'.  Students participated in teamwork activities with other foreign students, partners in this project. These ranged from literacy to numeracy activities to different types of sports.  The third mobility for ALP staff and students within the Erasmus framework was to the town of Nysa in Poland. Our students were involved in cookery and sports sessions, as part of the project 'Feel Good to Live Together'. These activities were enjoyed by all.

In the meantime, the school's Erasmus co-ordinator Ms. Antoinette Schembri was the special guest of the German National Agency. She participated in a conference in Bonn, entitled 'Best practice results from Erasmus+ A European Conference on Dissemination and Impact in the School Sector'. ALP's Erasmus projects were submitted to the hosting organisation and one of these projects was selected to presented at this prestigious German Conference. This conference was attended by other Erasmus school projects co-ordinators from all over Europe.

At this conference, Ms. Schembri gave a power point presentation about one of the projects that this school has won and explained how Erasmus can be beneficial to students following vocational courses. In addition, Ms. Schembri set up a poster exhibition showcasing all the projects won by ALP. The conference was a great opportunity for disseminating our school and also for making new contacts.

All the above events were very rewarding experiences for both staff and students. Having seen the good effect that the three Erasmus projects are generating at school, ALP Paola does not plan to sit on its laurels but will be striving hard to continue working so that more students benefit from mobility studies in the years to come.