The 27th day of January, the day to remember Saint Sava, has been celebrated in schools since 1840, in remembrance of Serbia’s great illuminator and the forefather of the idea of enlightenment in our parts. Due to the current epidemiological circumstances, the children were not obliged to come to school on that day, but Saint Sava was duly celebrated across a number of lessons on several other days. 

January, the month when we start our second term, is marked by the presence of our enlightener Saint Sava. This is a time when many activities in our lessons are dedicated to him. 

Folk traditions and legends about Saint Sava through the lens of modern apps

Serbian language and literature lessons in the seventh grade covered several texts on St Sava as the first Serbian writer and the person who inspired a nation and many contemporary artists, and was the subject of a number of legends and original works of poetry.

The students learned about folk legends and traditions concerning Saint Sava in a somewhat unusual, quite contemporary way. Namely, they turned the selected text into a comic using an app called Pixton.

This seemingly light activity, in fact, required the students to activate much of their knowledge: to recall how Saint Sava is presented in visual arts and what his role is in the given text (teacher, abbot, writer, etc.), to study the text well and organise it so that it matches the story, as well as to use English vocabulary (as that is the language used for the selection of all elements of a panel in the app – person’s appearance, background, movement, facial expression), and learn what a respected person Saint Sava was to deserve so many stories about him as a man of letters, teacher and monk who respects and helps the Serbian people.

Here is one of the best works from this series, by 7-1 student Iva Vuletić. She chose the legend “Saint Sava, Young Man and Old Man”.

2-3 WROTE A POEM WITH LOVE TO GLORIFY SAINT SAVA

The students from 2-3 showcased their creativity through a playful poem dedicated to Saint Sava.

Situation’s not quite dandy,
Tasks like this come in quite handy.
There’s no show due to the virus,
But that’s not a problem for us.
We studied, read and learned about Sava,
a great prince and people lover.
We sung a lot in celebration,
made many a presentation.
We drew him and had lots of fun,
In fact, it was an easy run.
Sava’s day is not a toy,
But we do hope you enjoy!

Presentations on Saint Sava and numerous other activities realised by students and teachers gathered in Google Classroom

The purpose of Google educational аpps is to improve the teaching process through facilitating the access to educational materials, supporting project-based teaching and speeding up the communication with the teachers. Educational apps let Savremena’s students learn in an advanced, contemporary way. At Savremena, we use them regularly, and teach the children how technology can be used in safe and useful ways.

This time, we used Google Classroom to make an exhibition of sorts. The exhibited world included a presentation by girls from younger grades which you can see here. There is also an online book created by older students.

A presentation given by Savremena’s younger (female) students

The online book Literature in the Time of St Sava

Humanitarianism as a perfect highlight dedicated to the spirit of Saint Sava

Savremena’s students delivered gifts for children without parental care, which were funded through the New Year’s humanitarian bazaar.

Saint Sava helped school and hospitals; he cared for the sick and performed countless acts of charity. On this day of celebration, we reminded ourselves that the spirit of Saint Sava lives on in our hearts, and that we should always remain humane and charitable. We are proud of Savremena’s students for being exactly like that.

Cake sanctification ceremony 

School representatives attended the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Dimitrije and had the traditional Slava cake sanctified. Savremena’s principal, Jasmina Franolić, congratulated this special day to all students and teachers, expressing her wish that next year, Sava’s Day would be celebrated with children, as had always been the case until this winter, and that it should always be the day when we remember why we chose this profession, and when children fully feel why school is the warmest, most beautiful place to grow. 

Take a look at Savremena’s students’ works showcasing their Sava’s Day creativity.