Our target group are children, aged 4-6 years, their teachers and parents. The objective is to encourage active citizenship, to strengthen a fundamental feeling of one’s own worth, to teach working in groups and to find non-violent ways of solving a conflict. An elf mascot, Škratek Prijateljček, prepares various workshops which include team-building games and role-playing games where the children are the main actors. The impact is seen in less violence and better relationship between children.

In kindergartens in three least developed Slovenian regions:Zasavska, Posavska, Primorsko-notranjska

All three regions are below Slovenian average development. In these regions’ target groups, we find the following hazard factors: low self-confidence and feeling of one’s own worth, the lack of possibilities for empirical learning and the lack of awareness of consequences resulting from one’s own actions, the lack of knowledge and tolerance of others, being self-contained and distrustful of others, covert and overt violence that the adults do not or cannot notice.
The project is adapted to children aged from 4 to 6 years because we think this is the most logical age for the project, based on many years of experience of executing our preventive programmes. Children learn to be heard, how to think, how to discover and they actively participate in all of the project’s phases.

Our target group are children aged from 4 to 6 years, their teachers and their parents. Children from these parts of Slovenia do not have any possibilities to be included in free preventive programmes that encourage tolerance, non-violence, accepting diversity and regarding children as equals, mainly because of worse economy, lack of accessibility and increasing unemployment. Those children’s parents are often less educated and less conscious and that is why these preventive programmes are necessary for rural population for them to become active and tolerant European citizens. The project encourages positive values and integration in society for all rural children.

Škratek Prijateljček and a social worker visit each classroom. Š.P. introduces his mission through team-building games and hands over his tasks:
ŠKRATEK’S CALENDAR: our feelings as a weather forecast
CHAIR OF FRIENDSHIP: whoever sits on that chair receives 5 praises
TASKS DICE: each number is a task that about tolerance, non-violence, good manners, friendship
ŠKRATEK’S DIARY: every child writes/draws something that makes him/her the happiest at home
TEACHERS' TASK: changing the rules: instead of saying what we must not do, we say what we can do
PARENTS' TASK: what do they expect from teachers and then they put the list on a notice board
At the end Š.P. visits again and prepares a theatre play which also serves as final evaluation.

-Children will be more closely connected with each other and general well-being in the kindergarten will improve.
-Violence between children will be reduced & they will learn alternative ways of solving conflicts.
-They will learn how to express and describe their feelings.
-Those now excluded from play groups will more easily get involved and connect with the others.
-They will strengthen their fundamental feeling of their own worth and learn to accept diversity.
-Parents will be able to speak their mind. They will place their confidence in kindergarten’s services and European institutions in general.
-Teachers will learn new ways of working with children which will contribute to essential improvement of relations between children and between teachers.

Children will be more connected which will result in reduction of violence in their group, they will learn to solve potential conflicts with conversation, and they will learn to use non-violent ways for solving the conflicts. They will learn how to listen to one another and to talk about their emotions. The feeling of one’s own worth and of belonging to a group will increase with those who are left out. Teachers will come to know a new mode of work based on praise, and recognition of positive behaviour. Parents will learn what their children need the most–their time, listening to them and playing with them. Children will be better understood and more easily educated into active citizens with Škratek Prijateljček’s strong message about non-violence, good manners and respect for one another.

With introducing our project ŠKRATEK PRIJATELJČEK in less developed Slovenian regions we accomplish our mission which is spreading a message about friendship, acceptance, tolerance, respect and learning to solve any conflict in acceptable, non-violent ways. We find motivation in children who are our future and the most we can give them are tools that will teach them to live with one another in a way where diversity will enrich them, tools that will teach them to encourage one another, to cooperate with one another, to help one another and to grow up together.

Coordination and material – 4000 EUR
Preventive workshops realization and handing over the tasks – 25,000 EUR
Final evaluation (Children and teachers actively participate in the evaluation, children will talk about their feelings at the beginning and at the end of the project. Teachers will talk about project's aims and visible results. We also prepare a theatre play.) – 15,000 EUR
Travel expenses – 3000 EUR
Public relations and advertisement – 2000 EUR
Material preparation – 1000 EUR

We would be happy for your feedback – did we describe our project in an understandable way and can CIVIC EUROPE visualize its practical part? We are looking forward to hearing any kind of feedback information, additional ideas and possible questions.