This is the meaning of the three colours of our flag: green is the colour of our plains; white is the colour of our snowy summits and red is the fallen’s blood.
Our country is a Republic and the President of our republic is Giorgio Napolitano. His official residence is “il Palazzo del Quirinale”, in Rome.
SCHOOL
Our school “Galliano Binotti” – PERGOLA- ITALY goes back to 65 years ago.
In our country school starts in the first week of September and finishes in the first / second week of June. In my school, lessons start at ten past 8 a.m. and finish at ten past one p.m. Twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they finish at ten past four p.m.
We study two foreign languages: English and French.
We study Italian, History, Geography, Maths, Physical Science, English, French, Technology, Art, IT, Music, Physical Education (PE) and Religious Education (RE).
In ten days, on 20th December, we have Christmas holidays until 7th January; we have a week’s holiday for Easter; the summer holidays usually start in the first week of June and finish in the second week of September. During Christmas holidays we decorate our own Crèche and Christmas tree. We also sleep a lot! In summer, most of us go to the seaside in Fano or Marotta, not too far from our village. Every day our parents give us some money because we buy our snack (pizza) at school.
TRADITIONS
An important Italian tradition is the Christmas Eve dinner: we prepare a lot of fish dishes. These dishes do not contain any meat: this is due to the fact that the night before a religious feast is considered a vigil. During Christmas time, many families build their own “Presepio” (crèche) that represents the Nativity scene, the birth of Christ. In our village it is possible to see the living outdoor crèche. On Christmas Eve we have a great dinner, but we don’t eat meat. After that we usually play games, then we go to the church at midnight. At night Father Christmas comes to our houses and brings lots of presents. On Christmas Day we have lunch with our relatives, we usually eat: “cappelletti”(pasta filled with meat), meat, “panettone” and “torrone”.La Befana is onether tradition. Each year on the eve of the Epiphany children hang stockings up the chimneys and hope that La Befana visit their houses during the night. This kindly old witch leaves good children toys and bad ones a lump of coal in their stockings.
Another tradition is the Carnevale, from the Epiphany on January 6 to the beginning of Quaresima. In this period there are a lot of parades and masquerade balls, entertainment and music. Children throw “coriandoli” (confetti).
Pesce d’Aprile! April Fool’s Day. The traditional “pesce d’Aprile” consists of attaching a paper cutout of a “pesciolino” (small fish) to the shoulders of a school companion. Then everyone asks: “L’hai visto? – Chi? – il pesce d’Aprile!” have you seen? – Who? – The April Fool!).
Italian Valentine. “Il giorno della festa degli innamorati” is a celebration for lovers. Gift can be red roses, a perfume or the famous Baci Perugina: these small chocolates contain a small sheet of paper with a romantic poetic quote in four languages.
Our national holidays are: 25th April, 1st May, 2nd June, 15th August, 1st November, 8th December.
In our country there is the Neapolitan song, “canzone Napoletana”: a traditional Neapolitan song is “O sole mio”. The “cantautori” singer-songwriter traditions are also popular . Italian folk music is an important part of our traditional music : each region has its own styles, instruments and dances.
Some of the most popular names for men are: Andrea, Luca, Marco, Francesco, Matteo, Alessandro, Davide, Simone, Federico, Lorenzo, Mattia, Stefano, Giuseppe, Riccardo, Roberto, Enrico, Nicola, and Michele. Some women’s names: Antonella, Lucia, Giulia, Chiara, Alessia, Eleonora, Francesca, Federica, Silvia, Claudia, Anna, Ilaria, Elena, Giada, Cristina, Maria and Veronica.
Our country is a Republic and the President of our republic is Giorgio Napolitano. His official residence is “il Palazzo del Quirinale”, in Rome.
SCHOOL
Our school “Galliano Binotti” – PERGOLA- ITALY goes back to 65 years ago.
In our country school starts in the first week of September and finishes in the first / second week of June. In my school, lessons start at ten past 8 a.m. and finish at ten past one p.m. Twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they finish at ten past four p.m.
We study two foreign languages: English and French.
We study Italian, History, Geography, Maths, Physical Science, English, French, Technology, Art, IT, Music, Physical Education (PE) and Religious Education (RE).
In ten days, on 20th December, we have Christmas holidays until 7th January; we have a week’s holiday for Easter; the summer holidays usually start in the first week of June and finish in the second week of September. During Christmas holidays we decorate our own Crèche and Christmas tree. We also sleep a lot! In summer, most of us go to the seaside in Fano or Marotta, not too far from our village. Every day our parents give us some money because we buy our snack (pizza) at school.
TRADITIONS
An important Italian tradition is the Christmas Eve dinner: we prepare a lot of fish dishes. These dishes do not contain any meat: this is due to the fact that the night before a religious feast is considered a vigil. During Christmas time, many families build their own “Presepio” (crèche) that represents the Nativity scene, the birth of Christ. In our village it is possible to see the living outdoor crèche. On Christmas Eve we have a great dinner, but we don’t eat meat. After that we usually play games, then we go to the church at midnight. At night Father Christmas comes to our houses and brings lots of presents. On Christmas Day we have lunch with our relatives, we usually eat: “cappelletti”(pasta filled with meat), meat, “panettone” and “torrone”.La Befana is onether tradition. Each year on the eve of the Epiphany children hang stockings up the chimneys and hope that La Befana visit their houses during the night. This kindly old witch leaves good children toys and bad ones a lump of coal in their stockings.
Another tradition is the Carnevale, from the Epiphany on January 6 to the beginning of Quaresima. In this period there are a lot of parades and masquerade balls, entertainment and music. Children throw “coriandoli” (confetti).
Pesce d’Aprile! April Fool’s Day. The traditional “pesce d’Aprile” consists of attaching a paper cutout of a “pesciolino” (small fish) to the shoulders of a school companion. Then everyone asks: “L’hai visto? – Chi? – il pesce d’Aprile!” have you seen? – Who? – The April Fool!).
Italian Valentine. “Il giorno della festa degli innamorati” is a celebration for lovers. Gift can be red roses, a perfume or the famous Baci Perugina: these small chocolates contain a small sheet of paper with a romantic poetic quote in four languages.
Our national holidays are: 25th April, 1st May, 2nd June, 15th August, 1st November, 8th December.
In our country there is the Neapolitan song, “canzone Napoletana”: a traditional Neapolitan song is “O sole mio”. The “cantautori” singer-songwriter traditions are also popular . Italian folk music is an important part of our traditional music : each region has its own styles, instruments and dances.
Some of the most popular names for men are: Andrea, Luca, Marco, Francesco, Matteo, Alessandro, Davide, Simone, Federico, Lorenzo, Mattia, Stefano, Giuseppe, Riccardo, Roberto, Enrico, Nicola, and Michele. Some women’s names: Antonella, Lucia, Giulia, Chiara, Alessia, Eleonora, Francesca, Federica, Silvia, Claudia, Anna, Ilaria, Elena, Giada, Cristina, Maria and Veronica.
