Here is an example of cooperative work of an elementary class and an intermediate class. One of the short stories written by pupils of class 2 in year 3 with the help of their families was chosen to be translated into English by the pupils of class 1 in year 7. Read the two texts below and enjoy yourselves!


UMA ILHA NO MEIO DO MUNDO

Era uma vez uma menina, que perdeu a sua mãe quando era muito pequenina, tinha ela dois anos.
Era uma família muito grande, eram onze filhos e eram muito pobres. Seu pai trabalhava como jardineiro numa quinta.
Rosinha acompanhava muitas vezes seu pai, porque os seus irmãos mais velhos, todos trabalhavam na agricultura.
Sua avó materna chamava-se Ana, e Rosinha gostava muito da sua avó porque ela lhe dava muitas vezes comida e carinho, mas infelizmente também a perdeu aos três anos de idade.
Cresceu, a sonhar com uma vida diferente, e gostava de ter aprendido outras coisas. Nunca andou na escola, não aprendeu a ler nem a escrever, e aos oito anos foi trabalhar para casa de um agricultor, a tomar conta de animais: vacas ovelhas e cavalos.
Aos dezassete anos perdeu o seu querido pai.
Trabalhou sempre na agricultura até aos seus vinte anos, quando um dos seus irmão, que não via há muitos anos, lhe propôs sair do país. Rosinha ficou toda entusiasmada e logo aceitou.
Rosa imediatamente de preparou e embarcou. Passou treze dias no mar, sem saber onde iria desembarcar. Esta jovem rapidamente sentiu um clima diferente e foi então que avistou uma ilha muito bonita e tropical; era a ilha de São Tomé e Príncipe.
Logo ali rosa pressentiu que iria ser muito feliz. Lá a esperavam quatro dos seus irmãos, que há muito tempo não via. Era uma ilha muito verde com lindas praias e um clima maravilhoso. Depressa se adaptou, aprendeu a ler e a escrever, trabalhou na padaria do seu irmão e, nas horas vagas, tirou um curso de costura.
Ao fim de dez anos, conheceu um português, pelo qual se apaixonou, casou-se e nasceu uma linda filha.
Rosa conseguiu encontrar a felicidade numa ilha no meio do mundo.
Essa menina é a minha querida avó materna!
Maria da Costa Oliveira, Class 2, Year 3 and her family



AN ISLAND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WORLD

Once upon a time, there was a girl that lost her mother when she was very small, she was two years old.
It was a very big family. Her parents had eleven children and they were very poor. Her father worked as a gardener in a farm.
She grew up dreaming of a different life and liked learning other things. She never went to school. She didn’t learn how to read or to write; when she was eight years old she went to work in a farm to take care of animals, such as, cows, sheep and horses.
Rosinha accompanied her father many times because all her older brothers worked in a farm.
Her grandmother's name was Ana and Rosinha liked her grandmother very much because she gave her food and affection but unfortunately she lost her at the age of three.
At seventeen she lost her dear father.
She always worked as a farmer until she was twenty, when one of her brothers, who she didn’t see in a long time, proposed her to leave the country.
Rosinha was very excited and she accepted.
Rosa immediately got ready and embarked. She spent thirteen days in the sea, without knowing where she would disembark. This young girl quickly felt a different climate and then saw a very beautiful and tropical island. It was the of S. Tomé e Príncipe.
Right there, Rosa felt that she would be very happy. Four of her brothers that she didn’t see for a long time waited for her there. It was a very green island, with beautiful beaches and a wonderful climate. Rosa quickly adapted to it, she learned how to read and write, she worked in her brother’s bakery and in her free times, she learned how to make clothes.
Ten years after, she met a Portuguese man and fell in love with him, they got married and they had a beautiful daughter.
Rosa found happiness on an island in the middle of the world.
That girl is my mother’s mother, my sweet grandmother!
Translation by Class 1, Year 7