Second Season of Mentoring Program “Roots and Wings: A History That Unites)” (Корені та Крила: історія, яка об’єднує) Begins in Prague
“For us, this program is an investment in the future of Ukrainian children who are growing up outside Ukraine today. We want them to be able not only to know the facts of history, but also to feel a connection to their homeland, understand its values, and form their own Ukrainian identity,” says Yaryna Yasynievych, Program Director of the Pylyp Orlyk Foundation.
The first in-person module of the program’s second season will take place in Prague on September 18–20, 2026. It is dedicated to the “Memories in Boxes” teaching methodology and work with the “Introduction to History” course for children aged 9–12. The program was developed by Natalia Omelchuk, Educational Projects Coordinator of the Pylyp Orlyk Foundation. The methodology helps teachers work with complex historical topics through interactive methods, research, and work with objects and personal stories.
“We deliberately begin the program with the question of how to talk to children about history at all. That is why the first module is devoted to research, working with objects, personal stories, and museum and urban space. We want the participants to first feel like students themselves, to see how interest in the past is born, and only then to transfer this experience to their own educational environments,” says Natalia Omelchuk, Educational Projects Coordinator of the Pylyp Orlyk Foundation.
Over the course of three days, participants will analyze pedagogical approaches, discuss opportunities for applying them in their own educational environments, master the methodological principles of teaching, and get acquainted with the “Memories in Boxes” course.
A separate block is devoted to inquiry-based learning. Participants will be able to experience the educational process from a student’s perspective — in order to later adapt the experience gained to working with their own groups of children. There will also be discussion of how to teach history beyond the traditional classroom. To this end, program participants will visit the National Museum in Prague, where they will carry out course sessions in practice and explore the possibilities of museum space for education.
Historian Volodymyr Poltorak will show program participants how to use a walk as a pedagogical tool. Participants will learn about the theoretical principles of creating educational routes and will work on how urban space, architecture, and historical locations can become part of the educational process.
The third day of training will begin with a walking lecture titled “Three Queens in the History of Prague and Medieval Ukraine-Rus,” to be led by historian Volodymyr Poltorak.
Through the stories of three women, program participants will be able to see the connections between the history of Prague and medieval Ukraine-Rus in a new light, and to feel how important the European historical context can be for teaching the history of Ukraine.
On the 19th, there will be a presentation of the book “To Survive in Hostomel: 21 Stories from a Hero City” by Kseniia Dvornikova, Head of the Communications Department of the Pylyp Orlyk Foundation. Everyone interested will be able to join the conversation about the personal stories of people who survived the Russian occupation of Hostomel, and about the role of human testimony in preserving the memory of the war.
The second season of the “Koreni ta Kryla: Istoriya, Yaka Ob’iednuie” (Roots and Wings: A History That Unites) program will run from September 2026 to June 2027.
“Koreni ta Kryla: Istoriya, Yaka Ob’iednuie” (Roots and Wings: A History That Unites) is a year-long educational and mentoring program of the Pylyp Orlyk Foundation for Ukrainian schools, civic organizations, educational initiatives, and cultural and educational centers working with Ukrainian children abroad.
Program organizer — Pylyp Orlyk Foundation.
Program partners — Embassy of Ukraine in the Czech Republic and the Ukrainian Institute in Prague.
