Our Culture
Culture is an important need of education and so are events that promote culture, cultivate inclinations and skills, and bring students into contact with selected representatives of arts and letters. A state-of-the-art fully equipped 500-seat cultural center hosts all the cultural events of the Schools.
Events such as the International Student Conference, the “Zografeios Agon” short story contest, the Panhellenic student “Art Competition,” and the Simulation of the European Parliament Plenary establish the Schools in the field of arts and letters.
International Student Literature Conference
Mandoulides Schools – Zografeio Lykeio
An original and creatively conceived kind of student conference has been taking place, with great success, since the spring of 2012 in Istanbul, organized by Mandoulides Schools and Zografeio Lykeio, under the auspices of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
Giannis Ritsos: The poet of Romiosini – E. Mandoulides Schools
International Student Literature Conference
Mandoulides Schools – Zografeio Lykeio
An original and creatively conceived kind of student conference has been taking place, with great success, since the spring of 2021, organized by Mandoulides Schools and Zografeio Lykeio, under the auspices of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
3rd International Student Literature Meeting “Rethinking Literature… without any clicks”
Events in Collaboration with Zografeio
Dionysis Savvopoulos with the Choir and Orchestra at Zografeio
120 Years of Operation of Zografeio Lykeio with Evanthia Rempoutsika
Thessaloniki – Istanbul: We Sing Together…with Dionysis Savvopoulos
Children Drawing on the Wall…with George Hatzinasios at the Philological Association “Parnassos”
Students from Istanbul and Thessaloniki sing with Kostas Makedonas
Honorary Events
Art Competition
The Art Competition is addressed to junior – senior high school students in Greece and the Diaspora and encompasses theater, poetry, music (musical and choral ensembles,) painting, photography, and video production. Students have the chance to cultivate and display their skills in artistic expression and creation, while recognizing the value of art in contemporary times in an educational environment that teaches and ensures fair play. Their participation in such a contest strengthens their confidence, improves their social skills, and is an ideal opportunity to meet with peers, communicate, and create. The Art Competition takes place every year on the Mandoulides Junior – Senior High School premises (12th km Highway Thessaloniki – N. Moudania, Thermi, Thessaloniki).
European Parliament’s Plenary Session Simulation
One of the most basic and essential goals of a Greek school with a European character and a global orientation is to strengthen its European identity and to cultivate a national and European conscience in its students. An important prerequisite to having a European identity is for the youth to come into contact and familiarize themselves with the statutory bodies of the European Union that support democracy and its future.
Art & Performance
Theater
The Schools, believing in the value of theater education, have introduced to their curriculum a variety of activities related to the art of theater.
From Kindergarten to High School, student theater groups perform ancient and modern drama. The aim of the theater group is to cultivate theatrical education. Through the collective experience of values, through cooperation, responsibility, dialogue, respect for others, critical thinking, expressive power, imagination, creativity and self-expression, students learn to love art and culture and acquire the ability to actively participate in broader cultural developments. Within a climate encouraging enthusiasm and confidence, performances that achieve the objectives of theatrical education are presented.
Orchestra and Choir
The cultivation of musical culture is a tradition at the Schools.
Students of the orchestra and the choir accompany school and extracurricular cultural events. Each ensemble, independently or together, has been awarded first place in the student cultural competitions of the Ministry of Education and at international music festivals abroad.
They have also collaborated with important Greek artists such as Manolis Mitsias, Giorgos Hatzinasios, Dionysis Savvopoulos, Lavrentis Mahairitsas, Dionysis Tsaknis, Nikos Papazoglou, Loudovikos of Anogia, Evanthia Reboutsika.
Concert with Evanthia Reboutsika
Music
This program is aimed at Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grade students. Objectives of the program are:
- Experiential approach to the world of music through games, drama and visual work
- Attainment of sufficient knowledge for children who want to continue their musical studies.
Exploring Movies at Mandoulides Schools
Mandoulides Schools promote students’ contact with the Seventh Art by presenting film-related programs titled Movie Camp, Cine Club, and Frame Rate, designed for students of the Elementary School, Junior, and Senior High School respectively.
As part of their cinematic experience, students engage actively in dialogue immediately following each screening, exploring the themes of the script, the director’s outlook, and the students’ own personal impressions of the film. The discussions are moderated by talented actor and director Panagiotis Kountouras, with whose help a voyage into the magical world of cinema – in pursuit of meanings hidden within each film – begins.
Movie Camp
Movie Camp is a cinematic adventure that is expected to fascinate the viewers. It features a selection of films from different genres, each characterized by directorial excellence and a bold artistic approach, that have a common denominator: the inner journey of a hero. Screening include The Truman Show (1998, directed by Peter Weir), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013, directed by Ben Stiller), and Inside Out (2015, directed by Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen).
Cine Club
Cine Club illuminates exciting human stories that teach love through a particularly interesting point of view. Screenings include Cinema Paradiso (1988, directed by Giuseppe Tornatore) and Dead Poets Society (1989, directed by Peter Weir).
Frame Rate
Frame Rate explores ideas and attitudes of people in real stories and places that, thanks to the cinematic lens, remain unchanged over time. Screenings include The Wave (2008, directed by Dennis Gansel) and Slumdog Millionaire (2008, directed by Danny Boyle).
Film Workshop
In Film Workshop, students learn the main types of cinema and the basics of screenplay and direction.
The main objectives of the program are:
- The participation and distinction in international, European and Panhellenic competitions under the auspices of the European Union and the Ministry of Culture.
- The participation in the Film Festival as well as the Documentary Festival of Thessaloniki.
- Getting into contact with professionals in the field of cinema.
Clubs
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Dance
Traditional Dances
Mandoulides Schools, out of love and respect for Greek Tradition, have established the Traditional Dance Festival. By teaching traditional dances, we help students understand the value of tradition and keep alive the elements that characterize us and unite us as a nation: our origins, our ancestry and our customs.
Ballet
Through musical and kinetic practice young students develop their musicality, rhythm and imagination while exercising their body, mind and their expressiveness. In classes with older students, the integrated teaching of classical ballet begins.
The aim of the program is for our students to learn to move in harmony, following the rhythm of music with coordinated movements. The result is the acquisition of grace and improvement of posture.
Modern Dance
The main objective of the program is for students to be initiated in the art of dance and kinesiological expression. Students are taught to stand and walk while properly controlling their body. Modern Dance increases muscle strength and develops joint agility while controlling body weight. All this is achieved with the help of diaphragm breathing, which enhances the heart and expands the elasticity of the lungs. The benefits, however, are not just physical. Music contributes to mental balance and dance is a manner of expression, an escape from daily routine.
Visual Arts
Rhetorical Speech Tournament in English - Forensics
Panhellenic Forensics Association tournament: dramatic and comic duets, oral interpretation of literature, oratory, impromptu speech, group discussion and, of course, debate, where students test their theatrical and public speaking skills in English. Students need to go through an audition to join the Forensics club and older students are given priority due to the requirements of the competition. Students who are interested in joining should indicate this club as their first option.
Literature and Discourse Programs
Debate
Since 2001, students of the Schools have trained in Greek language rhetorical speech contests, including debate, impromptu, motivational speech and expressive reading. In this way, they cultivate critical thinking, are familiarized with the formulation of grammatically and aesthetically correct discourse and practice rhetorical style, always within the framework of each respective contest’s rules. The result of their efforts is the great success achieved on a local and national level.
Club – Public Speaking
Dialogue plays a very important role in everyone’s life. It awakens people’s spiritual and mental powers and satisfies their innate need for communication. Dialectics was the basis of science and a faithful ally of knowledge.
As part of the above reasons, the public speaking club provides students with training in rhetoric and debate.
