Since two local teachers came up with the idea of commemorating the Holocaust with the novel idea of a paperclips project, the idea has really taken off.

So far, Katie Winterburn of Cumnock Academy and Lauren Dixon of Grange Academy, Kilmarnock, have encouraged pupils in the two schools to collect around 50,000 paperclips, which will be used to form a memorial to Holocaust victims.

And the project has now spread to other schools, including Kilmarnock, Loudoun and St Joseph's Academies. Primaries taking part include, Annanhill, Drongan, Netherthird, New Cumnock, Patna, St. John's and Park School - and more schools are joining all the time.

The Paperclips Project aims to collect one million paperclips to represent Holocaust victims from all walks of life. In the 1940s, paperclips were worn as a silent protest against the Nazi regime in Norway.

Ultimately, the two teachers are hoping that a huge number of paperclips collected by schoolchildren will form a permanent memorial in East Ayrshire. A similar project was done previously in the USA, when Whitwell Middle School, Tennessee, collected 30 million paperclips in 1998.

The East Ayrshire project has already featured in the Times Educational Supplement and the Sunday Post, while Lauren and Katie have been invited to participate in an event during Holocaust Memorial Week (25-31 January) at which American Head Teacher Linda Hooper, who originally ran the campaign in the USA, will be appearing.

East Ayrshire's paperclips will provide a focus for activities across the authority on Holocaust Memorial Day - 27 January. Theme for the day is The Legacy of Hope, which offers an opportunity to listen to the voices of wartime survivors.

Pupils who have visited Auschwitz will be leading assemblies on the theme in their schools. In Grange, one English class is working on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas; Modern Languages classes are working on various projects including Anne Frank's diary in German; in Drama, pupils are working on Holocaust-themed scripts, and Art students are creating memorials.

History teacher Katie Winterburn said: "Schools are doing a range of cross-curricular activities, with the focus on learning from the Holocaust, rather than remembering horrors. In Cumnock, classes in English, Modern Studies, RE and History are also looking at the Holocaust theme, while sixth year pupils Mark Ferris and Amy Garcia have organised a special assembly for pupils."

English teacher Lauren Dixon said: "The Paperclips Project allows pupils to explore issues such as prejudice, religious intolerance and immigration. It provides cross-curricular working opportunities which incorporate key elements of Curriculum for Excellence.

"There are jars in every classroom to collect paperclips which pupils bring in. But we are always on the lookout for more!"

Councillor Douglas Reid, Leader of the Council, said: "This project is about understanding the legacy left by all the victims and survivors of the Holocaust, not just that of one particular group of people."

Iain Linton, Spokesperson for Lifelong Learning, said: "Through the investigation of this legacy, we hope to allow our pupils to take a step towards conquering inequality and prejudice in modern-day society."