The Month of School Gardens has begun! We helped extend time spent outdoors.

Removing barriers that prevent people from spending time outdoors with children, explaining that the school garden is just as important a part of the kindergarten as the classroom, and most importantly, extending outdoor time with children to a whole morning. These were among the goals of the Month of School Gardens in 2024.

How could people get involved?

The best way was to visit www.mesicskolnichzahrad.cz and download the activity plan for May along with the weekly challenges for preschool children. These challenges naturally motivated teachers and parents to gradually extend outdoor time with children. The garden is also a classroom!

In the first week of May, teachers were encouraged to move one regular indoor activity outside, such as art class, math preparation, or nature observation. This extended outdoor time by about 30 minutes. In the second week, the goal was to bring an operational activity outside, such as snack time or morning meetings, adding another 30 minutes of outdoor time.

What did schools and parents need to do?

As part of the Month of School Gardens, participants had access to two free high‑quality educational webinars. To join, they simply had to follow the instructions on the website, download a poster, track their outdoor time, and update their data on the interactive map.

The International School Grounds Alliance (ISGA) oversees the initiative globally. In the Czech Republic, the Karel Komárek Family Foundation leads the effort, advocating for the benefits of outdoor learning for children's and teachers' overall well‑being. The foundation collaborates with the Učíme se venku platform, which prepares activities for primary and secondary school students throughout the Month of School Gardens.