This year, just like last year, we are enthusiastically celebrating World Green Roof Day, once again placing a special emphasis on educating the younger generation. We strongly believe in the importance of forming a harmonious relationship between children and the environment from a very young age. Early education plays an essential role in developing a healthy ecological awareness, and through interactive and creative activities, we want to show children how important nature is in our lives, especially in urban environments.
Through special workshops and activities held in schools and kindergartens, we created opportunities for children to interact directly with nature, to understand the role it plays in cities and how sustainable solutions such as green roofs or walls can be part of our common future. The activities were designed to awake the curiosity and interest of the little ones, offering them a practical experience, but also a considerable dose of fun.
We believe that ecological education from a young age is an essential first step in building a responsible generation. Through education, we can open new perspectives for children, form a sustainable vision for them, and show them how humans and nature can exist in balance. We can teach them why it is so important for nature to be present not only in forests or parks, but also in the middle of cities, on buildings and streets, and how every gesture counts in protecting the environment. Through this type of practical and conscious learning, children can become involved adults with healthy thinking, who will actively contribute to building a greener and healthier future.
To celebrate this day, we prepared two special projects, designed to bring nature closer to children and turn learning about sustainability into an engaging experience. One of the projects was intended for students in the preparatory class, and the other for kindergarten groups. We wanted each activity to be adapted to the children’s level of understanding, so that they can learn through play, creation and direct experimentation.
As part of the activity in the preparatory class, we started with a small interactive presentation, in which we talked about the differences between the natural and urban environment, the importance of healthy ecosystems and the need to “green” cities. We explained to the children why pollinators – such as bees or butterflies – are essential for the balance of nature and why it is vital that we offer them food and shelter in cities. We discussed the cooling effect of plants, how vegetation helps regulate urban temperatures and manage rainwater. We followed together the water cycle in nature and understood why we need to take care of this precious resource.
Then, we moved on to the creative part: the children studied what the layers of an extensive green roof look like, and then they put their imagination into practice. With diligent hands and eyes full of enthusiasm, they built mini models of green houses. Each child created an imaginary house, painted and decorated with windows, plants and flowers, in the most cheerful and colorful ways possible. We filled the houses with special extensive green roof substrate and added a living mat of Sedum plants on top. The result? Each child went home with a living green house, which they will take care of with care and love, until fourth grade, when we will meet again and observe together how they have grown and developed.
In kindergarten, we carried out an outdoor activity that brought a lot of joy to the children. We built a green wall from a recycled pallet, which we filled with different types of aromatic herbs. We created a nutritious mixture of mineral substrate and rich soil, suitable for plant growth, and prepared the planters with special materials – geotextile and water retention foils – to make maintenance easier. Together with the children, we painted the pallet, made the supports and planted the herbs. We told them about their culinary uses and medicinal effects, we touched the leaves, smelled them, and we began to learn about how nature provides us with valuable resources even in the smallest plants.
The project does not end here – it will continue for a longer period, during which the children will learn how to take care of the plants, harvest leaves and flowers, discover new tastes and smells and learn more about each species.
The entire activity was experienced with enthusiasm, the children were curious and involved, and their eyes lit up at every step. It was a successful combination of fun and learning, an ecology lesson offered through play and practice.
At the end, each child also received a fascinating coloring page – a detailed urban scene, in which they had to identify all the green roofs and walls hidden among the buildings and color them as green and vibrant as possible. Through this, children can practice their observation skills and understand that green elements can exist in the most unexpected places in the city.
The coloring page is available for any child with a creative flair, can be downloaded from here.
The wide smiles and sincere joy of the children have shown us, once again, that such activities are not only welcome, but absolutely necessary. When we offer the little ones the chance to learn through play, through direct contact with the soil, plants and natural materials, the experience becomes memorable and irreplaceable. It is a form of education that plants the seeds of sustainable thinking – seeds that, with care and patience, will sprout in their minds and souls.
Looking back on this event, we are convinced that it is worth continuing, developing and expanding these initiatives. Nature and children make an extraordinary team, and through such projects we get closer to our common dream: a greener, healthier and more balanced future for all.
