In the sunny school garden of Brda Elementary School in Split, everything has been smelling of something new these days: creativity, togetherness, and collaboration. Students, teachers, collaborators, and partners from Germany gathered on November 6, 2025 for the official opening of the outdoor classroom, part of the Outdoor Classroom Day initiative.
The school garden at Brda Elementary School underwent significant changes over the past year. While in September 2024 it looked like an ordinary space for play and outdoor learning, by November 2025 the garden was shining in its full glory. The modern outdoor classroom is the result of collaborative work within the project VolonTERRA—Active Schools Initiate Changes!.
More than 70 adults – teachers, volunteers, and project partners – along with more than 30 Brda Elementary pupils participated in this cheerful event. Their smiles and energy gave a special tone to the entire celebration. To make the opening truly memorable, we designed engaging activities for both children and teachers, held both inside the school and in the new outdoor classroom.
Flowers, grass, and colors that come to life under the paintbrush
The first activity held in the outdoor classroom was a workshop for teachers “Activities in the outdoor classroom.” The workshop was led by Korinna Freihof, a graduate landscape architect from Germany and a staff member of our project partners at the Regional center for environmental education Hollen.
During the workshop, participants became true scientists and artists. The topic was extracting colors from natural materials such as flowers, fruits, and grasses. However, Freihof didn’t reveal everything right away. Instead of giving them ready-made instructions, she encouraged participants to think, explore, and experiment.
With enthusiasm, participants mixed, mashed, and created their own color tones, trying to guess which plant would produce the most intense hue. The result was colorful artwork, smiling faces, and a courtyard that briefly turned into a small open-air art studio.
The second part of the workshop focused on exchanging ideas. Teachers and representatives of partner organizations shared suggestions on how to creatively use the outdoor classroom in teaching, and the ideas kept coming. Some proposed learning cardinal directions by observing the position and movement of the sun during the day; others envisioned studying tree age by counting annual rings on stumps and linking that data to historical events; while some suggested measuring and comparing the microclimate in different parts of the school garden.
Each idea opened new possibilities for connecting theory and practice. Learning geography, history, and science became vivid, tangible, and close to the students. The outdoor classroom proved to be not only a teaching space but also an open-air laboratory – a place where curiosity naturally turns into knowledge.
Workshop ‘Animal tracks‘
The second workshop for teachers was led by high school professor Oliver Schaefers-Lehmkuhl, an external collaborator of the Regional Center for Environmental Education Hollen. Through searching for animals in the school garden, recognizing animal sounds, and studying and making casts of animal tracks, participants enjoyed a blend of outdoor and classroom activities. At times, they felt just like Ollie’s students: curious explorers of nature!
Professor Ollie showed participants tracks and prints of various animals, such as foxes, wildcats, ducks, and deer. Many had never had the chance to recognize them before, and he taught them how to distinguish their shapes and patterns in nature.
Children’s workshop ‘Zero waste cooking‘
The workshop “Zero-waste cooking” was perhaps the most fun workshop of the day – at least if you ask the children! Led by professional chefs from the association ACMER – Association of Chefs from Mediterranean and European Regions, students from classes 6.a and 6.b of Brda Elementary tried their hand at a true culinary challenge.
Together with the chefs, they prepared homemade rolls, pasta with tomato and zucchini sauce, and candied almonds. They participated enthusiastically in every stage of cooking. They chopped and sautéed vegetables for the sauce, cooked and drained pasta, and then tried making the sweet candied almonds.
At the end, they proudly tasted their own dishes and the only tears shed were the ones caused by chopping onions!
Learning under the open sky – small changes, big impacts
The project VolonTERRA—Active Schools Initiate Changes!, implemented by the Sunce association since 2024, aims to encourage schools to become places where nature is not just observed through a window but becomes an integral part of everyday learning and exploration.
By opening this outdoor classroom, Brda Elementary has become another shining example of a school that lives sustainability in practice through learning, play, volunteering, and cooperation.
We extend a big thank-you to all project participants, especially the students of Brda Elementary and principal Katarina Zelić, whose support was crucial for the realization of such a large undertaking. We also thank teachers Vedrana Šilović, Tina Ivelja, Danijela Radić, and Zrinka Banić for their engagement in project activities, organization, and volunteer actions for the classroom’s design.
Our gratitude also goes to the students and Prof. Mila Bulić from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Split, Prof. Martina Baučić from the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Geodesy, and teacher Darija Ćerdić Vukušić from the School of Design, Graphics, and Sustainable Construction Split for their participation in the project.
We greatly appreciate the work of the team from Permaculture Dalmatia, especially the efforts of Ivan Mateljan and Marin Kanajet. This successfully completed project is yet another fruitful collaboration between Permaculture Dalmatia and Sunce – and we’re not stopping here! Activities continue in the school gardens of Dobri Elementary and Kamešnica Elementary through the DesirMED project.
None of this would have been possible without the partnership with the Regional Center for environmental education Hollen (RUZ Hollen) and the financial support of the German foundation Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU).
The children have shown that they are ready to take an active role in caring for the environment, and the adults have shown that change starts right in the classroom – whether it has desks or the sky for a ceiling.
