Children at grammar schools in the Moravian-Silesian Region are excited to play the interactive game that teach them to understand importance of water for people and nature.

Thanks to cooperation between Severomoravské vodovody a kanalizace Ostrava and experts specialised in interactive educational programmes, the children from six grammar schools in the Moravian-Silesian Region took part in April in the educational programme the Tree of Life. This experience-based programme helped them to understand importance of water for the living environment and for people. This is the first game in the Czech Republic to focus on water.

The programme started in the mid of April in schools in the Opava region. In May the organisers moved to other regions (Nový Jičín and Frýdek-Místek). In June, other schools will take part in the programme, as this programme was welcomed and both schools and mayors spoke highly about it. The programme will continue after the summer holiday. 

“The feedback is great - from both children and their teachers. I have to confess that we are really surprised by the positive response from eleven and twelve year old children. They love learning by exploring new things about importance of water for people and nature. When playing, they even do not realize how much new information they obtain about physical or chemical properties of water. And we are also happy to see the competing teams to understand during the game that cooperation, not conflicts, are the only way to prevent a nature disaster resulting from contamination or lack of water resources", says Josef Kundrát, one of authors of the game and a PhD student at the Department of Psychology in the Palacký University in Olomouc.

The game of this type is unique because the children are actively involved in the game and because the emotional impact on the children is extensive - this is a difference against typical educational methods. The game also develops soft skills such as communication, cooperation, or managing of certain problems in practical life. The game is intended for those who are between eleven and fifteen year old. It is not necessary for the children to leave their schools – the game is played in their school.

The game starts with preparation of the scene and introductory workshop where the children and their teachers learn to play the game. Then, the game starts - with a lot of real experiments, dramatic plots, thrilling story and authentic properties. Finally, the children strengthen and improve the acquired knowledge.

“I am really happy that the game we have developed with experts specialised in this type of educational programmes has been welcomed by both the children and teachers in grammar schools. In April, we organised a meeting and the teachers and mayors spoke highly about that programme. We care for the region where we operate. We think that it is really important to start talking with children in grammar schools about importance of water for people and nature and about responsible management of water sources", says Anatol Pšenička, Managing Director.