1st - Czech Republic

Be fit, eat healthy and think green

The first activity titled Be fit, eat healthy and think green was held in June 2022. We organized the tour around the town with an official visit to the town hall and tourist centre where the participants could learn a lot about history and present life in Lanškroun right the first day. In the evening there were icebreaking activities prepared for children to get to know each other better and make them communicate in English. The second day there was a workshop to introduce healthy nutrition and balanced diet ending with a team competition. Then the participants had a cooking workshop where they learnt how to prepare popular dishes in a healthier way. They cooked spinach pancakes, broccoli pancakes with horseradish cottage dip, fitness langosh  and cauliflower. In the afternoon we visited a nearby town Litomyšl. It is a Unesco protected site with a renaissance castle and square. It is also a place where a popular 19th century cook and the author of cookery books Magdalena Dobromila Rettigová lived. The third day was devoted to street or outdoor games. Unfortunately the weather was really bad, it was raining a lot, so we had to play the games in the gym. We taught our guests how to play hopscotch, jump the elastics, play “Čára” with coins and some old ball games. In the afternoon we visited a secondary school of agriculture in Lanškroun. The teachers and students prepared a very attractive programme for us. In mixed teams the participants could try how to train lambs or rabbits, clean horses, learn how to milk cows and how to take care of small calves. They could even try milking on the trainer. Finally they learnt how cheese and other dairy products are made and they could buy them. This activity was also motivating for the host students as they could see the school and in future they could decide to study there for their future career. The fourth day was devoted to movement outside. First we played some sports games at the local athletic stadium and then there was a treasure hunt around Lanškroun ponds. This way we introduced a very unique natural area to our guests. They had to walk several kilometers, climb a steep hill and on the way there were lots of tasks. The tasks were prepared to teach our guests about Czech flora and fauna and some of the tasks were focused on ecology and sustainability. At the end children had to make a fire and bake their sausage, a very typical and popular Czech tradition. In the evening there was a farewell dinner with families, where we evaluated the week and our guests received the certificates. We spent the last day of our week in Prague. Originally we planned to visit Strahov, but we finally decided to organize another treasure hunt around the historical part of Prague, as we wanted our guests to learn more about the history and culture of our capital.

During the week all the participants had a chance to learn a lot about Czech culture, nature and traditions. They tasted typical Czech cuisine and learnt that with some changes their popular meals can be very healthy. They learnt what a balanced diet means and were inspired how to change their eating habits in favour of a healthy diet. Thanks to the visit at agricultural school the participants learnt about the food industry and could appreciate local agricultural products. During the treasure hunt the participants could realize how important it is to preserve nature. During the whole week we motivated our children to move a lot and stressed out how important it is for health to move and spend time in the fresh air. As the children were accommodated at host families, they were involved in family lives. This way they got strongly bonded to the family members. They became aware of similarities and differences of both countries. As most of the activities during the week were realized in mixed teams, the participants were strongly motivated to use English and thus enhancing their communicative language skills. They also improved their ability to cooperate and socialize.