While others rest on Sunday, the children in Markovce are studying. Instead of a classroom, they meet in the local priest's garden

Sunday does not have to be only a day of rest. In the village of Markovce in Zemplín, children from a marginalized community go to an unusual Sunday school. Instead of a school and a regular classroom, they meet in the garden of the local priest.

Sunday school has been running for two years. Here they go over mathematics, letters, reading and working with a text. Children from the age of six can come to learn. The number of little pupils changes every Sunday, but the wish to help stays the same.

“It stays at around fifteen to twenty-five children. The most we have had here, I think, was fifty, sixty. Sometimes it happens that only three or four come. But I always say that is great too, because when there are fewer, you can focus on them more and help them where they have gaps,” explained Fr. Martin Halík, an Orthodox priest.

The aim is not to replace regular school, but to help children master the basics of schoolwork. The children work with specially prepared worksheets, adjusted to different age groups.

“The children badly need help with basic literacy. So bit by bit we made our own worksheets. They have worked well for us, and we have tested them: when the children come and practise regularly, they learn. So we have taught many children to read, to write and some basic things,” explained volunteer Michaela Halíková.

So for the local children, Sunday is not only a day off. It is also a chance to learn something new and to be a step closer to a better future.