Blog · 3 October 2026
Why greenery matters for young children in a city like Dubai
Dubai is a city of glass, sand and air conditioning. Many children here can go a whole week without touching grass or soil. We named our school evergreen for a reason: we think a green place to grow is one of the most important things a young child can have.
What the research says
Studies of children and green space keep pointing the same way. A large study of Barcelona schoolchildren found that those with more greenery around their schools showed greater growth in working memory and attention over a year. Other research links time in green places with lower stress and better mood, and suggests natural settings help tired attention recover in a way that busy, built-up places do not. Researchers are careful to say much of this shows association rather than proof, but the direction is consistent.
Green is calming
Young children feel their surroundings strongly. Leaves moving in the breeze, dappled shade and the soft colours of plants give the senses something gentle to rest on. It is the opposite of a bright, noisy, over-stimulating room, and it is why we carried natural greens and earth tones into our classrooms too.
A real garden, not a picture of one
Evergreen has 10,000 sq ft of natural outdoor space with a real garden. Children walk on real ground, dig real soil, plant seeds and come back the next week to see what has grown. Watering, waiting and noticing teach patience, responsibility and early science in a way a worksheet cannot.
Greenery and the other senses
Greenery brings everything else with it: the smell of wet soil, the sound of leaves, the feel of bark and petals, insects to watch and questions to ask. It is the natural partner to clean air indoors and real materials in the classroom. Read more about learning through all the senses and why we filter the air.
Bring a little green home
A pot of herbs on the windowsill that your child waters, a weekend walk to a park to collect leaves, or a few minutes lying on the grass looking at clouds all count. Small, regular moments with nature matter more than rare big trips.
Come and walk through our garden. Book a tour.
Read next
- How to choose a nursery in Dubai: 10 questions to ask on a tour
- Clean air for small lungs: why we filter the air in Dubai
- Learning through all the senses: why touch, smell and sound matter before age five
- Rest is part of learning: why we built a dedicated sleep area
- Why small class sizes matter in the early years
- Settling in: helping your child through the first weeks
- Arabic every day: why early exposure to a second language matters
- Starting nursery mid-year: why September is not the only time