In this school in Solna, Sweden, students learn to carve wood from the age of 4. “We start by giving them potato peelers because it’s safer. And when they are 5 years old, they start learning with a real knife,” says Johanna Karlsson, director of the “I Ur och Skur” kindergarten. In this “nursery in the forest”, the pupils study in the cold “even if it is -20°C outside”, to take advantage of the fresh air and vitamin D. Far from screens and technology. “They may fall less ill than those who are in other nurseries,” smiles Johanna.
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In Sweden and Denmark, outdoor education is growing in popularity. For children who live in the city, studying in a forest is a real opportunity. The little ones learn to be very resourceful and the teachers put nature at the heart of learning: “We use pieces of wood to show them that we can use anything found in nature to make math. At school, they will be sitting with a sheet of paper and a pen, but here we think they can do that in a more fun way, with the sticks they play with,” explains Lisa Byström, educator.
