Day Five

4/18/19

Hei Hei!!

Today we were fortunate to be able to take a ferry to the World Heritage Site Suomenlinna Sea Fortress which now functions as a kindergarten (our nursery/pre-k) for children ages 3-6. Below are some pictures from our visit.

Observations/New Learning:

• There is an intentional focus on cooperation and collaboration.  For example, approximately 7 students were in a gymnastics session in which the teacher intentionally provided only one scooter board.  It was up to the students to manage the sharing process themselves for the board and all other equipment in use. 
• We did not see any crying or screaming children (and we were there for about 1.5 hours).  We saw one student who looked sad and teary-eyed, however, the teacher said it was because someone in our group was trying to talk to her and she was scared. 
• Even at the age of three, students are self-managing their activities. The teacher has name cards and posts different activity pictures and the students move their names to the activity in which they wish to participate. They can also check-in with their emotions by "dialing a clock" with different emotions shown on it. 
• We watched 5/6-year-olds doing crafts with balloons.  Students blew up all the balloons themselves without any teacher help. 
• Teachers create an environment that nurtures student inquiry. Teachers at this age level do not do any direct instruction. They set up the environment and respond to what the students indicate they are interested in learning. 
• There is no focus on teaching students to read and write in this kindergarten school, but most students learn to do both before entering basic school at age seven.

Views from the ferry

The island of Suomenlinna

Teeny Tiny Sink!

Colorful Outerwear

Activity Board Self-Monitored By Students

Adorable!

Students Cooperating on a Lego Project

Nap Time!

The next stop today of the day was to the Soumenlinna Library.  Libraries cooperate very closely with schools to promote literacy.  In Finland, there is a legal right to library access.  Every municipality, therefore, must provide a library. Ninety-seven percent of children ages 10-14 access their libraries. There is no minimum age to get a library card. Children can get one at birth. Finnish children are considered adults at age 15. There is a new app (about 2 years old) that allows students to keep their library cards on their phones.

It is also a legal right in Finland to have access to computers and the internet. Libraries provide these resources. Growing more popular are maker's spaces where individuals can sign out of the libraries items such as sewing machines.  Recently, Helsinki made public transportation for schools and daycares free thereby supporting a deeper connection between schools and libraries.

It was explained to us that the Nordic culture has a long tradition of supporting struggling readers. They might use high-interest texts with simplified structure and language, however, there are very strict rules about how simplified text can be written (passage of time, language, etc.).

While on the island, we also had the opportunity to visit a camp school. There are many camp schools throughout Finland with a variety of themes. They support environmental learning and social education. A typical stay is 2-5 days. (These schools are similar to Connecticut's Nature's Classroom.) Teachers decide if and when their students go to camp school.  Parents are required to pay a portion of the camp school fee, although there is hope that at some point, all camp school trips will be subsidized. Finnish people believe that being with nature is very important and an integral part of the overall learning experience.

Camp school ethos.

 Camp school on the island is also a hostel.

Later on, once we were back from our island visit, we had the opportunity to visit a vocational school, The Perho Culinary Tourism & Business School. This school is an international school that provides training in all aspects of the restaurant business. Students fully explore the industry before specializing in food service or chef specialty areas. This school is one of the best in the world! Students have opportunities to learn in classrooms, engage in practical classroom application, and train within the school's public restaurant. Earning a degree from this school means higher pay and potential employment at higher-end restaurants. This school also has its own brewery, bees, and produces its own honey!  The school aims to foster the growth of entrepreneurship. We were lucky to be able to sit down in the restaurant at the end of our tour and enjoy a beer from the school's brewery!

The Brewery

The Training Kitchen

Our guide, Leena, shared an interesting perspective today as she was discussing Finland's history: Sometimes you have to go far away to see up close.

Tomorrow is our last full day of the trip, and we are sad! :(

hyvästit nyt!

A & J