It is SO good to be back with the Flexible Foxes this week. While I was away, I kept the Flexible Foxes updated with the adventures of our beloved Fox Fox. In this post I’ll share the photos I shared with the kiddos and also a little more about what I saw and learned.
Each day, the Flexible Foxes got a little update on the Finnish adventure!
Until finally, Samson and I got to say we were heading home!
We visited four Early Childhood Education Centers and one children’s cultural center. In Finland, children don’t start school/academics until age 7, when they enter First Grade. In early childhood centers, much of the focus is on children’s interests and extended open play time.
One of the schools we visited had a forest school program. Here, we met a teacher who had been recognized by the President of Finland for her service in education. She had been taking her class of 3-5 year olds to the forest near their school building every day for 25 years!!
At every early childhood center – whether they had a forest program or not – there were large “mudrooms” outside of each classroom where kids could get changed in and out of their outdoor gear. Every child had their own version of a Muddy Buddy and plenty of time and space was given for children to practice getting themselves in and out of their gear.
One other important surprise that came out of my trip to Finland was a new member of the beloved Blue Room stuffy collection: Moomintroll!
Moomintroll comes from a book and comic series that is widely celebrated in Finland by the author Tove Jansson. The stories are characterized by themes of inclusivity, connection, home, and whimsy. The author, Tove Jansson, began writing these stories in the 1940s as a way of processing the destruction of WWII, creating a world in which everyone accepts and cares for each other and everyone keeps each other safe.
In the world Tove Jansson created, the door is always open, and no one who turns up is asked their name, background, or purpose. The Moomin family’s open attitude towards others is an example of a world where kindness is fundamental and difference is celebrated.
We’ve been reading the first book “The Moomins and The Great Flood” for a few days now and it has captured the imaginations of the Flexible Foxes. In fact, every time I pause the book to move on to another part of our day, there is a collective “awwhhh” and an ask for “just one more page!!”
Kiitos!! (That means thank you in Finnish) <3
