Outdoor Pedagogy in Denmark

This spring, our employees have had the opportunity to participate in the international NordPlus Junior Outdoor Games for Education. This time, we visited Denmark, specifically three different kindergartens in the city of Varde. Varde is known in Denmark as a municipality rich in nature and natural areas. Because of this, one of the mottos of early childhood education in the municipality was “Vi i naturen”, which translates freely to “We in nature”. And indeed, a lot of time was spent outdoors!

It was fascinating to get a glimpse of Danish early childhood education. Of course, during this trip, we only got to see the practices of three kindergartens, which cannot be generalized to all of Denmark. However, it gave us a good initial understanding of the values emphasized in Danish early childhood education.

Picture: Kamu

During the week, we learned that in these kindergartens, children spend a lot of time outdoors, regardless of the weather. Many activities are planned to take place outside, and one kindergarten even had its own “cabin” in a nearby forest, where each kindergarten group spent an entire week at a time—including naps and meals. It was amazing to see how children could play freely in nature and use natural materials for crafts and building huts.

We also learned several different outdoor games during our trip, which we can incorporate into our own activities.

Pictures: Kamu

All three kindergartens had huge outdoor play areas filled with various play equipment. One kindergarten even had a separately fenced area with sheep, which we got to feed during our visit. It was great to see how children were given responsibilities, such as feeding the sheep, and how naturally they interacted with them in a calm and respectful manner.

Pictures: Kamu

It was nice to see the similarities between Finnish and Danish early childhood education. It felt like we shared a common love for nature and its preservation, as well as the use of positive pedagogy in everyday kindergarten life.

At the same time, we also learned many new things, and the most striking takeaway was how versatile the outdoor environment and nature can be as a learning space.

Next time, we will explore early childhood education in Stockholm!

Orginally in Finnish. Translated by ChatGPT.