Forest kindergarten is a type of

preschool education A preschool, also known as nursery school, pre-primary school, or play school or creche, is an educational establishment or learning space offering early childhood education to children before they begin compulsory education at primary schoo ...

for children between the ages of three and six that is held almost exclusively outdoors. Whatever the weather, children are encouraged to play, explore and learn in a forest environment. The adult supervision is meant to assist rather than lead. It is also known as '' Waldkindergarten'' (in German), ''outdoor nursery'', or ''nature kindergarten''.

Activities

A forest kindergarten can be described as a

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th ce ...

"without a ceiling or walls". The daycare staff and children spend their time outdoors, typically in a forest. A distinctive feature of forest kindergartens is the emphasis on play with objects that can be found in nature, rather than commercial toys. Despite these differences, forest kindergartens are meant to fulfill the same basic purpose as other nurseries, namely, to care for, stimulate, and educate young children. Each forest kindergarten is different, partly because the organisations are independently minded. But typical activities and goals may include:

Location and organization

Forest kindergartens operate mainly in woodland. There should be a building where children can shelter from extreme weather. They may also spend a small part of each day indoors, although that is more likely to be for administrative and organisational reasons, such as to provide a known location where parents can deliver and collect their children. If the woodland is too far away to walk, a vehicle might reluctantly be used for transport. Children are encouraged to dress for the weather, with waterproof clothes and warm layers, according to the climate.

History

In rural areas, and historical times, access to nature has not been a problem. Over the last century, with increasing urbanisation and "

nature deficit disorder Nature-deficit disorder is the idea that human beings, especially children, are spending less time outdoors than they have in the past, and the belief that this change results in a wide range of behavioral problems. This disorder is not recognize ...

", there have been many changes in stance on outdoor education. The first forest kindergarten was created by Ella Flautau in

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in the early 1950s. The idea formed gradually as a result of her often spending time with her own and neighbors' children in a nearby forest, a form of daycare which elicited great interest among the neighborhood parents. The parents formed a group and created an initiative to establish the first forest kindergarten. In Sweden in 1957, an ex-military man, Goesta Frohm, created the idea of "Skogsmulle". "Skog" means wood in Swedish. "Mulle" is one of four fictional characters he created to teach children about nature, along with "Laxe" representing water, "Fjällfina" representing mountains and "Nova" representing an unpolluted nature.

Forest schools Forest school is an outdoor education delivery model in which students visit natural spaces to learn personal, social and technical skills. It has been defined as "an inspirational process that offers children, young people and adults regular o ...

based on Frohm's model, called "I Ur och Skur" (Rain or Shine Schools) moved the idea from occasional activities to formal nursery schools, being set up by Siw Linde in 1985. Juliet Robertson's review of Skogsmulle is a valuable modern-day summary. Nature kindergartens have existed in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

since 1968 but the first forest kindergarten was first officially recognized as a form of daycare in 1993, enabling state subsidies to reduce the daycare fees of children who attended forest kindergarten. Since then, the forest kindergartens have become increasingly popular. As of 2005 there were approximately 450 forest kindergartens in Germany, some of which offer a mix of forest kindergarten and traditional daycare, spending their mornings in the forest and afternoons inside. By late 2017, the number of forest kindergartens in Germany surpassed 1,500. In 2009, the Forestry Commission Scotland (FCS) undertook
feasibility study
to create a Forest Kindergarten pilot project in Glasgow and the Clyde Valley. This model is based upon empowering early years educators to lead weekly sessions in their local woodland or other greenspace using a child-centred approach. The first FCS Forest Kindergarten 3-day training took place in February 2012. In 2017 the course became

(SQA) at SCQF Level 7. This Forest Kindergarten training has now been embedded in various Early Years College courses within Scotland and delivered by Learning through Landscapes across the UK. This qualification will soon operate in the rest of the UK under

NOCN The National Open College Network (NOCN), formerly known as the Open College Network (OCN), is a United Kingdom organisation developed to recognise informal learning achieved by adults. History The first organisation of this type was created in ...

Accreditation. Aotearoa New Zealand Enviroschools started in 2001, and often incorporate a Māori perspective, and Australia has bush or beach kinders (kindergartens) that provide an outdoor learning program. While there are similarities, it is important to note that Forest School and Forest Kindergarten are two distinct training programmes. LtL has produced a usefu
comparison of Forest Kindergarten and Forest School
From 2018 on all forest kindergartens are invited to celebrate the International Day of Forest Kindergarten every year on 3 May.

Effects

The fact that most forest kindergartens do not provide commercial toys that have a predefined meaning or purpose supports the development of language skills, as children verbally create a common understanding of the objects used as toys in the context of their play. Forest kindergartens are also generally less noisy than closed rooms, and noise has been shown to be a factor in the

stress Stress may refer to: Science and medicine * Stress (biology), an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition * Stress (linguistics), relative emphasis or prominence given to a syllable in a word, or to a word in a phrase ...

level of children and daycare professionals. For inner-city girls, having sight of a green space from home improves self-discipline, while the same effect was not noted for boys in the study as they were more likely to play further from home. Playing outside for prolonged periods has been shown to have a positive impact on children's development, particularly in the areas of balance and agility, but also

manual dexterity Fine motor skill (or dexterity) is the coordination of small muscles in movement with the eyes, hands and fingers. The complex levels of manual dexterity that humans exhibit can be related to the nervous system. Fine motor skills aid in the growt ...

, physical coordination,

tactile Tactile may refer to: * Tactile, related to the sense of touch * Haptics (disambiguation) * Tactile (device), a text-to-braille translation device See also * Tangibility, in law * Somatosensory system, where sensations are processed * CD96 CD ...

sensitivity, and depth perception. According to these studies, children who attend forest kindergartens experience fewer injuries due to accidents and are less likely to injure themselves in a fall. A child's ability to assess risks improves, for example in handling fire and dangerous tools. Other studies have shown that spending time in nature improves attention and medical prognosis in women (see Attention Restoration Theory). Playing outdoors is said to strengthen the

immune systems The immune system is a network of biological processes that protects an organism from diseases. It detects and responds to a wide variety of pathogens, from viruses to parasitic worms, as well as cancer cells and objects such as wood splinters, ...

of children and daycare professionals. When children from German '' Waldkindergartens'' go to primary school, teachers observe a significant improvement in reading, writing, mathematics, social interactions and many other areas.Gorges R

(in German) Forest kindergartens have been recommended for young boys, who may not yet demonstrate the same fluency in typical school tasks as their female counterparts, to prevent negative self-esteem and associations with school. Roland Gorges found that children who had been to a forest kindergarten were above average, compared by teachers to those who had not, in all areas of skill tested. In order of advantage, these were:

Motivation

Helicopter parent A helicopter parent (also called a cosseting parent or simply a cosseter) is a parent who pays extremely close attention to a child's or children's experiences and problems, particularly at educational institutions. Helicopter parents are so named ...

ing is becoming more clearly recognised in the

culture of fear Culture of fear (or climate of fear) is the concept that people may incite fear in the general public to achieve political or workplace goals through emotional bias; it was developed as a sociological framework by Frank Furedi and has been mor ...

of today's risk averse society. While some parents rush to 'wrap their children in cotton wool', others see outdoor play and forest kindergartens as a way to develop a mature and healthy outlook on life, as well as practical skills and health. Doing this at a young age is hoped to bring lifelong benefits to the child. It is consistent with the notions of ''

slow parenting Slow parenting (also called simplicity parenting) is a parenting style in which few activities are organised for children. Instead, they are allowed to explore the world at their own pace. It is a response to concerted cultivation and the widesp ...

'', the "idle parent"The Idle Parent
Why less means more when raising kids, by

Tom Hodgkinson Tom Hodgkinson (born 1968) is a British writer and the editor of '' The Idler'' magazine, which he established in 1993 with his friend Gavin Pretor-Pinney. His philosophy, in his published books and articles, is of a relaxed approach to life, ...

. Published by Hamish Hamilton, 5 Mar 2009. and "free range kids".Free Range Kids
blog by

Lenore Skenazy Lenore Skenazy () is president oLet Grow a non-profit promoting childhood independence and resilience, and founder of the Free-Range Kids movement. She is also a speaker, blogger, syndicated columnist, author, and reality show host. A mother w ...

References

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Related organisations

American Forest Kindergarten Association
U.S. Forest Kindergarten Model based on the Waldkindergarten and Nordic Models.
Learning through Landscapes
Is a non-profit organisation providing SQA Accredited Forest Kindergarten Awards in the UK.
Eastern Region Association of Forest and Nature Schools (ERAFANS)
a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that offers nature-based professional development to teachers and childcare providers.
Play England
charity raising awareness of the value of play
PlayScotland
charity encouraging children to play
Association of all Forest Kindergartens
in Czech Republic
Natural Start Alliance
in United States Alternative education Early childhood education Kindergarten School types Environmental education Outdoor education