en god barndom

The phrase "en god barndom," just like every other phrase in the Danish language, can't be easily translated into English. Basically, it means "the good childhood," although it encompasses more than that. On Monday, I got to see a taste of the Nordic interpretation of the how the simple phrase can be put into practice in school settings.

Instead of attending our regular class, all the students in the Childhood in a Multicultural Context class got to visit a "forest school" about an hour north of Copenhagen. The school is for children 0-6 during the school day (7-1pm) and then provides after-school care for students up to age 17.

Hands down- coolest school I've ever seen.

There are no fences, borders, or adult supervision. The adults trust the children and aren't afraid to let them climb a tree (whereas it's forbidden in America, lest the child fall and the parent sue the school). Danish children have a much stronger tie to the natural world (even in below freezing weather) than kids in the US do, which you'll also see from some other pictures. 

We watched a kid take a rope and swing down from a pretty good ways up on this playground. I was holding my breath the whole time, convinced some sort of disaster was upon us. Clearly, I'm not used to seeing kids with this much freedom to partake in (what we consider) such dangerous activities. The kids are essentially free to do whatever they want because the adults trust them to know what their limitations are. 

The pedagogues also explained that they don't "serve" the children at the school, but instead allow the children to be masters of their individual development. In the US, when kids tell an adult that they're thirsty, the adults will tell them how they can get the water themselves instead of doing it for them. I never even thought about this until I came here, but I realize I do the same thing. 

There still aren't any fences around that building. no borders. It's awesome. 

The wall of their gym is made up of a climbing wall. again, super jealous of these kids. Can I go to school here?

Every year, the kids in the school put on a fashion show. The costumes here were designed and put together by 2nd and 3rd graders (with a tiny bit of help from grownups). The students have a ridiculous amount of opportunities to let their creativity run free.  

fun fact of the day: legos were invented in Denmark! It's pretty obvious when you visit a school here.. there are entire classrooms devoted to them! 

the sewing/jewelry-making room. where the magic happens. 

another awesome thing about this school- guys and girls (for the most part) don't conform to traditional gender roles. The boys at the school make jewelry and know how to sew. 

The school puts on super extensive role-playing games that last the entire afternoon. They've done Lord of the Rings, space adventures, Dungeons and Dragons... etc.  The boys and girls all put together their own ensembles themselves. The kids chose what role they wanted to be (when they were doing Lord of the Rings, they could choose if they wanted to be orcs, hobbits, etc.) and they would piece together the costume they needed! Then they would decorate the entire school and spend the entire afternoon acting out these extensive role playing games. 

a lounge for the students. On the opposite wall was a place for kids to write anything they want, almost entirely uncensored. I was pretty shocked at just how much freedom the kids had with this board..and they definitely took advantage of that freedom. The only thing they're forbidden from writing is hurtful comments about their classmates. It's basically a free speech board (like the one at Davidson College), except it's designed for kids going through puberty, clearly leading to some less than sanitary remarks. This would never fly in the US.. ever. 

The workshop for kids to make whatever they want. 

A kitchen (in the school!) designed specifically as a place for teachers and parents to have coffee together and just chill in the morning. 

When it's naptime for the littlest guys, the staff puts them in this.. shed. in absurdly cold temperatures. Maybe this is why the Danes are impervious to cold..? They've been training their bodies to survive extreme cold since they were in diapers.