Growing Up Outdoors: What Finland Teaches Us About Nature and Learning
We are excited to welcome this guest post from Meri Kuusi-Shields, a software product designer from School Signals!
Growing up in Finland, spending time outdoors was a natural and everyday part of my life. Now, as an adult and a mom of two in the US, I realize that many of the experiences I took for granted were special, unique, and something many of us aspire to today. I would walk or bike (and sometimes even ski!) to school. In the lower elementary school, we would have a brief outdoor recess between each class. Most of my after-school time was spent outside playing outdoor games or strolling around the neighborhood parks, creek sides, and meadows.
Times have changed even in the most idyllic parts of Nordic countries, and families are not immune to the challenges of balancing screen time, online gaming, lack of physical exercise, and an increase in fast food intake. Nevertheless, Finns continue to have a deep connection with nature. Being outside and in nature is an integral part of everyday life, and special outdoor education programs have been created to support children’s relationship with the outdoors and nature. Here are some key takeaways from Finland that I would like to share with you.
Early Childhood Curriculums Emphasize the Importance of Exercise
Finnish pre-K and K age children enjoy plenty of exercise and outdoor time. According to a study conducted by researchers at the Jamk University of Applied Sciences in 2023, Finnish children, between ages 4 and 6, exercise on average four hours daily. Finnish early childhood centers for this age group significantly emphasize outdoor time and play. In Finland, the goal is for young children to get at least two hours of exercise daily while in early childhood school, including 40 minutes of brisk, strenuous activity.
Rain or Shine, The Kindergarteners Will Be Outside!
One of the contributing reasons for plenty of outdoor time is the practical Finnish attitude towards weather. The weather in Finland rarely is optimal, so children are used to being outdoors, cold or warm, rain or shine. Finnish parents are instructed by early childhood schools to dress their children in layers (see a picture) according to the weather conditions. Rain and cold weather gear are a must-have, and outdoor time is not skipped due to uncomfortable weather conditions. Kindergarten teachers layer up, too! They are prepared to supervise outdoor time in two-hour sessions.
Nature-Based Learning Programs Are Accessible and Popular
Nature-based learning, environmental education, and outdoor learning are all essential to the Finnish school system. Most notably, The Finnish Association of Nature and Environment Schools (LYKE) is a well-coordinated effort to increase nature-based learning and outdoor education opportunities. The organization provides curriculums for public schools, early childhood teaching, and nature and environmental schools. The LYKE maintains a website called Mappa.fi that includes over one thousand outdoor learning materials and ideas – all free and available for download! (Note: interfaces are currently only in Finnish and Swedish.)
Everyman’s Rights Provide Easy Access to Nature
Want to take your family swimming at a lake, picking wild berries or mushrooms in the nearby forest, or just for a lovely nature walk in the woodlands? In Finland, Everyman’s Rights (“Jokaisenoikeudet”) grant people the right to enjoy nature freely while respecting the environment and others. While you cannot enter anyone’s private yard, you can access any privately owned land without disturbing others, damaging nature, or interfering with landowners’ land use. The Everyman’s Rights means that in Finland, you rarely see signs asking you to stay on track and not wander off! Children, from a young age, can explore nearby forests, lakesides, and meadows quite freely, building a sense of belonging to nature. Nature is not a crowded destination but rather one’s local surroundings.
Nature Has A Strong Place in the Finnish Life and Identity
Finns deeply appreciate the tranquility of nature. Finland has a beautiful archipelago, thousands of lakes, and Lapland that provides incredible summer and winter outdoor recreation opportunities. Of the nation of approximately 5 million people, 800,000 own a summer cottage in the countryside. The facilities of one’s cottage can vary greatly, and Finns often love to debate how rural a real cottage life experience is supposed to be. For instance, in my family, it is acceptable today that our summer cottage in the East part of Finland, in the region of Savo, has Wifi and even an AC. Still, a heated debate follows whenever a suggestion for installing modern plumbing is brought up. There is one thing no one debates about, and everyone agrees: it is a sauna. Finns love saunas and are quite ritualistic about their sauna experience. While saunas are common in city homes, nothing beats a wood-burning sauna in the countryside—preferably near a lake for a refreshing dip. Just ask my American husband!
Reflecting on Life in the USA
I often reflect on my Finnish childhood and how it shaped my relationship with nature. In Finland, it felt as if, as a child, nature was everywhere and an abundant resource; as an adult here in the US, a nature-based, outdoor lifestyle may take more effort. While the US has the most breathtaking national parks, daily access to nature can be challenging, depending on one’s geographical location and socioeconomic status. Accessing nature is not always free, either.
But nature is everywhere. It is in wildflowers, weather patterns, observing backyard birds, and visiting local parks. While I miss many aspects of my native country, I’ve come to appreciate and honor North America’s incredible range of flora and fauna.
Wherever I take my children, I want them to have a sense of belonging, whether rowing on a Finnish lake or climbing sedimentary rocks in Austin, Texas. By sharing some key takeaways from Finland’s approach to the outdoors, I hope we can recognize how outdoor exercise, environmental studies, and nature-learning can be an integrated, natural part of life. By integrating more outdoor experiences into education and daily life, we can give our children—and ourselves—a lifelong sense of curiosity and connection with nature.
Meri Kuusi-Shields is a software product designer of a school communication app, School Signals. She enjoys pollinator gardening and the local nature.
