In collaboration with the municipality of Lidköping, Make a Move invites educators from preschools in the municipality to regular network meetings where the focus is on increasing knowledge and exchanging experiences. At the latest meeting, some 40 educators gathered to listen to Ida Lundmark, head teacher at Ejderdunet preschool in Umeå municipality, who shared the journey they have made to create a movement-rich everyday life for the children.
The work with physical activity started in the fall of 2019 for Ejderdunets preschool in Umeå. Ida Lundmark says that what they have worked on the most is the teachers' approach to movement and physical activity. The teachers' approach to movement is crucial for laying the foundation for an everyday life filled with positive movement experiences and movement-rich environments for the children. The guiding principle for the teachers at Ejderdunets preschool is to say yes instead of no, and instead of saying no, they want to guide children to dare to try and challenge themselves in new movements. I've never tried this, I'm sure I can do it! as Pippi Longstocking says, is a mentality that you want the children at Ejderdunets preschool to carry with them no matter what context they are in.
The increased focus on physical activity at Ejderdunets preschool has had several positive effects on the children. Ida says that the children have gained greater confidence in trying new activities, they have developed their motor skills and their ability to assess risks in their play. Another positive aspect is that the approach creates an inclusive environment at the preschool as everyone participates according to their level and everyone can participate regardless of culture, language, age or function.
The message that the educators get from Ida is that it is important to persevere over time, that you should dare to test and find your own ways that work for yourself and your closest colleagues. Reflection and conversations between educators about what works well and less well are also keys to developing in the right direction. According to Ida, it takes time to change but it is worth it!
During the network meeting, space was also given for the educators on site to share their own experiences from everyday life in each preschool. Many experiences that Ida talks about are shared by the educators who have also come a long way in their journey to create positive movement experiences and movement-rich environments for the children at the preschools. Below are some of the examples that were shared during the evening.
"Instead of saying "don't run in here", we have prepared a place with a slide and mattress where the children can jump and play. This is a good place to use when we see that the children need to move around. In this way, they also get an outlet for movement indoors"
"At our preschool, we have a wooden deck where the young children were previously not allowed to be, but now we let them play and jump there, to their great joy. We educators are present and see up close what a great benefit it is for the children when they realize that they can jump".
Once again, the conclusion is that the small changes in everyday life make the big difference for children!
