Fredags mys

Friday, January 29, 2016

Fridays are appreciated by everyone. We are all more relaxed on the last day of the week. Friday bring us some comfort and reminds us that exists more in life than work and studies. We like to take the chance to do something different with our friends or families. Do something special.

That it is what Fredags mys means (Friday´s comfort)!

Fridays are also really appreciated among the children. When Friday finally arrives they know that means spending more time with their parents, doing a special family program and eat tasty and lickerish food!  In pre-school they all talk about what their families intend to do on such a special day.The kinder-garden also prepares something relaxing and special for the children. So, on Fridays, after lunch the group gets reunited for a movie session.  The episodes of Pipi Longstocking are the most popular! There is nap-time on Fridays, no planned activities and no rush!

Schools institutions must look to the welfare from the children. By promoting a day with a different dynamic and environment it is reminding that life has been done to be enjoyed! 

TAKK

Friday, January 29, 2016

When the human communicates does not use only words. Communication leans in other elements, like images, pictograms, body language, facial expressions, objects, symbols and signs. This group of supporters is called Augmentative and alternative communication (Alternativ och kompletterande kommunikation, AKK). 

TAKK is an alternative way of communication that supports oral language through the use of signs. This intends to help the children express it self in a most deeper way and developing their languages abilities. TAKK is used at the regular Swedish kindergartens. To sing a song, say the alphabet or introduce some term to the group, the pedagogue add the signs to enrich its message. 

A Pedagogical meal

Friday, January 29, 2016

When I was a child my parents allowed me to experience food at many levels. It is important to establish an affinity relationship with different kinds of food since an early age. To accomplish that, the feeding needs to be done in a harmonious environment. The baby must be free to touch in the food, to smell it and to taste it in its many kinds of textures. The meal can be a really good opportunity to work with the sensory dimension. The mealtime has also a very strong symbolic value. Since the early times of existence, pre-historic man treats it with a lot of respect, like if it was a ritual. It is a moment of sharing, very favorable to strengthen bonds. In very important moments and celebrations the family and be loved ones gets reunited around the table. It is a symbol of union and intimacy.

In our actual society it is not possible for the children stays at home next to their family. School institutions should provide the closest environment possible to the family´s atmosphere. Each classroom should be like a little community.Swedish pre-schools can be quite different from the Portuguese pre-school. The mealtime is treated in a completely different way. In Portugal, the children have lunch in a canteen join with the other groups. The pedagogues have the meal in a different section of the room.  The school´s staffs serve the food to the children. They always eat soap, a meet/fish dish and (sometimes). Vegetarianism has grown, but it is a little bit difficult to find vegetarians options in the pre-school’s menu. For the snack time the child eats bread with cheese, butter or ham and drinks milk or yogurt.In Sweden the child have the mealtime in its own classroom. The educator joins the group and can act like a role model. For lunch children eats soap or a meet/fish dish with a cold salad and a vegetable mixture. They can choice to drink milk or water. Each child serves its self.Sometimes the mainly dish can be vegetarian. For the snack time they eat knäckebröd (the traditional Swedish bread), with cheese, cut pieces of cucumber or paprika and drinks milk or yogurt with pieces of fruits or cinnamon.Food is also a part of our cultural dimension.  Our feeding habits are different. We have different ways of cooking, different textures and different flavors. I like to think that now I have both of these gastronomies in myself.