Within the initiative ‘Education Resilience in Europe’, promoted by Scientix STE(A)M Partnerships and funded by Cisco, we interviewed preschool professionals to debate the role of STEAM and of outdoors in learning.

Here is the result from our 'round table' organised with Evanthia Evanthia and Evangelia Skaraki from the 4th preschool of Kissamos, and with Xarikleia Theodoraki and Michalis Ioannou from the 54th preschool of Piraeus, both located in Greece.

We would like to know what it means for you to teach and organize activities outdoor, instead of in a closed space or classroom?

Xarikleia Theodoraki: We are from the 54 Kindergarten of Piraeus and most of our activities are indoor. In the school we don’t have the equipment or the space to work outdoors. But today, here in Kissamos, we found new ways to use outdoor activities and to incorporate it into our curriculum. It’s important to work with children outdoors because playing and participating in activities with other children in a real space that is not indoor, is a part of everyday life. This visit to Kissamos 4th Kindergarten was a great experience and serves as an inspiration to reorganize our curriculum.

Evanthia Evanthia: Here in the 4th kindergarten of Kissamos, the school yard and outdoor activities are the most important part of our Kindergarten. The whole educational program of our school depends on designing the school yard, on how we can design it and keep reforming it according to our needs. Through outdoor activities we can develop and organize all our environmental programs and that is how we begin our school program. From this point we start to establish educational objectives, goals and small projects, and we begin to build and develop our garden, toys, activities, experiments and several other educational tools and experiences. That's why our educational programs are based on the schoolyard, we begin with outdoor activities and then we go to indoor activities - from the outside to the inside. The advantage of outdoor activities is that it gives us the chance to invite visitors or experts to our school, to attend our educational and environmental programs and to provide added value to our programs.

What is the feedback from parents when you organize activities outdoor?

Xarikleia Theodoraki: In Piraeus it is difficult to work outside and many times parents complain if the clothes of the children get dirty, it is difficult. Also we have some accidents because our children do not know how to play and how to fall down, sometimes they hurt themselves, so we face some problems organizing activities outdoor Today, in this visit to the 4th Kindergarten of Kissamos, we found a different way to work with children outside, I think we’ll still face problems with the clothes getting dirty, I don’t understand why, because I always tell parents that it’s not a good idea for children to have on good clothes, because when children are having fun, they will naturally get dirty.

Evanthia Evanthia: In the 4th kindergarten of Kissamos, because of the schoolyard, kids have the opportunity to run, to touch the ground, to touch the flowers, it's normal for us to get dirty. In addition, we also have canvas and we get them outdoors for painting activities and it's normal to get dirty. Our whole school life it's to be outside of the classroom. We have good weather, our area combines good weather and a lot of sun and as a result we have most of our time and activities outside in the schoolyard. We also want to take care of our garden so when we announce that we're going to take care of our garden, the kids wear appropriate clothes. Parents don't complain about the dirty clothes. Actually, parents are very happy about this and the existence of gardens, and also participate in the activities. The gardens make the difference, and they change everything like a domino: children are very happy during the activities in the garden and the whole school mood changes.

Michalis Ioannou: So, parents accept these activities?
Xarikleia Theodoraki: What do they like more?

Evangelia Skaraki: The parents enjoy most of the activities in the garden, actually they are very willing to participate. Even on days that the school is closed, parents volunteer to help the school with their children. So, parents are actively engaged in the school.

Evanthia Evanthia: The parents get dirty too, they are active volunteers. There is a specific culture in this school regarding education and environmental programs and, gradually, every year, even with different teachers, it continues and it expands. And these volunteer actions are not only in the school but also in the community, for example, they can clean a beach or another action is that they have painted the yard of the archaeological Museum of Kissamos so children can play traditional games. And in this example of the museum, children and parents got dirty during their activities. There is not only the school area but the whole culture that they have developed and that's why parents and children are used to volunteering and actively engaging in actions and activities outdoors.

Xarikleia Theodoraki: Does the job occupation of the parents affect their attitudes towards the school?

Evanthia Evanthia: There is a variety regarding the job occupation of the parents. We have farmers, but we also have lawyers and doctors. Nature is something that connects all people. And the kids are having so much fun, we convince parents about our programs through their kids. But also from the beginning of the school year we present our future educational programs and we're committed to these educational programs.

Evangelia Skaraki: Parents spend a lot of creative time with their children, and this continues after school, at home, they go for a trip, they gather material and flowers, they already know how to spend their time with children. We are also doing land art.

Evanthia Evanthia: But this needs a lot of time. That's why I mentioned the importance of the school’s culture.

How is the STEAM approach connected with the preschool’s activities and also with the outdoors?

Xarikleia Theodoraki: In Piraeus we work with STEAM activities indoors. We always use the STEAM approach and activities to create new problem solving situations and we try to use new materials to incorporate in our programme. With this visit today we found some ways to work outdoors and we’ll try to incorporate these activities and materials used in our preschool.

Evanthia Evanthia: We're not separating inside school settings from outdoor settings. Our school has a specific philosophy: I can do what I want everywhere I want. If the weather conditions are good, then we're going to implement outdoor activities, if the weather is bad then we will choose the indoor settings. In the inside school settings there is an organized learning area, there is also material that children can experiment with or they can freely experiment and also use art. For us there is no separation between indoor and outdoor settings. The transition from the inside to the outer setting it's very easy and simple for us.

How do you think the outdoor and the STEAM approach help kids with special needs and kids from different cultures to be more integrated in the school?

Michalis Ioannou: In the case of our school in Piraeus, we have a lot of children with special needs who need support, that’s why we have a special needs teacher on a permanent basis and we have to parallel teachers who work individually with children. If we give these children STEAM opportunities, either indoor or outdoor, they feel more free and more willing to participate. We are not expecting direct answers but we give them different materials and time to experiment with these materials. Most of them have problems with language and expressing themselves and with this approach they can show us what they did which is an inclusive way to work with these children, outdoor or indoor.

Xarikleia Theodoraki: Science is a common language, it’s a language that we can use in every part of the world and in any situation. I’ve been working with children since 2008 with science education activities and many children with autism and other disabilities are used to work with this approach and choose these activities because it allows them to express themselves in a different way, they can more easily connect with others and they can use their language to communicate with others.

Evanthia Evanthia: I totally agree with this statement, it's a common language. It’s Important for all the kids, and especially for the children with special needs and from different cultural backgrounds, to feel that they are accepted in the school environment. Regarding our school area, from one side is the need of limits, what someone can or cannot do, and from the other side is to have a lot of options available. The options are all around us, for example, a kid can choose a box to implement some science (science lab), this offers them a free choice to play with several things and they are not obligated to use only verbal language to communicate. The most important thing for children is to feel free and this is a way to enhance their participation in other activities. And, as you realized today, there are so many experiments and ways for children to be engaged in activities and collaborate, we just need to give them time to explore. Time is an important factor. There are also so many experiments, like the ones that Ms Vangelio organizes, that are attractive and make them feel free. This feeling of freedom makes it easier for them to learn and grow.

Know more about the initiative Education Resilience in Europe here!