We’re now halfway through summer and in the 9 months that we’ve lived in Finland, our four boys have been in four different schools and have experienced preparatory education, primary education, pre-primary education and early childhood education. Preparatory education is an introductory year of learning Finnish for immigrants while continuing your studies. After the year of preparatory education, students attend the local Finnish schools. Pre-primary education is the equivalent of kindergarten, but school starts about a year later than it does in the United States. Early childhood education is state-run preschool for children as young as a year old. We had moved to Finland at the end of September, with the boys starting school around Halloween, making enrollment a bit awkward and impossible until we had a permanent residence.

Our second child was the first to start school last fall. We took the bus and arrived at a two-story building. We walked up to the second floor and entered a large entry room filled with coat and shoe racks. Outdoor shoes are left in the entry and students and staff can either wear socks or designated indoor shoes (such as crocs or slippers) in the school. I have not encountered any secretaries at any of the schools. If you are lost or need help, then you need to get the attention of a teacher. There is also no “school office.” My son’s teacher greeted us and he led us to the classroom. I filled out a couple of forms and was given information about what to expect. One form asked about my son’s religion so that the school could supplement his religious education. An alternative is signing up for ethics. The dominant religion here is Lutheranism and our own religion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a relatively small group and we are open to our child learning about either ethics or another religion as it is unlikely there will be education structured for our particular branch of Christianity. The teacher also had a hand-written note with the school schedule for the week. My son’s school would start at the same time each morning, but end at different times, depending on the day of the week. His shortest days were less than four hours and his longest day was just under six hours. The school provided any books and most school supplies. It was expected that children dress for the weather because they will be sent outside regularly no matter the season or conditions. This son went outside about twice a day during the school day. The schools also provide free lunches that often consist of pasta, fish, soup, rice or other wholesome ingredients with the occasional treat. Over the course of the first week, I made sure my son was comfortable with the bus commute to and from school and then he commuted on his own at the age of 9.

The next son to start school a week later was our oldest. He was 13 and in junior high. His school was downtown in a renovated older building and required a tram ride. The first day was a lot more brief. The teacher met us in the entry (this one with many wooden cubbies in addition to the coat and shoe racks), my son took off his shoes, and then she whisked him off to class. His school days started between 9 and 10am and often finished shortly after 2pm or a bit earlier.

For both of the older boys, we often received text messages through the school app used throughout Helsinki. At first, we thought the text messages conveyed feelings of frustration with our sons’ behavior, but later learned that the messages were required and simply stating facts when our boys didn’t participate in certain activities.

Our third son started pre-primary school about a week after the oldest started school. He did not have preparatory education and instead attended a class where all of the other children spoke Finnish and one classmate spoke both English and Finnish. The teacher used pictures and, when necessary, communicated in English. For the first couple of days, I stayed for the first two hours, because the teacher emphasized it was important for my son to feel safe. This son felt uncomfortable going to school for awhile, but eventually looked forward to it and always came home with a smile. Because he was not yet old enough to go to school on his own, we made the 10-minute walk each direction almost every day together. Every time we talked to the teacher, my husband and I were surprised by how educated she was on child behavior and how aware she was of all the children’s emotional and social needs. She also had two aides who were consistently present. Ryan and I had frequent interactions with the staff at this school and it was sad to say goodbye the last day of school. This school had multiple entryways, all filled with spots for shoes and rain clothes with cubbies further in for jackets, hats and backpacks. Our son’s class went on an outing nearly every week and spent 1-2 hours outdoors on the other days. His school day for five hours four days a week and four hours long on Friday. Many of his classmates stayed longer for afterschool care and spent much of that time playing outside.

Our toddler started attending early childhood education a couple of months ago. The children at his school spend some mornings inside and the afternoons outside or vice versa. The staff start potty-training the children immediately, but only make trips to the bathroom every couple of hours. The bathroom also has a small tub and showerhead so the staff can clean dirty bottoms similar to a bidet (by the way, bidets are everywhere, including in public bathrooms). The children are allowed to play however they like as long is it doesn’t hurt someone. The entryways of this school are just like the older schools and filled with rain clothing, shoes and racks for rubber boots. For the first day, I took my toddler and we received a brief tour of the school and visited with his new class outside for about an hour where they were playing in a neighboring park. His group had about eight children and two teachers and we have learned that early childhood education groups generally have one teacher/aide to every four children. The next few days, we stayed for the morning during playtime and lunch time before going home. The director had explained that attending during fun hours helps the child create positive associations with the school. The next day or two, I stayed during the morning, but left him behind for nap time. After that, he was comfortable upon arrival and I simply dropped him off. Lunch time was fascinating to me. All the children sat down in their seats as the teachers brought in the cart and assembled plates. Children as young as my toddler were provided a plate and the utensils to eat and lots of time with which to feed themselves. Lunchtime was a quiet, relaxed event and when a child finished his plate, he was given the opportunity to eat more. After the main dish, rye crackers or bread were often provided with butter on top or perhaps some cucumber or other vegetable. There was no rush to finish eating and it might take 45 minutes for the children to finish feeding themselves before cleaning up and getting ready to take a nap. This school is far enough away that we commute by bicycle.

This coming year, our older three boys will start attending the same school. Our second oldest met his new teacher and apparently teachers often move up in grades with the students, though not always. This particular teacher has had the same class for three years. Our third son attended an orientation with his pre-primary class at the end of the school year so they would see their classroom and meet their teacher before the start of the school year. We also learned that schools have a celebratory end-of-year event that lasts about an hour on a Saturday as the last school day.

Adjusting to living in a new country with a difficult foreign language is an uphill battle, but for the education system alone, it is worth the change. One big difference is the health care. Doctors’ appointments are handled by school staff, whether a psychologist, nurse or doctor as opposed to a pediatrician’s office. In addition, children aren’t expected to start school until age 7 or even age 8. There is no rush or competition. There are no standardized tests until high school. Teachers generally have master’s degrees and pay attention to a child’s emotional and social well-being in addition to their education. Every time we talk to ANY of the teachers, we are surprised by their level of expertise in child development and education. School days are much shorter and the whole well-being of the child is important.