The shape and arrangement of the outdoor environment at a preschool has a critical impact on the possibilities to practice different pedagogic activities (Grahn et al.1997). At the preschool at Edwin Ahlqvists road, the employees are inspired by Reggio Emilia in their way of thinking, and they consider their outdoor environment is not suitable for the pedagogic activities they use. Reggio Emilia is a city in the north of Italy (Wallin 2001). The preschools there are famous for their pedagogy, their creativity and their democratic way of working (Dahlbech & Johansson 1986). The Reggio Emilia pedagogy is constantly renewed and developed, but with the children?s needs in focus and simultaneously with the quick changes of the modern society.

My thesis was based on studying what really happens when Swedes move their beloved kitchen outdoors.?What kind of problems andpossibilities appears in this enviroment? First, I unbiassed examined the traditional kitchen in general to get a better view of how an outdoorkitchen could function in a country that have diffrent seasons. I intervjued an interior designer specialized in kitchenplanning to get abetter view. One thing that came up was that the experince of beeing outdoor sometimes puts functionality aside. I located different needs inthe outdoor kitchen enviroment and decided to work futher with one of them, outdoor lightning.The result became a 3d digital model of an outdoor lamp that creates both functionallight and moodlight.

The outdoor environment is the first thing you notices when you come to a pre-school and it also plays an important part in the development of children, their play and meeting their large motor needs. It is important that the outdoor playground is stimulating and inviting.My goal is to examine if the outdoor environment plays any role in the development of children and their interest in nature. What kind of thoughts do teachers and parents have about outdoor play, and is there a developmental goal for the children as well as what role do the teachers play in reaching these goals. In my work I want to show how an outdoor environment should be formed to help educationally as well as be safe and not least of all fun to be in..

This paper is a study about outdoor education in pre- school. The main purpose is to look over if outdoor education in pre- school is a restraint or a resource. The study is based on two questionnaires, one to personnel in pre- school and one to parents who have children in pre- school. The study showed that outdoor education is mostly viewed to be a resource but there can be some problems in how to use it. Time, planning and knowledge were problems that were often mentioned by teachers.

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to investigate teachers´attitudes to and work with outdoor education in preschool. The aim is also to identify the opportunities and barriers that exist to conduct outdoor education. In my research I have interviewed six preschool teachers in a medium sized municipality, where five of the teachers worked in the suburbs to the Big City and one teacher worked in the downtown Big City. All respondents in the study were in favor of conducting outdoor education. The respondents claimed that it promoted children´s health and motor skills. The result also shows that the teachers saw a great opportunity for learning related to outdoor education, by using the resources of nature.

The study is of qualitative research method, where the interviews are the main material for the study. This study aims to analyze teachers and pupils perspectives on outdoor education in the early years of the elementary school. The main reason for this study is that all the literature in the area tends to lift up the positive aspects of the field. While the practice of education tends to go the other way, where the majority of our children?s classes takes place inside the classrooms.

The objective for this study was to acquire a greater insight if children with concentration difficulties are assisted by outdoor education in the traditional teaching. With the use of a qualitative methodology four teachers were interviewed. The outcome gave evidence for that the teachers thought that outdoor education has a positive outcome for children with concentrations difficulties. The findings were divided into three key categories: the teacher?s reflections about outdoor education, outdoor education for children with difficulties in concentration and if there was any difference in how the children behaved indoors after having educations outdoors..

The aim of this paper is to find out to what extent outdoor mathematics is used in preschool and elementary school. I have chosen to use interviews to find it out. I made my interviews in five different schools in Karlskoga, with teachers in preschool and in first and second class. Focus has been on the positive effects in outdoor activities. The paper also deals with some of the prerequisites necessary to organize such activities.

The purpose to this survey is to map out the affordances available in the outdoor environment of one preschool. This has been executed through three episodes of observing children at that preschool during their outdoor play. All visible affordances has been written down and later on summarized in different themes where the most interesting meeting places in the outdoor environment at the pre-school have been described. The result of the study shows what the children at this preschool do in their outdoor environment. It also shows the importance of the arrangement of material and environment in order to be able to support childrens play.

This paper is a quantitative case study named Outdoor recreation of urban areas viewed through a gender perspective. The intention of this paper is, by studying gender pattern in outdoor recreation practices in Gothenburg, to describe gender patterns in outdoor recreation of Swedish urban areas. This subject is important to study because of the practices of outdoor recreation forward public health. Today many people suffer from diseases caused by stress and too little exercise, which could be prevented if they practiced outdoor recreation. Not everyone has the same possibility to practice outdoor recreation because of the inequalities between women and men.

AimThe aim with this essay has been to investigate how preschools profiling in motor activity training, work to stimulate motor development of children. In order to study this, the main focus for the research has been on the following queries:What characterize motor activity training at the preschools studied?What is the purpose with the motor activity training of preschools which were studied?How do the preschools describe the affect that motor activity training has on children?How do the preschools look at the need for motor activity training?MethodFour in-depth interviews were conducted with representatives of the chosen preschools profiling in motor activity. My selection was based on a strategic sample and this was made by an internet mapping of preschool activities in the districts of Stockholm, and information from the service guide of the town of Stockholm. Then e-mail was sent to ten contact persons at preschool units, and ten preschools were contacted directly by phone.

AimThe purpose with our study has been to investigate if upper secondary high schools in the south of Sweden, Stockholm and north of Sweden follow the outdoor education regulations stated in the curriculum (Lpf-94). Moreover, we aim to study if the teachers? previous experiences as well as the students affect the outdoor education. Finally, the purpose is to find out how the outdoor-life-education can be improved. These are the research questions:o How do the chosen high schools follow the outdoor education regulations stated in Lpf-94?o What obstacles, advantages and differences exist between the outdoor-life-education in these high schools?o In what way do the teachers? outdoor life experiences influence their education at school?o How can the students influence the outdoor education in their High Schools?o How can outdoor education be improved?MethodThe study is based upon data collected from four interviews with PE ( physical education) teachers from four different high schools.

One of our big public health problems in Sweden is that human beings are too inactive in outdoor settings. That is why stress related diseases increase and influence humans both mentally and physical. The physical activity is halved among many children when they start school and the older they become the less they enjoy school. It is also an increasing problem that children and youth in today's society have lack of worthwhile experiences in the nature. The aim of this study was therefore to examine how the experience of outdoor environment had importance for health and learning on upper secondary school pupils.

This scientific essay is based on four self-perceived situations that all takes place in an outdoor environment. The children are aged seven to nine years. At least one of the children in the groups has some type of concentration difficulties. I have combined my practical experience with literature and previous research regarding outdoor education and children with concentration difficulties. Based on this I have tried to interpret and reflect on the opportunities and problems with outdoor education for children with concentration difficulties, especially so called situational concentration difficulties.

AimOur aim with this study was to examine how outdoor education is designed and experienced in three upper (senior) levels of compulsory school in Stockholm, and to compare it with the Norwegian equivalence.MethodOur method has been interviews with ten teachers, of whom six are Swedish teachers and four are Norwegian teachers. Two Swedish teachers are teaching in other subjects than Physical Education, four are teachers in Physical Education, two are teachers in Norway in Physical Education at and two are teachers in Norway at university level. Questionnaires were used to examine the Swedish pupils? attitudes towards outdoor education. 90 questionnaires were delivered, and 70 answered them.