Skive, Denmark

Photographer: Marianne Borowiec

Year of Submission: 2016 (Educators Edition) 

Johan Laigaard runs a forest kindergarten in Skive, a town in north-west Denmark. Here, children run free outside every day, regardless of the weather. On windy days, the children make kites from plastic bags tied to lengths of string. On trips through the forest, Johan shows them how to observe the environment with all their senses. As the children play, Johan stays in the background. How high should they climb a tree? To the point where they can still get down without the help of an adult. Left to their own devices, the children learn to take care of each other.