There's No Such Thing as Bad Weather: A Scandinavian Mom's Secrets for Raising Healthy, Resilient, and Confident Kids (from Friluftsliv to Hygge)

by Linda Åkeson McGurk

I can’t help but think about the poor teacher back in Indiana who told me that all she did during recess in the winter was tell the children what they were not allowed to do, and how different the approach of teachers seemed here in Sweden. “I actually believe that you have to let them take some risks,” says Lisa, one of the older staff members on recess duty as she watches Maya and her new friends at the top of the hill. “That’s how children learn. It’s a form of trial and error—they try one thing and if that doesn’t work they’ll try something different. It’s hard to watch sometimes, because as an adult you’re wired to intervene. But even though it looks chaotic, they do a really good job of looking out for each other.”