FORUT – Play, feelings and time together

Only around two in three Norwegian kindergartens meet the required ratio of qualified teachers, and sickness absence is high. Yet it is in play, at the lunch table and in the cloakroom that the youngest children learn to understand their feelings. Kavli Trust is giving NOK 6 million to FORUT to turn its Children’s Campaign (Barneaksjonen) into a year-round model for play, feelings and time together – in kindergarten and at home.

About the project

FORUT will develop Barneaksjonen from an annual campaign period into a comprehensive model for kindergarten-age children, kindergarten staff and parents. The model has three parts: ready-made, flexible sessions with storytelling, music, movement and conversation that support the national kindergarten framework without adding to staff workload; a simple bridge home, with short activities parents can do with their child in everyday life; and the UN International Day of Play on 11 June as an annual day to celebrate play and share knowledge.

Among other things, the children meet a child in Nepal through stories, songs and film. A photo game developed with photographer Jan von Holleben lets children and adults build the child’s own ideas and dreams as pictures on the floor. Children’s input will visibly shape the materials. Psychologist Hedvig Montgomery is the project’s professional adviser. The model is built step by step: each part is tested on a small scale before it is rolled out, and an independent research partner evaluates the work along the way.

How will Kavli Trust’s funding be used

The grant funds the development work FORUT cannot do within the ordinary Barneaksjonen: professional quality assurance, independent evaluation, a clear pathway from kindergarten to the home, a simple and safe digital solution, testing with kindergartens and families, a pilot of the Day of Play, and documentation and knowledge sharing. FORUT contributes around NOK 3.1 million of its own resources.

About the organisation

FORUT is a Norwegian development organisation founded in 1981, with its head office in Gjøvik. It works to make the world safer for children, focusing on the rights of children and women, substance use and mental health, through locally led development cooperation in Asia, Africa and Latin America. In Norway, Barneaksjonen is FORUT’s programme for kindergartens.

Kavli Trust already supports FORUT and its partner CWIN in their work on community-based mental health for children and young people in Nepal. The experience from Nepal is part of the foundation for this new initiative.