From the 18th to the 22nd March, Torres Vedras welcomed partners from the European Erasmus+ “Moving and Learning Outside” project for the second week of training for preschool teachers taking part in the course.
The training started in Lisbon, at the Faculdade de Motricidade Humana, and included observation of a lesson given by Professor Carlos Neto who, at the end of the day, gave a talk to all the participants entitled: “Moving and Learning Outside: The Joy of Play”.
Over the course of the following days, some of the practical activities which will become part of the final product, were put into practice, using groups from Conquinha II kindergarten. This experiment involved allowing the children to spend more time outside, playing in more challenging ways and without the usual restrictions being imposed on them. This was also a challenge for the kindergarten staff and, obviously, the start of a change in mentality as to the importance of play, contact with nature and the associated risks to the children that come up in this context.
It was a week rich in experiences and the participants took home the results of the two weeks of training (in Norway and Portugal). This new knowledge will now be developed and applied over the coming months in each of the participating countries.
The next meeting will be in Croatia in September, where the results of introducing these practical activities will be evaluated at the end of this project.