Survival Week sparks learning and excitement for children in the Rhön region, merging adventure and education.
The Rhön UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, nestled in the heart of Bavaria, recently hosted an event to honour outstanding commitment in areas of sustainability, environmental awareness, and resource conservation. The event, organised by Biosphere Kita Unterebersbach, showcased the success of the "Survival Week" model in Biosphere kindergartens within the reserve.
The "Survival Week" is a unique educational approach designed to foster self-responsibility, care, and craftsmanship skills among children. During this week, children engage in practical, nature-based experiences that require them to manage basic survival tasks in a natural setting. This immersion in nature encourages independence, practical skill development, and a sense of responsibility towards the environment.
The success of the "Survival Week" can be attributed to the unwavering commitment of the team involved. Lena Scheuplein, the Kita director, and her deputy Tanja Then, emphasised the importance of convincing the entire team from the start for the model's success. The team provided detailed documentation from the first implementation, streamlining preparations for this year.
The event was a training for outstanding Biosphere Kitas in the Rhön UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Lukas Seuffert, director of the "RaubNESt" forest kindergarten in Hohenroth, presented the concepts "Tool Driver's License" and "Carving Driver's License", where children as young as three learn to handle real tools responsibly and can earn a "license" that can be revoked for misuse.
Twenty-five specialists from 18 facilities in Bavaria, Hesse, and Thuringia attended the event, which offered ample opportunity for exchange, new impulses, and mutual inspiration. The concepts promoted during the event align with the ethos of Biosphere education that emphasises sustainability and respect for nature.
The Biosphere Kita award, given by the administrative bodies of the Rhön UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, recognises such outstanding commitment. The award categories include nutrition, ecology and nature conservation, energy and building measures, social and cooperation, and consumption.
The cross-border training for certified Biosphere kindergartens takes place annually at different locations within the Rhön UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. By leveraging their protected natural environment as an outdoor classroom, these kindergartens enhance children's experiential learning in ways that promote ecological awareness alongside personal development.
While the exact detailed description of the "Survival Week" is not available in the provided search results, this explanation aligns with the general principles known for Biosphere kindergarten concepts and nature-based early childhood education within UNESCO Biosphere Reserves. For a more detailed or official curriculum description, information directly from the Rhön Biosphere educational institutions or their official publications would provide the most precise insight.
- The "Survival Week" model, an integral part of Biosphere kindergartens within the Rhön UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, is a unique learning experience that encourages practical skill development, sustainability, and environmental awareness in children, converging the home-and-garden, education-and-self-development, and lifestyle domains.
- Biosphere kindergartens in the Rhön UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, by adopting innovative educational approaches like the "Survival Week," integrate environmental consciousness, self-responsibility, and care in their home-and-garden, education-and-self-development, and lifestyle curricula, fostering a connection between children and nature that lasts beyond their early years.
