Dance education for children receives sector-wide support through new agreement
Dance Educators Agreement unites bachelor’s programmes in Dance Education, partners and the Méér Muziek in de Klas foundation for the next seven years
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Together we grow stronger. On this news page we share the latest updates, inspiring ideas and innovative solutions to make your journey even better. From new courses to real-life examples: discover everything you need here.
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National Outdoor Lesson Day in 2024 on 9 April
The ninth edition of National Outdoor Lesson Day will take place on 9 April 2024. On this day, pupils throughout the country leave the classroom to receive lessons from their teacher in the fresh air outdoors. Previously, IVN Nature Education organised this together with Jantje Beton. Now that Jantje Beton has decided to focus more on outdoor play and play areas, IVN is continuing with Outdoor Lesson Day independently.
Almost as many young people vape as smoke
Almost as many young people vape as smoke. This is shown by the new Youth Monitor on tobacco and nicotine products from the Trimbos Institute. 21.7 percent of Dutch young people and young adults (aged 12 to 25) used an e-cigarette in the past year. Almost one third (27.4 percent) smoked cigarettes. And 69.1% of young people who use an e-cigarette monthly also smoke cigarettes monthly.
Students from special (primary) education discover survival sport
On Thursday, 21 September, the Special Heroes Foundation organised the Sport Heroes Survival Experience at Hommes Survivalrun & Outdoor in Groningen. Six different special (primary) schools from the province of Groningen and Assen discovered survival sport. The young people left the safe school environment, where regularity, structure and rhythm are central, for the beautifully constructed course full of challenging obstacles. A total of 250 students completed the survival course.
Primary School Klavervier in Gelderland Wins ANWB Traffic Square
The winner of the ‘an ANWB Traffic Square for a school playground’ campaign in the province of Gelderland is Klavervier, a school for special primary education in Beuningen. Today, the ANWB Traffic Square was officially opened in the presence of all the pupils, Ellen Sas-van de Geer (primary school principal) and Peter Siewers (director of ANWB Assistance).
Nominate your municipality for the Golden Carrot 2024!
School gardens have existed for more than 100 years. That is why many municipalities encourage school gardening. They see it as a good way to introduce children to healthy food and teach them about nature and biodiversity. In 2024, too, the week of 8 to 12 April will once again focus on school gardens. To top it all off, National Outdoor Classroom Day will be organised on 9 April. The week is an initiative of the School Gardens Alliance and Jong Leren Eten.
Better school performance with an involved father
Children perform better in primary school when their fathers regularly read, draw and play with them. This is shown by research from the University of Leeds. To analyse the test results of 5- and 7-year-olds, the researchers used a representative sample of almost 5,000 mother–father households in England.
“If you don’t talk about bullying, nothing will change either”
Bullying at school can cause a great deal of pain and sadness. Jeroen* (11) was bullied so severely at his previous primary school that he no longer dared to go to school. He now attends a primary school that works hard to create a positive and safe school climate: an environment where children are seen and heard, and where action is taken against bullying. Anti-bullying coordinator Karola and Jeroen share their experiences with bullying on the website of the Netherlands Youth Institute. They also discuss how to prevent and address bullying behaviour at school.
The recipe for a positive group atmosphere
This week is Anti-Bullying Week (25 to 29 September), an initiative of the School & Safety Foundation. In response, Giti Bán, a trainer and adviser in confidential counselling at the School & Safety Foundation and an external confidential counsellor, wrote the article below.
School nutrition policies
Schools are increasingly adopting nutrition policies aimed at healthy eating. This is not mandatory, but it is encouraged by the government. Schools decide for themselves whether they have a policy on children’s food and drinks at school. The participation council has the right to approve this policy. Ouders & Onderwijs has listed a number of matters for parents.
Ninth edition of Tap Water Day on 27 September
On 27 September, the Dutch drinking water companies will jointly organise National Tap Water Day. This event will take place for the ninth time. The Dutch drinking water companies invite all primary schools and out-of-school care organisations to focus on tap water as a healthy and sporty thirst quencher on this day. With the help of a short, engaging lesson, children from groups 1 to 8 discover why tap water is so healthy when you play sports and exercise. Schools and out-of-school care organisations that register will receive free educational materials.
Health literacy skills are basic skills
Living healthily, both physically and mentally, cannot always be taken for granted in today’s world, even for young people. For example, we know that young people’s mental health is under pressure. And the number of children and young people who are (severely) overweight is increasing. Healthy School considers paying attention to health literacy skills at school essential for children and young people. What are health literacy skills, and why does Healthy School consider them basic skills? Vivian Kruitwagen, a health scientist responsible for the further development of the Healthy School approach, explains.
Gnome fun, a record in Utrecht
The ‘Gnome Trail’ lesson by the Utrecht Natuurlijk organisation is proving to be a great success. No fewer than 123 groups with 3,000 pupils are taking part in this do-it-yourself lesson on site.
Free webinar Healthy eating for children of primary school age
On Monday 1 November from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m., the Netherlands Nutrition Centre is organising a free webinar for parents of children of primary school age (between 4 and 12 years old). The webinar is also of interest to education professionals who work on the subject of Healthy Nutrition in primary schools.
Attention at school for the earthquake in Morocco
On Friday evening, 8 September 2023, an earthquake occurred in Morocco, which has by now claimed the lives of more than 2,800 people. School & Safety not only sympathises with all pupils, students and education staff who have been directly or indirectly affected by the consequences of this earthquake. The Foundation also understands that pupils and education staff with loved ones in Morocco are worried. That is why School & Safety is addressing questions such as ‘What does this do to pupils and colleagues?’ and ‘How do you deal with it?’
Primary schools can do more to get children moving during the school day
Most primary school principals are familiar with the concept of ‘the active school day’. Yet only one in three supports its implementation. In addition, although most teachers use active learning, only a small proportion do so every day. This is according to research by the Mulier Institute among principals and teachers from four groups of schools.
€5,000 from IVN and Jantje Beton for 10 schools to make their schoolyards greener and more playful
The 10 primary schools that will receive €5,000 from IVN and Jantje Beton to make their schoolyards greener and more challenging have been announced! From June onward, primary schools could register with IVN and Jantje Beton to be considered. The call resulted in 160 responses in a short period of time. Every one of them was a school highly motivated to enable all pupils to play and learn in a green and playful schoolyard.
Lekker naar Buiten Incentive Grant for Healthy Childcare
Are you a Healthy Childcare coach? Since 30 August 2023, you can apply for a grant of up to 550 euros. You can use it for a nutrition-related activity. Think of supplies for a vegetable garden, assistance with a cooking lesson or transport to a (children’s) farm.
Well-being Healthy School Activities Market
Would you like to work on the well-being of pupils or students this school year? Then come to the Well-being Activities Market on Wednesday, 11 October in Utrecht. You will get to know various Healthy School activities focusing on well-being in primary education, special education, secondary education and senior secondary vocational education (MBO). Registration is free and possible until 14 September.
Survey among parents on performance pressure at school
The organization Ouders & Onderwijs and the Voor Werkende Ouders foundation are investigating whether children experience performance pressure at school and what parents believe is needed to reduce this pressure. They want to know whether children (sometimes) experience or have experienced performance pressure at school. They also want to know what causes it and what effect it has on children. The organizations are calling on parents to participate. It takes approximately five minutes.
Large majority considers handing out treats essential at primary school birthdays
An opinion survey conducted by the RTL News Panel shows that 87 percent of parents and teachers believe that handing out a treat is part of celebrating birthdays at primary school. Nevertheless, there are also schools experimenting with alternatives. And for good reason, according to Tilly de Jong of GLOS Educatief.
Discussing bullying in class
Everyone can help ensure that every child feels comfortable in the group. That is why it is important to take action when you see someone being bullied. However, we do not all want to or dare to respond in the same way. What suits the children in your class? To help facilitate the conversation, the Netherlands Youth Institute has created a video and lesson plan aimed at students in grades 5 and 6.
Edition 21 of the National School Breakfast
The National School Breakfast is coming up again! The 21st edition will take place from 6 to 10 November. Primary school children throughout the Netherlands will once again have a healthy and enjoyable breakfast together with their teachers in the classroom.
How can you, as a parent, help children learn how to learn?
At school, your child learns step by step how to plan, organize, learn and work independently. Children in the upper years of primary school are often given homework to help them get used to this. As a result, they gain not only knowledge. They also learn how to learn. The Netherlands Youth Institute has listed ways in which you, as a parent, can support your child with this. The article contains information that schools can use when parents ask them questions about this.
Almost all municipalities can offer primary schools enough sports facilities for compulsory physical education lessons
Starting next school year, primary schools must provide all pupils with at least two lessons of physical education per week. However, there must be enough sports facilities available for this. 85 percent of municipalities indicate that they can offer all schools enough sports facilities to meet the new obligation. This is according to research by the Mulier Institute among municipal officials.
Veilig Verkeer Nederland refreshes road safety knowledge
To reduce the number of accidents during this period, Veilig Verkeer Nederland (VVN) is launching its annual campaign ‘Our schools have started again’ with banners and posters. With this campaign, VVN is calling on motorists to adjust their speed. The campaign was launched on Monday morning, 21 August, at De Gouden Griffel primary school in Berkel en Rodenrijs. Teacher Lennart van der Meulen, who was named ‘Teacher of the Year’ last year, introduced the new campaign element ‘Question of the day’ together with VVN, celebrating its launch in his Year 5 class. ‘Question of the day’ refreshes the children’s road safety knowledge during the first week of lessons, so that they continue to travel safely from school to home and from home to school.
Boksend Opvoeden and Onderzoekend Tuinieren newly recognized Healthy School activities
Boksend Opvoeden and Onderzoekend Tuinieren have recently been recognized as new Healthy School activities. Healthy School activities can be used to promote a healthy lifestyle at school. All Healthy School activities are of good quality and easy to implement in practice. There are Healthy School activities for primary education, special education, secondary education and vocational education.
Food Waste-Free Quiz during Food Waste-Free Week
Food Waste-Free Week will take place from 11 to 17 September 2023. Schools can take part in the Food Waste-Free Quiz from the Taste Mission Food Waste programme.
Online workshops in preparation for Anti-Bullying Week 2023
From 25 to 29 September, the School & Safety Foundation is organising Anti-Bullying Week 2023. In the run-up to this week, there will be five free online workshops on 11, 14, 18, 19 and 21 September, which tie in well with the 2023 theme, ‘Good to one another!’. Registration is already open.
The role of schools in children’s well-being
The coronavirus crisis has made it clear that schools play an important role in children’s mental well-being. Happy children learn better. A safe environment—along with healthy food and exercise—is important for their development and school performance. Various programmes are available for school boards that want to get started with this. The PO-Raad has compiled an overview.