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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How can you encourage children to walk or cycle to school more often? In an article on Alles over Sport, Ilja van Holsteijn explains that creating a movement-friendly environment can help, both by designing the outdoor space and by encouraging and rewarding behaviour.
In Nijmegen-Noord (Lent), one of the first gender-neutral primary schools in the Netherlands recently opened. In an interview with De Gelderlander, Manon Prévoo explains the choice. “We want to move away from this boys-and-girls way of thinking, and we do not want to stigmatize our pupils in any way.”
More than half of minors appear to have vaped at least once. This is according to a study by NOS Stories, which was completed by 6,000 minors. Of the vapers, 240 were 12 or younger.
Recently, the Children’s Ombudsman published the research report ‘Bullied in Loneliness’. The report once again shows that teachers can make a difference when it comes to bullying. Stichting School & Veiligheid welcomes this in-depth study and the fact that the voices of children and young people are central to it. Alarming is the finding that one in three students experiences discrimination as a reason for being bullied. What can you do as an education professional to combat bullying and discrimination?
The smartphone has been around for fifteen years and has gained a major role in the lives of many people during that time. Schoolchildren even spend an average of five hours a day on their smartphones. And that has a major impact on school performance, says Flemish neuropsychiatrist Theo Compernolle.
On 9 June 2022, during the Week for Healthy Youth, JOGG ambassador and top rower Nicole Beukers gave the starting signal for the first national Peuter4daagse in the JOGG municipality of Nijmegen. She did this together with Alderman for Sports Bert Velthuis at Joki childcare centre (a KION location). It was a great success nationwide, with around 18,000 toddlers already taking part across all provinces. Due to this success, JOGG and the Royal Dutch Walking Association (KWbN) have decided to extend registration until the end of the year.
Is your primary school going to get started with greening the schoolyard? And would you like to link food education to this? Then the Louis Bolk Institute would love to hear about your experiences! In addition to helping the Louis Bolk Institute and all primary schools enormously by sharing experiences and gathering insights into the impact, you will receive information from the Louis Bolk Institute and a fun outdoor play package for the schoolyard.
Whether and how much children play outdoors depends on many different factors. If we want to encourage outdoor play, we need to take all these factors into account. The Mulier Institute maps these factors in the study ‘Outdoor play in perspective’. The findings are also of interest to schools.
Wednesday, 29 June marks the tenth edition of Mud Day. More than 160,000 children across the country will once again be allowed to play with mud to their hearts’ content and get wonderfully dirty. This is sorely needed, because playing outdoors in nature is under severe pressure. Together with Humankind Childcare and Development, IVN Nature Education is using this anniversary edition of Mud Day to call in The Hague for more green, healthy outdoor spaces and activities in childcare. This ambition does not place any additional pressure on childcare, but instead directly contributes to children’s enjoyment of play and their long-term health.
In many places, schools, municipalities and municipal health services are already joining forces to make attention to a healthy lifestyle the norm. But how do you work together in practice? And what are the success factors and points to consider? Healthy School collected ten inspiring stories about collaboration. They can be read in the booklet Stronger Together for a Healthy Youth.
How can you, as a teacher educator, systematically address the topic of healthy relationships & sexuality? And how can this become an integral part of the curriculum? During the online working conference How Do You Do It? on 7 October, we will work on this concretely from 9:30 to 12:15 through round-table discussions and inspiration sessions.
Schools must be given more time and space to restore and further strengthen the educational relationship between pupils and teachers. This is necessary to promote the learning motivation and well-being of children and young people. That is what the Platform for the Perspective of Young People (PPJ) writes in its second advisory letter to Education Minister Wiersma on the implementation and effects of the National Education Programme (NPO). According to the PPJ, greater attention to the educational relationship will make the NPO more effective.
During the national Healthy Youth Week from 7–11 June, the JOGG network, consisting of more than 200 municipalities and around one hundred social organisations and companies, drew extra attention to a healthier society for young people. Together, they showed what the Big People from the JOGG network are already doing to make a healthier society a reality.
What are the benefits of a joint and integrated preventive approach by teachers and youth care professionals in the classroom? Under the leadership of lecturer Mariette Haasen, Fontys University of Applied Sciences’ Centre for Special Educational Needs (OSO) conducted research into this. In primary education, secondary education, secondary vocational education and special education, youth care and education professionals worked in the classroom with interventions focused on social and emotional learning. The Netherlands Youth Institute (NJi) advised on the design and implementation of the study.
Bullies must be dealt with more firmly, and children who bully must know what it feels like to be bullied or excluded. That is what bullied children told the Children's Ombudsman in a study on bullying. And to really combat bullying, a broader approach is needed. Bullying does not only happen at school, but also in the neighbourhood, online and on the sports field, the Children's Ombudsman concludes in the report ‘Bullied in Loneliness’.
Almost all young people enjoy listening to music on their headphones, go to parties with loud music, or are exposed to loud noise during their (part-time) jobs. Unfortunately, this is not without risk. Research shows that approximately 13% of young people already have incipient hearing damage. Hearing damage is almost always permanent, meaning that young people will suffer from it for the rest of their lives.
Christian primary school De Horizon in Delft has chosen for several years not to allow students to bring treats for their birthdays, but instead to celebrate with a party. In a video on the website ‘Wie jarig is viert feest’, which was launched this week, director Meint Helder explains why.
The percentage of children who never play outside has doubled in four years to 17%. Moreover, four in ten children do not even play outside for one hour a day. This is according to research presented on June 8 during National Outdoor Play Day. The research was conducted by Kantar Public on behalf of Jantje Beton. Dave Ensberg-Kleijkers (managing director of Jantje Beton): “National Outdoor Play Day therefore remains very important!”
If there is one thing we have learned about movement, it is this: what is learned young is learned for life. From a very young age, it is already determined how well you will be able to move later on and how much enjoyment you will get from it. By the end of the preschool years, major differences can already be seen in terms of motor development and enjoyment of physical activity. There is therefore a great deal to be gained, and we all have a role to play in this. In an article, the Alles over Sport website shares the latest figures and insights on more and more skilled movement among preschoolers.
In the regions of South Holland South, West Brabant and Haaglanden, the campaign ‘Those who have a birthday celebrate’ will launch during Healthy Youth Week (7 to 11 June). Schools are being invited to stop handing out treats and instead celebrate together. The basic principle remains the same: the birthday child is put in the spotlight. Anne Frank Primary School in Gorinchem has already replaced treats with group celebrations since autumn 2019. Principal Sanne Hooimeijer talks about her experiences.
Schools indicate that they consider healthy food at school important, while at the same time sometimes finding it difficult to achieve. The Healthy School Canteen programme of the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recognises this too. Fortunately, many schools know where to find the Netherlands Nutrition Centre and The Healthy School Canteen for help. Because every improvement is a step in the right direction. An article on the Netherlands Nutrition Centre’s website looks back on this.
For preschoolers, it is very important that they learn to move well. And they do not learn that only in physical education lessons, but everywhere: in the classroom and on the school playground too. Preschool teacher Gineke Muller shares her best practical tips on the Alles over Sport website, and lecturer Mirka Janssen adds insights from science. Use this knowledge and these practical tips to encourage preschoolers to move more.
Playing outdoors is incredibly important, but is becoming less and less self-evident. That is why Jantje Beton & Nickelodeon organise Outdoor Play Day every year. This is the afternoon on which they celebrate what is so important: playing outdoors! Outdoor Play Day 2022 will take place on Wednesday, 8 June.
Things are not going well for the wild bee. What a shame, because bees are very important for our fruit and vegetables. Your school can help the wild bee. How? Request a free flower bulb package from Nederland Zoemt! Nederland Zoemt is a project in which IVN Nature Education and Nature & Environment work together.
Despite the controversy surrounding the ‘anti-gay declaration’ of Reformed primary schools two years ago, little has changed. In their most recent online school guides and identity profiles, 36 of the 161 schools still reject sexual relationships between two people of the same sex. That is more than two years ago, according to research by Pointer. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science wants to monitor the schools even more closely. “The concerns about this have not diminished in recent years.”
Arnhem and Teylingen are the winners of the Golden Carrot 2022. The two municipalities are receiving this new award for their years-long support of school gardening, making them a source of inspiration for other municipalities across the country. The Golden Carrots were presented by Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Fisheries Henk Staghouwer during the national School Garden Conference on Wednesday 25 May at Floriade Expo in Almere.
Healthy School ensures that every school in the Netherlands can work towards a healthy lifestyle for its pupils and students. When schools, municipalities and GGD services work together, children and young people can grow up as healthily as possible and have the best possible opportunities. How can we make this collaboration successful? What is the recipe? This question will be central during the Healthy School Reflective Dinner on Wednesday, 8 June 2022, at Leerhotel Het Klooster in Amersfoort.
Wednesday, May 18 was the tenth edition of World Plant Day. A good time, according to IVN, to call on schools to transform their classrooms into green oases. Every primary school in the Netherlands should be equipped with an ‘indoor forest’. A whole range of plants in the classroom improves the atmosphere and helps children concentrate better.
Toddlers today are not being optimally supported in their development and health. That is why Cora Merkx started Peuterbeweging and launched the accompanying method and book on 8 October 2021. The book and teaching method are published by Glos Educatief. The activity described in the teaching method literally gets toddlers moving, while playfully introducing the four components of movement, grounding, relaxation and breathing. There is now also an inspiring video in which Cora Merkx and her daughter Nina provide further explanation.
Between 16 and 18 May, 60 professional chefs set out to teach a cooking class at 60 primary schools. The cooking classes took place on Monday afternoon, 16 May, Tuesday, 17 May, or Wednesday, 18 May.