Development Priorities

In early childhood education, children’s daily outdoor activities, physical movement, and learning are being strengthened. The Oulu-based ‘Half Day Outdoors’ activity model supports a sustainable and active lifestyle by moving learning outdoors and utilizing the local environment. Daycares implement activities according to the annual calendar of physical education. Oulu also participates in the national ‘Active Early Childhood Education’ program.

The goal of education for a sustainable future is to strengthen the relationship with nature for children and staff and to increase awareness of the circular economy and climate competence, so that education for a sustainable future becomes part of the early childhood education culture.

Oulu’s ‘Stream of Sustainable Future Learning’ guides sustainability education in early childhood education. It is part of the City of Oulu’s early childhood education plan as well as the curricula for preschool, basic education, and upper secondary school.

Cultural education in Oulu is based on a broad concept of culture, which includes knowledge, skills, customs, and the values and norms of society. For example, language, art, sports, and various worldviews and religions are forms of culture. Children’s culture refers both to art created by children and art created for children, as well as children’s own culture and cultural offerings aimed at children.

Joy of Expression – A Guide to Implementing Cultural Education in Early Childhood Education in Oulu has been published!

The guide encourages playful cultural education that promotes participation and encourages people to take action. The guide contains tips for diversifying arts and cultural education, based on the objectives and content of the Early Childhood Education Plan and the Pre-school Education Curriculum. The guide ties in with the previously published Joy of Expression poster.

In addition, the guide provides tools for evaluating cultural education and explains cultural vocabulary. It also presents Oulu's early childhood education development units, cultural institutions, and national actors that complement cultural education.

The Joy of Expression – A Guide to Implementing Cultural Education in Early Childhood Education in Oulu was created as part of the Taiteen taimet ja kulttuurituutorit (Seeds of Art and Cultural Tutors) project. The project is funded by the European Social Fund ESF+ and the City of Oulu. The guide was illustrated by graphic designer Sara Kurtti. 

The printed guide will be distributed to all early childhood education centers in Oulu during February 2026. The guide is only available for download in Finnish.

The Joy of Expression poster invites you to get excited about children's culture in early childhood education, and act!

The Joy of Expression poster has been produced by the Art Seeds and Cultural Tutors project to support and strengthen cultural education in early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Oulu. The project is funded by the European Social Fund ESF+.

The middle of the poster describes the art and culture education in the day-care centre and the surrounding environment, based on the National Core Curricula for ECEC and Pre-primary Education. The outer frame features the cultural institutions and early childhood education development units of the City of Oulu.

A coloring page made of the poster can be used to color the art and culture experienced together. In addition, a video of the poster provides guidance on how to use it operationally. The poster is illustrated by graphic designer Sara Kurtti.

STEAM pedagogy is an activity that combines science and technology education, mathematics, and the arts. STEAM is child-centered, creative, experimental, exploratory, and communal learning where children can solve problems and learn new things through hands-on activities and experimentation.

The Oulu STEAM Handbook and Guide for Early Childhood Education STEAM Activities guide the implementation of STEAM pedagogy in early childhood education.

Digital pedagogy promotes children’s multiliteracy, technological skills, and creativity. Strengthening digital competence advances educational equality for children.

Välkyt is an activity model created for early childhood education in the City of Oulu, through which digital pedagogy is implemented. The goal is to utilize digital tools to support pedagogy in every child group through collaborative activities; playing, moving, experimenting, exploring, and creating.

In early childhood education, digital devices and applications are used responsibly and safely to support children’s learning. In Oulu, digital daily life recommendations have been prepared for families.

The handbook for digital pedagogy in early childhood education compiles principles and jointly agreed guidelines related to the digitalization of early childhood education to support the work of the staff.

Alakööki and Heikinharju’s Luontokoto are development units of early childhood education in Oulu. You can find more information on the units’ websites by clicking the buttons below.

• Participate in and support the pedagogical activities of early childhood education units
• Implement functional learning modules in daycares and various learning environments, where children and staff can together explore and experiment with different ways of learning. These situations also serve as in-service training for staff.
• Act as experts in early childhood education in various networks and working groups