The ongoing and core task of Hort is to take care of school age children before and after school. This core task defines the role and professional self-conception of Hort.
LIS Hort concept is based on an open work approach. Open work (Offene Arbeit) in a day care institution is a modern participatory approach that puts the interests and the needs of the child in the centre.
First of all it means to be open for what children feel and think, for what they explore, tell or show us. It means to support their need for independence and responsibility. It means to empower children to organise themselves and to let them decide, how to spend their time in Hort and with whom. It means to transfer some decision-making powers of the adults to the children. Nevertheless, the overall responsibility remains with the team of educators.
This does not mean that children can always do what they want and that there are no limits. The basic rules are the same throughout the whole day. But other than in the school setting, where students learn in closed, age-homogenous groups, in Hort they organise themselves according to their interests, often also age mixed.
The framework that Hort provides for a self-directed learning of children comprises of three key elements: environment, experience and relationships.
1. The environment we create
The 6 functional rooms and spaces – Outside space, Creative space, Game room, Active space, Quiet room and Hallway – are the most visible part of the open approach. They have been created on the basis of what we have observed the children enjoy doing. The are designed and equipped in a way to encourage and give orientation for various activities. Most materials are freely accessible for the children.
Hallway
The hallway is the space, all Hort children enter first when they arrive at Hort. Children hang their belongings on the hooks of their grade area and decide where they want to play. Every child has a nametag, which he or she will place on the whiteboard of its choice. Those whiteboards are allocated to the thematic rooms and show parents, educators and friends, where the child currently is or which After School Activity the child has joined. hildren are welcome to meet each other in the Hort hallway. The snack corner has developed as a popular meeting point to eat together or to simply sit and talk. The kicker table is always in high demand and children love to challenge each other.
Creative Space
Creative Space gives children the opportunity to express and explore themselves by providing different material and arts equipment. Integrated into the system of the Open Hort, Creative Space is available for all students off all Primary grades. Crafting projects, related to certain holidays and themes are offered by educators as well as guided free arts. Children are welcome to join offered craft projects but also to start their own. By using Creative Space children are asked to treat the equipment respectfully and economically as well as cleaning up carefully after finishing their work. Our students are also asked to inform the educator about missing material or things that need restocking. This way, they learn to take and feel responsibility not only for things that belong to them, but also for those, they share with others.
Quiet Room
At the end of a busy day of lessons the most relaxing place to be during Hort time is the Quiet Room. Here children find a place to wind down and reflect on the many impressions of the day. Children can choose to participate with others in quiet activities or simply snuggle up with soft cushions and blankets to read a book or to listen to an audiobook. At designated areas children can complete their homework or tackle challenging learning games. Drawing, puzzling, colouring, braiding Scoubidou creations or enjoying a relaxing massage in a cosy atmosphere with candles and lights are also popular activities in the Quiet Room. Our students are asked to interact as quiet as possible. They learn to be considerate of each other and to enjoy the silence together.
Games and Construction Room
Switch off the daily school routine and relax while playing in the Game Room. The Game Room is a place, where children can build and strengthen relationships and friendships while playing games as single players or in teams, following rules and waiting patiently for the next turn. Here the kids can chose from a wide selection of board and card games. The construction corner offers many possibilities to try out construction games. Wooden blocks, Legos, Knex and Clicks elements invite children to intense construction sessions together with friends or alone. Children are asked to play fairly and honestly, to respect game rules and to clean up their games after they have finished playing.
Active Space
Active Space is the indoor playground, where children can use their strengths and get to know and expand their physical boundaries. The main function of this space is to satisfy children´s need of movement. The room offers the possibility to practice gross motor skills if the weather won´t allow children to play outside or the darkness arrives early in wintertime. The room offers a variety of possibilities to move or challenge others. Bouldering at the climbing wall, boxing with gloves and guided wrestling are as welcome as chilling, building shelters or doing acrobatics. At any time, kids are expected and constantly reminded to treat each other fairly and with respect. To offer all grades the chance to use the room together with classmates, we have designated days for each grade level. To avoid injuries this room only allows a limited number of visitors.
Outside Space
The biggest space of all offers children many possibilities for their play in Hort. Being outside before and after school is the best balance to being in class six periods. With appropriate clothes, nothing can stop us keeping the outside area open each day.
On the upper playground, children can ride the cars and scooters, enter the pirate ship or the tree house, play ping-pong and badminton, or just play tag, jump and run. The small playground with its new climbing spider encourages clambering to the top. Digging in the sand and hiding in the bushes is also fun for many children. Also very popular here is the woodwork workshop, which takes place twice a week, if the weather allows. On the pitch, football tournaments take place regularly. Besides this, children are welcome to play basketball and football as single players or in teams independently always with the core goals of fairness and openness to let others join the game.
In the outside space, children not only test their physical abilities but also interact in social situations to learn about respect, fairness, responsibility and sharing. The educators are among others role models, play buddies, referees, safety inspectors, craftsmen and mediators.
2. The experience we provide
These are the activities we offer. Unsurprisingly, free play is by far the most preferred. Only during free play are children in full control of everything. They are in the driver seat, while educators are in an observer role, ready to help, if asked by a child, and ready to intervene, if a situation becomes to risky or a conflict to severe. During free play children learn most from other students, test social behaviours, negotiate rules, advocate for an idea or learn to convince others.
Besides free play, educators offer weekly guided activities in various rooms or spaces for interested students. These reach from the introduction of a new game, a short competition or a sports tournament to an art workshop over several days. On a few occasions, students need to register before the activity in order to secure participation.
3. The relationships we develop
Last but not least, relationships are the foundation for the children’s growth. Children must feel respected and appreciated. They are invited to contribute in a safe setting. In order for this to happen, kids need to see that adults listen, care, and guide. Educators care rather than judge, and see children as individuals who are worth getting to know. Adult-child-relationships are the most critical, but all relations between younger children and older children, child to child, staff to staff, and staff to parents are important.
In an open Hort communication and co-operation among the team of educators are key. Each educator is responsible for a room or space and all the children in it. This requires confidence in the competence and responsibility of all colleagues and of the children. If children have extended options for their actions, e.g. to play inside or outside, they can develop new competences and show the adults, what they are able to do.
It remains most important to care for the development of each individual child. Having this in mind Hort is a fantastic opportunity not only to watch children to grow, but also to help them to grow.