{"id":58,"date":"2015-06-05T13:12:27","date_gmt":"2015-06-05T13:12:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.americanmaninfinland.com\/?p=58"},"modified":"2022-05-16T18:59:30","modified_gmt":"2022-05-16T18:59:30","slug":"finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/","title":{"rendered":"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent Is an Unknown Species"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. Every morning at my Finnish public school, she spends just three hours in the classroom. And\u00a0every afternoon she has three hours of free play at her afterschool club. At 4:00 pm, she walks home on her own.<\/p>\n

When Carla unlocks the door to her apartment, her mom usually isn\u2019t there to greet her. This has been the case since she was in first grade.<\/p>\n

I ask Carla if she ever dreads the mile-long walk home through the narrow city streets. She assures me that she never gets scared, and this impresses me. Helsinki isn\u2019t New York City, but it\u2019s a major European city nonetheless.<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/p>\n

When Carla sheds her backpack at the door, she doesn\u2019t flop helplessly on the couch and watch the clock, impatiently waiting for her mom to return. She\u2019s proactive and tries to get her homework out of the way.<\/p>\n

I wonder what else she does while she\u2019s alone, and she tells me that she likes to make food for herself. Especially eggs.<\/p>\n

Carla \u2013 this petite eight-year-old \u2013 makes eggs the \u201cgrownup\u201d way. She switches on the stove, cracks an egg into a frying pan and savors her favorite afternoon snack all by herself. I\u2019m very impressed.<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/p>\n

I shared Carla\u2019s story with several of my Helsinki fifth graders, and they weren\u2019t so impressed. The most common response went something like this: \u201cYup, that sounds like my life.\u201d One of my students told me that he had been commuting home on his own since he was a preschooler!<\/p>\n

During our conversation, my fifth graders had wondered why I was so amazed by Carla. And I had told them that \u2013 where I\u2019m from in the United States \u2013 I\u2019m not used to seeing such young children with so much freedom. I reasoned that American \u201chelicopter parents\u201d have a lot to do with this.<\/p>\n

They looked very confused and asked me, \u201cWhat\u2019s a helicopter parent?\u201d I explained that this kind of parent anxiously hovers over his child in an effort to prevent something bad from happening. Naturally, helicopter parents limit the freedom of their children.<\/p>\n

My fifth graders racked their brains to come up with examples of Finnish parents who matched this description. But they couldn\u2019t think of any.<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

My fifth graders appear to be fiercely independent compared with American fifth graders. All of my students in Finland have their own cell phones. Most of them commute to school on their own. All of them walk through the hallways independently, which they\u2019ve been doing since they were in first grade.<\/p>\n

Throughout this school year, the independence of my fifth graders has challenged me to trust them with more freedom in the classroom.<\/p>\n

Two months ago, the other fifth grade teacher and I experimented by having an \u201cIndependent Learning Week.\u201d At the beginning of this week, I provided my students with a list of tasks to complete in nearly every academic subject. And I told them that we wouldn\u2019t have regular lessons for the next few days. Instead, they would have open blocks where they could finish these tasks at their own pace.<\/p>\n

I trusted them to reach out to me when they needed help. During Independent Learning Week, I wasn\u2019t circulating around the classroom and peering over their shoulders. Instead, I was giving them opportunities to wrestle with their work first \u2013 something that I\u2019ve seen my Finnish colleagues do regularly with their students.<\/p>\n

I was also trusting my fifth graders with a lot of instructional time \u2013 nearly 15 hours worth \u2013 and yet, I wasn\u2019t anxious. I knew they were capable of being successful while having lots of freedom.<\/p>\n

All in all, my students didn\u2019t let me down. \u00a0Everyone finished their work \u2013 even if they needed extra time.<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Although American kids appear to be a lot less independent than Finnish kids, it\u2019s not because they lack an \u201cindependence gene.\u201d The biggest difference, in my opinion, is that American children have fewer opportunities to exercise freedom.<\/p>\n

I wonder how much of this has to do with our cultural mindset as Americans. We so desperately want our children to be safe, or to succeed, that we try to take a more active role in their lives. We want to minimize risks, and we think that exerting a greater degree of control will help.<\/p>\n

But what I\u2019ve seen in Finland is that children \u201crise to the occasion\u201d \u2013 and become more self-directed \u2013 when they experience more freedom.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Tim Walker is an American teacher and writer based in Finland. He writes regularly about education and culture at Taught by Finland<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Follow Taught by Finland on Facebook!<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

This post was originally published during the 2013-2014 school year. Thanks for reading and sharing! (Photo credit:\u00a0Rob Hille<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. Every morning at my Finnish public school, she spends just three hours in the classroom. And\u00a0every…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":59,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,10,6],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nFinland: Where the Helicopter Parent is an Unknown Species<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. She walks home alone, finishes her homework, and prepares food while she waits for her mom.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent is an Unknown Species\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. She walks home alone, finishes her homework, and prepares food while she waits for her mom.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Taught by Finland\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/taughtbyfinland\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-06-05T13:12:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-05-16T18:59:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Timothy Walker\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@timdwalk\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Timothy Walker\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Timothy Walker\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fc3861f9e3b261d2ef62a2d84c7dcb3\"},\"headline\":\"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent Is an Unknown Species\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-06-05T13:12:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-16T18:59:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\"},\"wordCount\":817,\"commentCount\":7,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Culture\",\"Education\",\"Parenting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\",\"name\":\"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent is an Unknown Species\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-06-05T13:12:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-16T18:59:30+00:00\",\"description\":\"In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. She walks home alone, finishes her homework, and prepares food while she waits for her mom.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":960},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent Is an Unknown Species\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/\",\"name\":\"Taught by Finland\",\"description\":\"Finnish education lessons by an American teacher\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Taught by Finland\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/cropped-TAUGHT-BY-FINLAND-logo-C1-2.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/cropped-TAUGHT-BY-FINLAND-logo-C1-2.jpg\",\"width\":1576,\"height\":296,\"caption\":\"Taught by Finland\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fc3861f9e3b261d2ef62a2d84c7dcb3\",\"name\":\"Timothy Walker\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/719b8afd21d842532e4d91b32554f594?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/719b8afd21d842532e4d91b32554f594?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Timothy Walker\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/taughtbyfinland\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/timdwalk\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/author\/taughtbyfinlandgmail-com\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent is an Unknown Species","description":"In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. She walks home alone, finishes her homework, and prepares food while she waits for her mom.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent is an Unknown Species","og_description":"In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. She walks home alone, finishes her homework, and prepares food while she waits for her mom.","og_url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/","og_site_name":"Taught by Finland","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/taughtbyfinland","article_published_time":"2015-06-05T13:12:27+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-05-16T18:59:30+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":960,"url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Timothy Walker","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@timdwalk","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Timothy Walker","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/"},"author":{"name":"Timothy Walker","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fc3861f9e3b261d2ef62a2d84c7dcb3"},"headline":"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent Is an Unknown Species","datePublished":"2015-06-05T13:12:27+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-16T18:59:30+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/"},"wordCount":817,"commentCount":7,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg","articleSection":["Culture","Education","Parenting"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/","url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/","name":"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent is an Unknown Species","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg","datePublished":"2015-06-05T13:12:27+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-16T18:59:30+00:00","description":"In the United States, I never met a second grader like Carla. She walks home alone, finishes her homework, and prepares food while she waits for her mom.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Helicopter.jpg","width":1280,"height":960},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/finland-where-the-helicopter-parent-is-an-unknown-species\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Finland: Where the Helicopter Parent Is an Unknown Species"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/","name":"Taught by Finland","description":"Finnish education lessons by an American teacher","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#organization","name":"Taught by Finland","url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/cropped-TAUGHT-BY-FINLAND-logo-C1-2.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/cropped-TAUGHT-BY-FINLAND-logo-C1-2.jpg","width":1576,"height":296,"caption":"Taught by Finland"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3fc3861f9e3b261d2ef62a2d84c7dcb3","name":"Timothy Walker","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/719b8afd21d842532e4d91b32554f594?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/719b8afd21d842532e4d91b32554f594?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Timothy Walker"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/taughtbyfinland","https:\/\/x.com\/timdwalk"],"url":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/author\/taughtbyfinlandgmail-com\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":800,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58\/revisions\/800"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taughtbyfinland.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}