Three schools receive recognition from the education council

Recognition
The Hafnarfjörður Board of Education is awarded annually for projects in school activities.
which promote school development, professional collaboration and cooperation. Smáralundur Nursery School received this week
Award for a diverse health-promoting school, Setbergsskóli for
Reading and writing at the youngest teaching level and Víðistaðaskóli for the learning environment
A world for bilingual students.

Implement mindfulness in
The nursery work

The Smáralundur nursery school in Hafnarfjörður has been a health-promoting school.
A nursery school since 2016. The nursery school places great emphasis on daily physical activity.
both indoors and outdoors and are the school's guiding principles; movement, health and
Well-being is put at the forefront on a daily basis. This lays the foundation for physical,
the mental and social well-being of the children for the future. One of the aims
The nursery's aim is to enhance children's motor skills, as well as always promoting a diverse range of activities.
and healthy food choices. Today the nursery is working on a three-year
a development project, but in 2018 he received a grant from the public health fund to
to introduce mindfulness into the nursery's work. Smáralundur is therefore taking yet another step
a further step towards health-promoting perspectives that contribute equally to both mental and
the physical health of children and staff. The aim of mindfulness is to promote
greater calm, better self-control and increased concentration, as well as general well-being.
This project has been carried out with great professionalism and, last but not least
it has had a positive effect on the school's atmosphere as well as staff satisfaction.

The teaching itself will be
the centre of attention

For the past five school years, Setbergsskóli has been working on development.
Reading and writing instruction at the beginning of primary school with adaptation on
to integrate the teaching method of direct instruction into the daily work of the early years
of the school. The project began as a three-year research project with the University
In Iceland, and for the last two years, the school has continued to develop the project on its own
ways. In this development of reading and writing instruction, the school has adapted
to adapt the aforementioned teaching method to Icelandic school practice and supplement it, for example
writing materials and various reading materials from MMS. In addition, the primary school teachers at Setbergsskóli
engaged in various forms of professional consultation to support one another in gaining control of
the method, discussing ways to support individual students, organised
Complex teaching consultation and the creation of materials suitable for reading and writing instruction.
of the school. The implementation was thus a development of a long tradition of reading instruction in the school.
which was based on the audio method that is still present but now used more broadly
in context, as before. By participating in this collaboration, teachers have worked to
to enhance one's own professionalism, seeing that the method yields good results in teaching reading and writing
which has improved students' abilities and has proven to be a teaching practice that supports
ideas about education for all. At the same time, it must be said that the implementation of
this project at Setbergsskóli reflects a good example of positive changes in
school activities where teaching itself becomes the centre of attention, i.e.
student achievement, teacher collaboration and the adaptation of teaching theories to
local conditions.

Assistance with adjustment to
classroom work, school and community

Veröld is a special learning resource that Víðistaðaskóli has built.
over the last three years. It has the task of receiving all new
the school's bilingual pupils and helping them to settle into classwork,
the school and the Icelandic community. As a learning resource, Veröld supports Icelandic language learning.
students with special educational needs in the World facility at the site.
Vidistadatun, but it also has a branch in Engidalin. Verold also helps.
to help students adapt to classroom work and take an active part in the daily school routine
with the tasks in schoolwork that students tackle each day
year group. Veröld then encourages students' social activity, e.g. with special
visits for them outside the school, e.g. to the National Museum, to the theatre and to
The museums in Hafnarfjörður. The staff of Veröld are Icelandic teachers with
diverse language skills, but the staff of the resource are also from foreign backgrounds.
rock. The unique feature of Veraldar is that it is a kind of coordination centre for the school with
the reception of bilingual students, which is responsible for organising their studies and ensuring
the most successful integration of students into the daily school routine until they no longer need it
to maintain her service. In the three years that the operation has been
The activity has been organised, has evolved and been shaped, and has now become established.

A recognition ceremony takes place in each school where staff
The school receives a plaque, a bouquet of flowers and refreshments. Nominations are invited.
to the awards and anyone can submit nominations.