The girls and boys at the Linden forest kindergarten have recently been given plenty of space to play in the dry, even in bad weather. Stadtwerke Gießen supported the centre with the purchase of a spacious tipi tent.
At the Protestant forest kindergarten in Linden, 19 girls and boys learn about nature in a very special way. For the three to six-year-olds, it is a playground, breakfast room and craft room all in one. Almost all activities take place outdoors. Heike Winter, head of the centre, explains: "We offer the girls and boys the same development opportunities as a home kindergarten. However, we also teach them how to interact with nature in a natural and playful way. Our concept also promotes creativity and motor skills."
Among other things, the children design their own toys - from branches, stones, pine cones, acorns and anything else they find in the forest. Always on hand: two teachers and another carer who is doing a voluntary ecological year.
Axel Zeiler-Held, pastor in Großen-Linden, came up with the idea for this special kind of kindergarten. "I really liked the concept of a forest kindergarten with a Protestant profile - and ultimately also convinced the local authority so that we were able to found the centre in 2011," explains the pastor.
Support from the municipal utilities
A normal day at the forest kindergarten starts at 7.45 a.m. in Linden Forest. Meeting point: a construction trailer, which until a few weeks ago served as the only accommodation for the children and carers and once a week as a craft room and kitchen. "There simply wasn't enough space for all the girls, boys and carers," reports Heike Winter. She therefore wanted to purchase a large tent as additional accommodation - a space for painting, playing and singing.
Ruth Biehl-Franze, Women's Representative at Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) and an employee in the HR department, learnt about these plans. Until 2012, she herself worked for many years as a volunteer in the childcare centre of the Protestant parish of Großen-Linden. "I knew that the centre couldn't easily afford to buy a tent and would be happy for any help. So it was perfect for one of Stadtwerke Giessen's 75 good deeds in its anniversary year," explains Ruth Biehl-Franze.
On Tuesday, 12 November, she presented kindergarten director Heike Winter and pastor Axel Zeiler-Held with a donation cheque. Both expressed their thanks for the commitment and emphasised: "It's great that Stadtwerke Giessen is supporting us in purchasing the tent."