Online Course

Our online course covers six themes which are central to a Froebelian approach to early childhood education and care.

We call them the Elements of Froebelian practice.

• Element 1: An introduction to the principles and practices of a Froebelian approach to early childhood education
  
• Element 2: The Gifts (and modern wooden blocks) and the Occupations
  
• Element 3: The importance of engaging with nature and outdoor learning
  
• Element 4: Play and the symbolic life of the child
  
• Element 5: Lullabies, family songs, finger plays, action songs and movement games
  
• Element 6: Equality, equity, diversity and inclusion

All the Elements of the course include plenty of practical activities. Our courses will:

- build on your current knowledge

- develop your practice

- inspire you in your on-going work with young children

- help you to embed Froebelian practice in your school, setting or organisation

- connect you with other educators who are also developing a Froebelian approach to early childhood education.

These courses are live and interactive - delivered via Zoom.

Each Element is covered in four online sessions. So the whole course involves a total of 24 online sessions. Each session lasts 2.5 hours.

Please note: It is not possible to purchase a place for individual Elements. We ask our online course participants to commit to attending and completing all six Elements of the course over the year.

You don't need any particular qualifications or knowledge to join a course. We just ask that you are working with babies and / or young children at the moment or have done so in the last couple of years.

We welcome educators who are working in all kinds of settings, including childminders, with any level of experience. There are no written assignments involved in our courses. There are some practical tasks in between online sessions.

Other professionals working with young children and families are also welcome to join our online courses.

You can join the course as an individual - or you can join as a group, with colleagues from your school, setting or place of work.

There is a maximum of 25 participants on each of our online courses.

Our courses are taught in English. Our courses are aimed primarily at educators who are working in the UK but we will consider applications from outside the UK.

Each online session of the course is led by two experienced Froebelian tutors.

Our team of tutors includes headteachers, experienced practitioners, early years leaders, teacher trainers, university lecturers and early years specialists. They offer a broad range of specialisms from a Froebelian perspective, including:

- nature and outdoor learning

- observing and understanding children's play

- woodwork and clay

- working with families

- early years music.

The team of tutors is led by Dr Stella Louis.

Find out more about our tutors.

Our September course is subsidised by The Froebel Trust. This means that all successful applicants for this year's course will receive a 50% bursary, bringing the course cost down to £360 for all six Elements.

The course fee must be paid in full by the 4th of August 2025 to secure your place. This cost covers the entire course - all 24 online sessions. You will not be required to purchase any further resources or course materials.

Cancellation Policy

If you are offered a place on the course but decide you don’t want to take it, please tell us as soon as possible so we
can offer it to someone on our waiting list.

By law, you have 14 days from 7 July 2025 to cancel your place. If you have paid the course fee and tell us in writing
that you want to cancel before 21 July 2025, you will receive a full refund.

If you accept a waiting list place, you will have 14 days from the invoice date to cancel and receive a refund of
anything you have paid.

Courses run from September to July. We are offering four choices of course timetable:

• Option A: Tuesday 3.30 to 6pm

• Option B: Tuesday 6.30 to 9pm

• Option C: Wednesday 3.30 to 6pm

• Option D: Wednesday 6.30 to 9pm

Please note: It is not possible to switch between the course options once you've signed up for a place and the courses have begun.

The course dates can be found on page 3 in the guidance for applicants - download pdf

If you have any other queries about our online courses, please do get in touch with us

e: courses@froebeltrust.org.uk

t: 020 8878 7546