The modern educational environment is thriving on the proliferation of diverse teaching pedagogies, each highlighting a significant aspect of child development strategies that aim to mold young minds into progressive future global citizens. Within this realm, the Nordic pedagogy is gaining rapid adoption across countries. Enabling this is Dibber, a global network of preschools that started its journey in 2003. The brainchild of Hans Jacob Sundby and Randi Lauvland, Dibber’s journey began out of the duo’s passion to contribute to early child development.

Starting their journeys into the domain as two separate individuals, Hans Jacob and Randi began their venture through a shared vision for creating environments which enabled children to thrive. The founders began selling educational toys in 2001, and focused on designing child-friendly spaces in Norway, eventually acquiring their first preschool in 2003, which marked the beginning of Dibber. Growing from just fifty students and expanding to a current network of six hundred preschools spread across nine countries, Dibber has become a holistic preschool network that focuses on early childhood education rooted in playful learning, empathy, and collaboration.

Holistic Development of Young Minds

Emphasizing a child-centric learning experience and parental collaboration, Dibber’s educational philosophy focuses on nurturing the whole child through a combination of emotional, social, cognitive, physical, and creative development cycles into one holistic learning framework. Dibber therefore strives to create an atmosphere where every child feels valued, loved and seen, which keeps them happy, engaged, and confident. It also aims at creating beautiful learning experiences by means of creative and meaningful activities, that not only address the need for academic development, but also social, emotional, and physical development of the children. The preschool also strives to build trust-based relationships between students, teachers, and parents, to foster a sense of belonging for all.

Dibber’s Heart Culture ensures that every child feels seen, loved, and valued. At the core of our pedagogy is the belief that strong emotional bonds are the foundation for effective learning. By creating an environment where trust, love, and care flourish, Dibber fosters a sense of belonging for every child. “Our unique ‘I-YOU-WE’ approach enables children to develop emotional regulation, build self-awareness, and learn essential conflict management skills. These values equip children with the ability to form meaningful relationships and navigate social interactions with empathy and confidence”, says Lagnajit Mohanty.

Dibber recognizes the importance of seamless collaboration between parents and educators in a child’s growth journey. Through Home Connect Activities, it empowers parents to be an integral part of their child’s learning process. These activities are thoughtfully designed to strengthen the connection between school and home, ensuring continuity in a child’s experiences and learnings. “At Dibber, we go beyond traditional parent-teacher meetings by empowering parents to observe their child’s progress through structured evaluation parameters developed and trained exclusively by Dibber. These tools offer parents a clear understanding of their child’s milestones while ensuring a transparent and collaborative learning journey. At Dibber, every child’s achievement is a moment to celebrate. Our Celebration of Learning events recognize the growth and milestones of each child, instilling a sense of pride and accomplishment. This initiative strengthens a child’s motivation and inspires them to embrace challenges with confidence”, speaks Lagnajit Mohanty.

Aligned with this philosophy, the school’s unique curriculum structure focuses on play-based learning, the seven learning friends, and global integration with local relevance. Through these distinctive aspects, Dibber fosters a spirit of exploration, offering children the opportunity to develop a curious and exploratory mindset, give way to creativity, and understand emotions, all of which plays a key role in developing critical developmental skills. A number of exciting activities like storytelling, puzzles, and problem-solving games are also integrated to stimulate critical thinking and language skills, while physical activities, outdoor play, and sensory exercises are integrated within the curriculum to promote physical well being and motor skill development.

Beyond these aspects of the curriculum, academic success is also a core focal point at Dibber, and the preschool offers facilities like STEM corners that are a pathway to introduce young children to basic science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, potentially sparking a lifelong interest in the field. The school also houses libraries complete with picture books, learning aids, and story resources, aimed at encouraging children to develop reading habits early on. To ignite interest in art, music, and sensory activities, the preschool also has dedicated creative zones.

Aligned with this philosophy, the school’s unique curriculum structure focuses on play based learning named ‘the seven learning friends’ and global integration with local relevance

Child-Centric Design

Apart from the curriculum refinement, the school stands out for its overall design and infrastructure that has been created keeping young children and their safety, and engagement in mind. The campuses feature child-proofed areas with soft edges, anti-slip flooring, and monitored entry and exit points. Additionally, classrooms are designed to be spacious, well-lit, and ventilated to create a positive learning environment.

The play-based spaces contain age-appropriate equipment, sandpits, water play areas, and safe climbing structures that give room for imagination to soar. Child sized washrooms, regular sanitation practices, nutritious meal programs, smart classrooms, learning aids, quiet areas and relaxation and nap zones, parental engagement areas, and multipurpose halls are all part of the school’s infrastructure.

“The shift towards premium preschools has been remarkable in India over the last few years. Parents are prioritizing early childhood education more than ever, and they’re ready to invest in a high-quality environment that offers more than just basic education or play before the formal school. Premium preschools like Dibber bring in inter-nationally renowned educational frameworks from Nordic, advanced learning environments, and well-trained staff, which are all aspects that parents value. They know that their children will have a head start with programs focused on cognitive, social, and physical development, delivered in a thoughtful, structured, playful way”, adds Lagnajit Mohanty.

Catering to the changing landscape of premium education in India, Dibber is on its way to expand its presence across India in the coming years with plans to open multiple units spread across the country. Bringing the unique Nordic pedagogy to India, Dibber is set to transform education worldwide.