How Finland Teaches Emotional and Social Skills
In Finnish primary classrooms, learning to name a feeling, take turns and resolve a disagreement is treated as seriously as learning to read. These skills are written into the national curriculum and rehearsed every single day, not saved for a separate lesson once a week.
- Social and emotional skills sit inside two of the seven transversal competences (laaja-alainen osaaminen) that run through Finland's national core curriculum from grade 1.
- Most K-5 classrooms open the day or week with a short circle time where pupils name feelings and check in with each other using a shared emotional vocabulary.
- Cooperative learning structures, such as paired work, small-group tasks and rotating classroom jobs, are used deliberately to build listening, turn-taking and shared responsibility.
- Many schools train older primary pupils as peer mediators, using a structured model similar to the long-running VERSO programme, so children learn to help classmates work through everyday conflict.
- Class teachers cover child development and group dynamics as part of their master's-level training, so modelling calm self-regulation is treated as a core teaching skill rather than an extra.
Built into the curriculum, not bolted on
Finland's national core curriculum is organised around seven transversal competences that cut across every subject rather than sitting inside one. Two of them speak directly to emotional and social growth: cultural competence, interaction and self-expression, and taking care of oneself and managing daily life. From the first year of primary school, these competences are taught, practised and assessed inside ordinary lessons rather than as a separate programme.
In practice this means a paired maths task is also doing quiet work on cooperation, a storytelling exercise in Finnish language lessons is also building self-expression, and a shared classroom clean-up job is also teaching responsibility. This mirrors Finnish pedagogy more broadly, where academic content and personal growth are developed together rather than scheduled as separate periods of the day.
Because these competences are curriculum requirements, teachers plan for them the same way they plan for reading or arithmetic: with clear goals for the year, checkpoints for reflection, and language that pupils and teachers share. A six-year-old is not expected to reach the same level as an eleven-year-old, but every K-5 classroom is working towards the same broad goals, which gives the approach continuity across primary school rather than depending on one particularly committed teacher.
The everyday practices that make it real
Curriculum language only matters if it shows up in the classroom, and in Finnish primary schools it shows up as routine. The specific practices vary between schools and teachers, but a few are widely recognisable across K-5 classrooms.
Peer mediation deserves a special mention. Many Finnish schools train small groups of older primary pupils to help classmates work through low-level disagreements, using a structured conversation format rather than adult-led punishment. The best-known model is the VERSO programme, developed from work with the Finnish Red Cross and now used in schools across the country: pupils learn to listen to both sides, help classmates find their own solution, and check back in afterwards. It sits alongside, rather than replaces, whole-school anti-bullying norms of the kind described on our KiVa page, which covers Finland's dedicated anti-bullying programme in more detail.
- Morning or weekly circle time, where pupils take turns naming how they feel and why
- A shared emotional vocabulary, taught explicitly so pupils can say 'I feel left out' rather than just acting it out
- Cooperative learning structures: paired reading, small-group problem solving and rotating classroom jobs with real responsibility
- Peer mediation training for older primary pupils, often modelled on Finland's VERSO programme
- Whole-school anti-bullying norms that give every pupil a script for stepping in or asking for help
How teachers are prepared for this work
This kind of teaching is harder than it looks, and Finland treats it that way. Class teachers complete a research-based master's degree that includes child development, group dynamics and classroom interaction, covered in more depth on our teacher training page. The aim is for a teacher to model steady self-regulation during a chaotic moment, not just describe it in a lesson.
Assessment reinforces the same habits. Finland largely avoids standardised testing in primary school, and progress on transversal competences is captured through ongoing, formative feedback rather than a single mark, as explained on our page on how Finland assesses without exams. A pupil is more likely to hear specific feedback about how they handled a disagreement than to receive a grade for 'behaviour'.
Smaller class sizes and multi-year relationships between teachers and pupils also help. When a teacher knows a class well over several years, they can notice a change in a child's mood or friendships early, and follow up on a conflict the next day rather than losing track of it.
Why this matters for schools adopting Finnish pedagogy
Schools working with OPPI to bring Finnish practice into their own setting often ask where to start, and social-emotional routines are one of the most achievable first steps. Circle time, a shared feelings vocabulary and simple cooperative structures do not require new furniture or a new timetable; they require consistent practice and a staff team who plan for them on purpose.
Peer mediation and anti-bullying norms take more groundwork, since they depend on training and a whole-school agreement about how conflict is handled. Schools usually introduce circle time and cooperative learning first, then build towards structured peer mediation once staff and pupils are used to talking about feelings openly. Our page on bringing Finnish education to your school sets out how this kind of change typically gets sequenced.
Frequently asked questions
Is social-emotional learning a separate subject in Finnish schools?
No. Finland does not timetable a stand-alone SEL subject in primary school. Instead, emotional and social skills are built into two of the seven transversal competences in the national core curriculum, which every subject teacher is expected to address, alongside daily routines such as circle time and cooperative learning tasks.
What age does this start in Finland?
The groundwork begins in early childhood education, well before formal school starts, and continues once children begin primary school, typically at age seven, as explained on our page about why Finnish children start school at seven. By the end of primary school, pupils have had several years of practice naming feelings and resolving low-level conflict with support.
How does this relate to Finland's KiVa anti-bullying programme?
They work together but are not the same thing. This page covers the everyday skill-building that helps children regulate emotions, cooperate and communicate. KiVa is a specific, structured anti-bullying programme used in the majority of Finnish schools, covered in full on our KiVa page. Strong social-emotional skills make anti-bullying norms easier to sustain, but KiVa itself is a separate, named programme with its own materials and roles.
Do Finnish teachers get specific training to teach these skills?
Yes. Class teachers complete a research-based master's degree that includes child development and group dynamics, and this is treated as core professional preparation rather than optional extra training. You can read more on our teacher training and development page.
Related reading
Bring Finnish pedagogy to your school
OPPI affiliates a selective cohort of schools each year for its K-5 Finnish-pedagogy programme, backed by Education Finland. Tell us about your school and our team will reach out.
Backed by Education Finland. Over 20 schools have already affiliated, including DPS, Radcliffe and Sanctus. Places in each cohort are limited.
Apply to the affiliation cohort →