Tampere opens school year early at new 900-pupil school

About 100 first-graders began school at the newly completed Ahvenisjärvi School in Tampere on Thursday, as the school year started earlier in the Tampere region than in much of Finland, Yle reports.

The schoolyard in Tampere’s Hervanta district filled with excited but cheerful pupils in the morning. Seela Pennanen, one of the new first-graders, said she was slightly nervous but expected to manage after getting used to school.

“I’m most looking forward to getting lots of friends,” Pennanen said.

Eeva Hynninen said she hoped to learn, have friends and add new people to her list of friends.

Ahvenisjärvi School has more than 900 pupils, including about 100 first-graders and another 100 children in pre-primary education.

During construction, the school’s pupils studied in temporary facilities at Tampere University’s Hervanta campus. About 200 pupils will continue in temporary facilities because a second school building is being demolished and replaced.

School began clearly earlier in Tampere and seven other municipalities in the city region. In much of Finland, the school year will not start until August 12 or 13, about a week later.

Some parents in Tampere have criticised the early start. Pupils receive a longer Christmas holiday, but critics say it is difficult for adults to take time off then.

Ulla Ojalammi, Tampere’s director of basic education, told Yle that she would forward the parents’ criticism and propose moving the start of the school year to a later date. Next year’s start date has already been set for August 9.

Nationwide, about 50,000 children are starting first grade this year, around 1,000 fewer than last year. According to the Finnish National Agency for Education, the number of new pupils has fallen in every region of Finland during the 2020s.