What does it take to create an inclusive learning environment for young children? My experience as a Learning Support Specialist at a Spanish-speaking early childhood education and care center in Helsinki gave me deep insights into this question. Over five months, I worked closely with a child with speech impairment, supporting their daily learning, communication, social interactions, and emotional regulations. This hands-on experience strengthened my understanding of inclusive education, restorative behavior management, and early childhood education and care (ECEC) development, equipping me with valuable skills I hope to bring back to Peru.
Supporting Communication Through Visual Strategies
One of my key responsibilities was helping children with special education needs (SEN) navigate daily activities and interact with each other despite verbal communication challenges. I quickly realized that verbal instruction alone was not enough - so I turned to visual communication strategies, a core principle in special education.
- Pictograms as a bridge to understanding: By introducing pictograms, I created a visual
a communication system that allowed children to express needs, understand routines, and anticipate transitions.
- Structured routines for predictability: Young children, especially those with SEN, benefit from clear, consistent routines. By visually structuring the day, I helped reduce anxiety and increase participation.
- Learning Finnish Sign Language (Suomalainen viiBomakieli): To further support the
child's ability to express themselves, I learned and incorporated Finnish Sign Language into daily interactions. This experience deepened my appreciation for multimodal communication in ECEC.
Restorative Approaches to Challenging Behavior
Working in early childhood education means encountering big emotions. Young children - especially those with speech impairments - often express frustration or distress through behavior rather than words. Instead of using punitive discipline, I focused on restorative approaches that help children develop self-regulation skills.
- Co-regulation strategies: When the child experienced emotional distress, I applied psychological and mindfulness techniques to help them label feelings, use calming strategies (like breathing exercises), and gradually develop self-soothing mechanisms.
- Taking action and autonomy building: After supporting the child in self-regulating and managing their emotions, I encouraged them to address the situation independently. It is crucial that children learn to take initiative rather than relying solely on emotional expressions - such as crying - to elicit adult intervention. Without this step, they risk developing dependency rather than autonomy in conflict resolution.
- Restorative conversations: After every situation, I encouraged reflection: What happened? How do you feel? How can we fix this together? This approach empowered the child to take ownership of their actions while maintaining a strong sense of connection.
- The power of positive reinforcement: I saw firsthand how recognizing and reinforcing positive behavior was far more effective than focusing on misbehavior. Celebrating small victories - like successfully using a pictogram to ask for help - boosted confidence and motivation. Plus, if we are going to tell a child that a behavior is not desirable (i.e. throwing something because they were angry), we must guide them into positive way to express this anger. Simply by saying “don’t do that”, wont take the child’s anger away, we must teach them what to do instead.
Looking Ahead: Applying Finnish Education Principles to Peru
This traineeship reaffirmed my passion and commitment for bridging the gap between education and mental health – I firmly believe that only then, children can truly thrive. Finland’s emphasis on child-centered learning, emotional well-being, and inclusive pedagogy is something I hope to adapt and apply in Peru.
Moving forward, I want to deepen my expertise in:
- Fostering a love for learning rather than a fear of failing amongst students. Cultivate lifelong learners since the very start.
- Policies for students with SEN, particularly in the context of large classrooms where teachers do not have the experience of working with such populations.
- Early intervention strategies that combine psychology, education, and social-emotional learning.
Overall, my time at the ECEC center was a transformative experience that solidified my commitment to inclusive, emotionally supportive education. Every child deserves to feel understood, empowered, and capable of thriving - and I look forward to continuing this work on a broader scale.
About the author
Heyy! My name is Matías Molfino and I’m was born and raised in Lima, Perú 🇵🇪. I love the sun, the sea and the outdoors, so initially Finland seemed like a tricky decision for me, but I got here, met beautiful people and felt instantly at home! I have lived and worked in 4 continents, speak 4 languages and love learning how education is around the world. I’m a psychologist making it into the education world, with the aim of bridging the gap between learning and mental health, for I believe this is the only way a student can truly thrive. In my free time I enjoy running long distances, cycling, bouldering, playing volley, dancing, reading and writing - I have a published novel: Chullo Desnudo 🙂
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