The vacation had barely started when the first email arrived. ” Hello everybody. Orchestra rehearsals will begin on August 30, from 4:30 p.m. to 5:35 p.m. For piano, classes resume in week 34. Same time as last year, barring any setbacks. The little one’s dance will be on Wednesday at 5:15 p.m. – that’s good, it’s in the same place as the big one’s orchestra. Singing, on the other hand, is a failure: at 3:15 p.m., on Tuesday, S. has mother tongue lessons. A class that encroaches on one of his brother’s handball training sessions… And so on. Enough to approach the start of the school year, mid-August, with a good dose of stress.
For the vast majority of Swedish parents, this return to everyday life can quickly become a headache. Franco-Swedish, Frida and Sébastien Godet have a 9-year-old son and 6-year-old twins. “This year, we limited activities”, assures the father. The three children take swimming lessons – two weekly sessions for the older one – and tennis. The eldest is also registered with the scouts. To find their way, the parents made a plan. “We filled it with the activities of all three. Then we looked at which one of us would pick them up from school and drive them there. Then, we adapt our working hours. »
In Sweden, we talk about the “family puzzle”: to solve it, all the pieces must fit together. Depending on the family, it is more or less complicated… and more or less accessible. Because you also have to have the financial means. According to the Consumer Agency, Swedish parents will spend 220 crowns (18.50 euros) per month on average this year on activities for the little ones (1 to 3 years old), and up to 670 crowns for the oldest (15 to 17 years old).
Excessive extracurricular activities
The phenomenon is a bit the same as in France: extracurricular activities quickly turn into overkill, as if the number of activities made it possible to measure the level of parental commitment. But it is also linked to the specificities of the local school system. In Sweden, the school week is spread over five days, but the days are shorter than in France. In primary school, they generally end at 2 p.m., rarely after 3:30 p.m. in middle school. So you have to find something to keep the children busy…
For the youngest, there is the fritid : after-school daycare, where they are looked after by facilitators, generally on school premises. All Swedish children have access to it, provided that their parents work or study. The majority spend a few hours there, after classes, until their father or mother – sometimes grandparents – comes to pick them up.
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