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Norway's Rammeplan: weekly planning with a worked example
Rammeplan weekly planning translates Norway’s national kindergarten framework into responsive everyday practice, balancing planned learning experiences with spontaneous, child-led play. Grounded in continuous observation, reflection, and children’s participation, weekly planning organises meaningful exploration across seven holistic learning areas. Rather than prescribing rigid timetables, staff plan flexible projects, adapt routines to children’s well-being and interests, and collaborate closely with families.
At a glance
The Rammeplan hub outlines the statutory national framework for Norwegian early childhood education and care. Issued by the Ministry of Education and Research in 2017 and available from the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training (Udir), the framework guides pedagogical practices, children’s all-round development, and play-based learning across early years settings.
| Dimension | Details |
|---|---|
| Framework | Framework Plan for Kindergartens (Rammeplan for barnehagen) |
| Publishing authority | Ministry of Education and Research (available from Udir) |
| Statutory basis | Kindergarten Act (Act of 17 June 2005 no. 64) |
| Age range | Ages 1 to 6 (barnehage, including småbarnsavdeling for younger children and førskolegruppe or skolestartere for the oldest) |
| Core values | Children and childhood, democracy, diversity, equality, sustainable development, life skills and health |
| Core tasks and objectives | Care, play, formative development, learning, friendship, communication and language |
| Seven learning areas | Communication, language and text; Body, movement, food and health; Art, culture and creativity; Nature, environment and technology; Quantities, spaces and shapes; Ethics, religion and philosophy; Local community and society |
| Core working principles | Children’s right to participate, partnership with the home, progression, alternating spontaneous and planned activities, and holistic cross-disciplinary work |
What the framework asks of your planning
The official curriculum document, Framework Plan for the Content and Tasks of Kindergartens (2017), designates the kindergarten as a pedagogical undertaking that must be planned and evaluated systematically. Planning allows staff to think long-term, ensuring continuity and progression for each child and the whole group. Kindergartens prepare an annual plan approved by the co-ordinating committee, alongside flexible short-term plans. In Sami kindergartens, staff base annual planning on the Sami seasonal calendar.
Planning must rest on continuous knowledge of children’s well-being and all-round development, individually and in groups. The framework requires planning to build on observation, documentation, reflection, systematic evaluation, and dialogue with children and parents. Staff continuously assess each child’s experiences and opinions as part of the evaluation material. Documenting children individually or in groups requires strict adherence to data privacy rules and personal integrity.
Evaluations require joint reflection across the entire kindergarten staff rather than decisions by leaders alone. Staff regularly analyse and interpret their pedagogical practices in light of their written plans, the Kindergarten Act, and the Framework Plan. These reflections serve as the direct foundation for adjusting future plans and addressing professional and ethical matters. By reviewing everyday experiences, staff adapt provision to ensure all children receive meaningful support.
When implementing plans, the framework directs staff to alternate between spontaneous and planned activities. Staff build on children’s play, curiosity, and initiatives, remaining open to improvisation and children’s contributions. Working methods must be holistic across disciplines, weaving the seven learning areas together naturally. In addition, children’s right to participate ensures all children have an active say in planning and assessing day-to-day kindergarten activities.
A worked example
To see how weekly planning operates in practice, consider this sample week for Nursery (ages 3–4) focused on woodland life. Drawn from the Nursery Week 27 — Forest Life (lesson plan), the week weaves outdoor discovery, creative construction, phonics, and early measurement. Teachers can find the complete sequence in the Nursery · Forest Life · Week 27 — Combined week package (TP + Tasksheets).
| Day | What children do | Framework area or outcome it supports |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1: Exploring How a Forest Looks | Children warm up with partner stretches, then explore a forest treasure box filled with branches, leaves, rocks, soil, and sticks. They tear scrap paper to create tree collages, review letter sounds Aa to Vv, introduce letter Ww with picture cards, and stack blocks to count from 1 to 10. | Nature, environment and technology (investigating natural materials) and Communication, language and text (exploring letter sounds and symbols) |
| Day 2: Discovering Life in the Forest | Children practise yoga poses mimicking bats, toads, foxes, and owls. They examine cards of forest animals, birds, insects, and human tribes to assemble collages. Children sing the letter Ww song, blow diluted paint through straws across letter outlines, count to 40, and compare more and less using stones and classroom objects. | Body, movement, food and health (animal yoga) and Quantities, spaces and shapes (comparing quantities with stones) |
| Day 3: Importance of Forests in our Lives | Children play a cooperative circle game keeping a soft ball or a light scarf aloft without hands (the lesson plan uses a balloon, but swap this for a soft ball or a light scarf because inflated latex balloons are a choking risk during play). They discuss forest habitats, tracing and cutting cardboard handprints to construct trees. Children build letter shapes with loose parts, share home items for letter Ww show-and-tell, and explore handspan measurement on the Exploring Non-Standard Measuring Units: Handspan tasksheet. | Nature, environment and technology (understanding natural resources), Communication, language and text (sharing show-and-tell objects), and Quantities, spaces and shapes (measuring objects with handspans) |
| Day 4: Protecting Forests and Wildlife | Children play a movement mirror game, then discuss tree planting and recycling. They make crafts from recycled boxes, newspapers, and cups, supported by the Exploring Ways of Forest Conservation worksheet. After hearing the Panchatantra tale ‘The Four Friends’, children thread yarn through letter outlines, practise Tracing Letter Ww Symbols, and measure distances using foot spans. | Nature, environment and technology (conservation), Art, culture and creativity (recycled crafts), and Ethics, religion and philosophy (traditional storytelling) |
| Day 5: Going on a Nature Walk | Children practise mindful breathing and animal yoga poses before heading on an outdoor nature walk to collect leaves, rocks, and sticks. Back indoors, they assemble nature collages, paint letter Ww outlines with watercolours, practise writing on notebooks, and pour water into marked cups to compare liquid volumes. | Nature, environment and technology (sensory outdoor walk) and Art, culture and creativity (natural treasure collages) |
Because natural exploration uses small items like stones, sticks, and loose parts that present choking hazards, active adult supervision is required throughout all sensory and counting activities. When children handle water or if snack routines connect to discussions about forest food sources, always check allergies and dietary requirements with families beforehand.
Planning template
| Day | Focus area | Activity | Resources | What to observe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | ||||
| Tuesday | ||||
| Wednesday | ||||
| Thursday | ||||
| Friday |
To fill in this weekly template, select two or three Rammeplan learning areas that align with children’s current inquiries rather than trying to cover all seven areas every day. Record intentional staff-guided experiences alongside open-ended play opportunities, listing the natural materials, craft supplies, and picture books needed. In the observation column, note children’s questions, engagement levels, peer interactions, and signs of progression to inform the next planning cycle.
Questions teachers ask
How detailed does weekly planning need to be under Rammeplan?
The Framework Plan does not require rigid, minute-by-minute schedules for each day. Instead, Rammeplan expects planning to provide long-term continuity and clear progression while leaving ample room for spontaneous play and children’s initiatives. Staff typically outline weekly themes, core learning areas, and intentional invitations, adjusting daily plans flexibly based on continuous observation and children’s emerging questions.
How do kindergartens document children’s participation in weekly plans?
Children have a statutory right to participate in planning and assessing kindergarten activities under the Kindergarten Act and Rammeplan. Staff observe children’s verbal and non-verbal expressions, interests, and play themes during daily routines to shape upcoming experiences. Weekly documentation should reflect children’s ideas, display their project contributions, and show how staff responded to children’s views according to their age and maturity.
Do weekly plans have to cover all seven learning areas every week?
No single week needs to address all seven learning areas simultaneously. Rammeplan states that all learning areas must be recurring themes over the kindergarten year, viewed in context rather than treated as isolated subjects. Weekly plans work best when staff focus deeply on two or three connected areas through meaningful play, ensuring balanced coverage across longer seasonal periods.
Sources and printables
Official curriculum framework:
- Framework Plan for the Content and Tasks of Kindergartens (2017) — Ministry of Education and Research, via the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training (Udir)
Superbuddy curriculum planning resources:
- Rammeplan hub — overview of framework principles and learning areas
- Nursery Week 27 — Forest Life (lesson plan) — five-day lesson plan with daily activities
- Nursery · Forest Life · Week 27 — Combined week package (TP + Tasksheets) — weekly lesson plans and printable tasksheets
- Forest animal activities for preschool: a 5-day plan — woodland activity ideas and movement games
- Browse the library — printable lesson plans, worksheets, and thematic packages