suvantopaikka

02:40 Dec 13, 2009

Finnish to English translations [PRO]
Social Sciences - Education / Pedagogy

Finnish term or phrase: suvantopaikka

vaan auttamassa suvantopaikkojen yli

In a discussion of day-care centers, the idea is not to play with children but to help them over the "suvantopaikat." The closest I could figure for this was to "help get through the quiet times," but is there something better?

paul hacker KudoZ activity Questions: 100 (9 open) (3 without valid answers) (9 closed without grading) Answers: 9 United States
Local time: 22:43

Summary of answers provided

3 +1

standstill

Timo Lehtilä

plateau

kathyw

(place where you could get) stuck

Anu Carroll

a care center whose goal is to redirect (children's) behavior

bserog

boring moment

Alfa Trans (X)

Discussion entries: 6

Alfa Trans (X)

It is about learning

09:11 Dec 14, 2009

Resourcefulness, creativity and the ability to meet challenges is a by-product of playing games. Caregivers encourage children to independent thinking and teach them creativity, and they learn to trust their own instincts and abilities. They also acquire a positive attitude toward situations that require problem solving. I know this from my own experience (my daughter used to model herself on her caregivers and me all the time - her brain was like a computer and she even taught other children what she had learnt). You must help children tap into the joys life has to offer.

Creativity stems from a well-nourished brain. It requires responsive adults willing to inspire and stimulate. We should not underestimate daily routines and games. Humour helps, you should teach a child not to take things too seriously. Learning should be fun, too!

Merja Jauhiainen

Finland

08:31 Dec 14, 2009

Yes, Timo, that's the impression I get too - this is more about playing than learning - although you can obviously learn through play :-)

Timo Lehtilä

Finland

08:24 Dec 14, 2009

'Suvantopaikka' is surely a very gentle expression, and thus also unconventional. I don't think that it refers to a plateau in learning. The idea is that the kids' activity just slows down; they have exhausted the inspiration of the current activity. The caretakers surely have more life-experience to suggest: let's try this!

Merja Jauhiainen

Finland

06:45 Dec 14, 2009

It would have helped to see a bit more of the context - the question didn't even give the whole sentence. But you are probably right, Kathy - "clueless" does sound a bit too negative...

kathyw

06:35 Dec 14, 2009

One thing to consider - using phrases like 'help them when they are bored' or 'when they are clueless' does sound rather negative to a native English speaker.

To me, it does sound like the original writer is trying to express that what actually happens is an educational experience, rather than 'just play'. In that case, plateau would fit better, as it does refer to an actual educational phenomena.

Merja Jauhiainen

Finland

06:21 Dec 14, 2009

I think your own suggestion in one of your notes is good: "to help them get by those times when they are clueless about what to do next"

Answers

6 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

standstill

Explanation:
'Suvanto' originally means 'backwater', the place in the river where the water does not flow at all or flows slowly.

Here 'suvantopaikka' is used descriptively, referring to the situation when the kids don't know what to do next. The nurses then intervene and inspire some activity.

You have caught quite correctly what the original expression means and I suspect that I can't, with my limited competence in English, produce anything much better. Maybe, 'intervene with inspiration when a standstill occurs'.

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Note added at 6 hrs (2009-12-13 09:23:13 GMT)
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It just crossed my mind. Would direct translation "to help over a standstill" work? Google gives no support, but I suspect that Google isn't very intelligent in determining the usability of a new expression.

Timo Lehtilä
Finland
Local time: 05:43
Native speaker of: Finnish
PRO pts in category: 5

The asker has declined this answer

1 day 2 hrs confidence:

plateau

Explanation:
A 'plateau' is used to refer to a stall in learning - not sure if I would use this to describe day-care level learning, but it does sound like what the writer is refering to here.

So - to help the children get over the plateaus in the learning process.

kathyw
Local time: 05:43
Works in field
Native speaker of:

English

The asker has declined this answer

9 hrs confidence:

boring moment

Explanation:
IMHO suvantopaikka here means the same as hiljainen hetki. It means that there are boring moments (or too challenging ones - but something is always going on) in a game, when children may get bored with it and want to quit. Then they need the nurses to help them get through these moments.

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Note added at 12 hrs (2009-12-13 14:41:15 GMT)
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In Finland we use the following occupational titles:

head of day-care centre Päiväkodin johtaja
kindergarten teacher Lastentarhanopettaja
social educator Sosiaalikasvattaja
Bachelor of Social Sciences Sosionomi
Bachelor of Education Kasvatustieteen kandidaatti
Master of Education Kasvatustieteen maisteri
practical children’s nurse Lastenhoitaja
kindergarten practical nurse Päivähoitaja
practical nurse Lähihoitaja
family child minder Perhepäivähoitaja
special kindergarten teacher Erityislastentarhanopettaja

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Note added at 12 hrs (2009-12-13 14:44:25 GMT)
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I was hoping you would get some answers from native speakers, but obviously this is a tricky question for them, too, and they are clueless : )

Your suggestion is good, too.

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Note added at 14 hrs (2009-12-13 17:07:58 GMT)
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I forgot to add that we usually translate ohjaaja as instructor. I think you'd better ask your client about the usage, all I can tell you is what titles we use in Finland.

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Note added at 1 day6 hrs (2009-12-14 09:29:59 GMT)
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Suvantopaikka is figurative language which means in practice
giving support and guidance to children whenever they need it.

Reference: http://www.interactivereviews.com/product/B0007NFMCG

Alfa Trans (X)
Local time: 05:43
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Finnish
PRO pts in category: 16

Notes to answerer

Asker: vaimoni and I were thinking about this some more -- how about "to help them get by those times when they are clueless about what to do next"? The sense here goes beyond boredom and maybe back to the earleir suggestion of things being at a standstill.

Asker: The question of how to refer to the person who works directly with children in a day care center (päivakoti) is also of interest. I'm not sure nurse would be the best rendition of the original Finnish, which in this case is "ohjaaja." My wife is very firm on that, because a nurse is only someone who provides medical attention and she teaches in that field in Finland! I checked with some of the U.S. day care employment ads and the closest I could find was "caregiver."

Asker: www.prospects.ac.uk/links/childnurse/ This gets quite interesting but also confusing. You will see from this link, which is actually British, that a child's nurse is defined as someone who looks after the health of children. Nursemaid is archaic English and does have the non-medical connotation. I also found child minder for lastenhoitaja in the dictionary but that would sound more like British English. Some people use babysitter, which may be right in its context, but not when talking about day care centers. A licensed practical nurse at least in the US is the equivalent of alihoitaja, which is solely of the medical variety. I also found a discussion on the Net about Socionomi, where they suggested there is no real equivalent and then offered Bachelor of Social Services.

The asker has declined this answer

14 hrs confidence:

(place where you could get) stuck

Explanation:
I would have no idea what to suggest if it weren't for the previous two suggestions, and it would probably help if I knew something about children, but something like "give them a nudge when they seem to be getting stuck" sounds good to me. I also thought about "going adrift," but that sounds too poetic here (tends to be used about people losing direction in their lives).

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Note added at 20 days (2010-01-02 19:48:28 GMT)
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This got stuck in the back of my mind and I just thought of "lull", probably too late

Anu Carroll
United States
Local time: 22:43
Native speaker of: English

The asker has declined this answer

635 days confidence:

a care center whose goal is to redirect (children's) behavior

Explanation:
Redirect is a term often used (in the US) as a method of handling difficult behavior in children. It usually means calming them and then re-focusing them on a better goal or play.

I'm guessing that the suvanto of suvantopaikka refers to more of a calm refuge for troubled kids, a sort of haven, or a safe place with caregivers that help them learn to guide and control their behavior. 'Positive Discipline' is another related technique.

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Note added at 635 days (2011-09-10 00:52:24 GMT)
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Another thought - If suvantopaikka is in context of a small child's temper tantrum, then it could just be a 'timeout', or a place to calm down.

bserog
United States
Local time: 22:43
Native speaker of:

English

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