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Professor Larry Prochner

"Early years educators are part of a profession and part of one of the characteristics of a profession is having a common history that becomes, and knowing that becomes part of our professional socialisation and builds community."

Professor Larry Prochner is a professor of early childhood education at the University of Alberta. He has been a member of research teams for two Froebel Trust-funded history projects—Froebelian Endeavours and Reimagining Teaching.

He is the editor, with Kristen Nawrotzki, of the forthcoming book Nature and Early Education: Global Perspectives on Outdoor Learning for Young Children, to be published by Routledge. He serves on the executive committee of the International Froebel Society and was co-president for several years.

Dr Kristen Nawrotzki

"You're part of a professional community that has succeeded in many places over very long periods of time and often under circumstances that were pretty tricky for all different sorts of reasons. So I think that's important just to know that you're not alone."

Dr. Kristen Nawrotzki is a historian of education at Heidelberg University of Education in Germany. She has authored numerous studies of the movements for Froebelian education in the US, UK and elsewhere and is a former co-president of the International Froebel Society.

Donna Kilpatrick

"Everything about Froebel for myself helps me to meet the needs of my children and helps me to get it right for them and think about what's important for them and put them at the heart of everything we're doing."

Donna Kilpatrick is a Mum of two girls aged 19 and 17. She has taught in Falkirk schools for over 25 years and is proud to be the Head Teacher of Whitecross Primary School and Nursery. Donna recently started her Froebel journey and has been so inspired by the teaching that she received at the University of Edinburgh where she completed the Froebel in Childhood Practice Course.

Donna has had the opportunity to learn from the most amazing educators but also had the privilege to meet them at the IFS Conference in Erfurt. She is passionate to ensure that play and the Froebelian Principles continue to be developed in her practice at her nursery and school.

Dr Karen Vincent

"[Froebelian education] is a way of thinking about education that puts the child at the centre that really has a very sound value base that I think offers teachers and educators opportunities to make sense of it as learners in their own right."

Dr Karen Vincent is an Honorary Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education at Canterbury Christ Church University. Her experiences as a teacher in early years settings are at the root of her pedagogical research interests. She is currently engaged in researching with nurseries in Kent to explore pedagogical interactions in the outdoors.

This is part of a Froebel Trust funded project to explore the use of wearable technology to explore freedom with guidance. She is also engaged in a collaborative project with Birmingham City University and the University of the West of England exploring experiences of Early Childhood Studies graduates in the workplace.

She co-wrote Supporting Early Literacies through Play, with Dr Kate Smith. Karen is Secretary and Vice Chair of the England branch of the International Professional Development Association (IPDA), Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a TACTYC Trustee.

Grace Choi

"One of my favourite phrases, ‘life is messy.’ [...] it's part of being alive and that makes us human. But if AI starts making everything more predictable, you know. Too much listening, too much coping with children's emotions and over empathising with their every little emotions and eliminating conflicts or failure. Then, I mean can you really call that education?"

Grace Choi is the President of the International Froebel Society and the Principal of Rainbow Kids International Kindergarten in Beijing, China. For over a decade, Grace has been committed to advancing Froebelian principles in early childhood education, focusing especially on Froebel Gift Blocks teacher training since 2012. As the founder of Rainbow Teacher Training School, Grace has worked closely with educators and organizations like the Korean Froebel Society and Taiwan Froebel and Montessori Society to bring Froebel’s child-cantered approach to educators in China and beyond.

In recent years, Grace has shifted her attention to the intersection of technology and Froebelian education. She believes that in the face of rapid technological advances—especially in areas like AI and digital learning—it is more important than ever to focus on maintaining a holistic, child-cantered approach to education. Instead of simply adapting Froebelian education to fit into the modern tech-driven world, Grace is passionate about exploring how Froebel’s principles can coexist with technological innovation, preserving the integrity of Froebelian pedagogy in a world increasingly shaped by machines and digital platforms.

Grace’s work is grounded in the belief that the future of education must prioritize the whole child -nurturing intellectual, emotional, and social development- not just focusing on solutions that serve narrow human advancement. She is dedicated to pioneering a future where Froebelian values continue to inspire holistic learning environments amid the challenges of the digital age.

Dr Andrea Schmid

"I think it's a great contribution to inclusive education too, because in his engagement with educationally disadvantaged children and young people affected by poverty and disability, Froebel is already regarded as a pioneer of inclusion and a school for all, I think."

Dr Andrea Christine Schmid is a professor of the University of Erfurt in Thuringia/Germany at the Faculty of Educational Science and the Department of Special and Social Education.

Her main areas of focus in research and teaching are as follows: special needs education and inclusion, Reform- and Froebel Pedagogy, health and professionalization research and counselling. She heads the Froebel Research Unit at the University of Erfurt and is Vice President of the International Froebel Society.

Holli Williams

Holli Williams is Head of Schools at Linden Tree Nursery Schools, a small chain of privately-owned settings in Southwest London. The team at Linden Tree has completed three of the Froebel Short Courses - this training began their transformation, adopting a Froebelian educational approach in all their settings.

Holli is a Trustee of the Froebel Trust and also became a Froebel Trust Travelling Tutor in 2022. Holli is now a proud parent as she and her wife welcomed their first child in July 2023.

Rachna Joshi

Rachna Joshi is a Froebel Trust Travelling Tutor and an early childhood teacher, action-researcher and consultant. She works with under-threes, Nursery and Reception children in classroom settings and holds an MA in Early Childhood Studies. Rachna also writes for organisations like Tapestry and Early Education.

Her recent work includes embedding music into settings via grants to purchase outdoor music walls, open-ended music resources and workshops for children and their families.

Dr Fufy Demissie

Dr Fufy Demissie is a senior lecturer in the Sheffield Institute of Education. She began her career in higher education after 10 years of teaching in Foundation Stage settings.  She currently coordinates the Continuing Professional Development network and the student placement programme for the Early Years Community and Research Centre (EYCRC) at the Meadows nursery, Sheffield.   

Fufy teaches on the BA and PGCE early years courses at Sheffield Hallam University and supervises doctoral candidates. Her own research focuses on understanding the role of dialogic pedagogies in professional learning in the early years and beyond. Recent projects include an Erasmus project on Global Citizenship and Mathematics education and a classroom intervention to promote metacognition in early childhood settings. Fufy is also a trustee of the Froebel Trust.

Jane Whinnett MBE

Jane Whinnett MBE is an associate tutor on the Froebel in Childhood Practice course at the University of Edinburgh and a Froebel Trust Travelling Tutor.

She is author of the Froebel Trust pamphlet on Froebel’s Gifts and Block Play Today and co authored Sewing with Young Children. She has published chapters in 'Early Childhood Practice: Froebel Today' (2012) and co-edited the award winning book 'Putting Storytelling at the Heart of Early Childhood Practice' (2020) and 'The Bloomsbury Handbook to Friedrich Froebel' (2023).

Jane trained as a primary school teacher, later specialising in early years and went on to become Headteacher at two local authority nursery schools in Edinburgh. In 2019 Jane was awarded an MBE for services to Early Childhood Education.

Helen Adams

Helen is the Headteacher of Truro Nursery School in Cornwall. She has worked in a range of schools as well as leading an additional resource base. She co-authored the Froebel Trust pamphlet "Creating Environments for Children to Play and Learn" (published in January 2025).

Liam Graham

Liam Graham is a Reception teacher with 7 years teaching experience, and currently the Early Years Lead at Monnow Primary School.

Liam is passionate about child-centred learning, outdoor learning, offering rich, engaging, and meaningful experiences for all our children - and recently completed the Froebel Trust Short Courses.

Recognising Liam's approach to Early Years education, the Welsh Government recently invited him to create a presentation on 'Enabling Learning at Monnow Primary School' - sharing his experience of implementing a Froebelian approach.

Emma Short

Emma is the Headteacher of Camborne Nursery School in Cornwall. She has extensive experience of working in early years both in the UK and abroad. She co-authored the Froebel Trust pamphlet "Creating Environments for Children to Play and Learn" (released in January 2025).

Helen Tovey

Helen is a former Principal Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at the University of Roehampton. She is a Froebel trained nursery teacher and previous headteacher of an inner city nursery school.

She is the author of "Bringing the Froebel Approach to your Early Years Practice" (published by Routledge) and the Froebel Trust pamphlets "Froebel's Principles and Practice Today" and "Outdoor Play and Exploration."