Milk cartons are flying through the snow, and ski poles are pressed firmly into the ground, at the Vunukka daycare centre in North Karelia's municipality of Ilomantsi.
The daycare's winter cross-country excursions proved difficult this season. Snowfall was sparse, and temperatures in February reached record lows.
Even in North Karelia, traditional skiing trips had to be cancelled. But the urge to glide remained, so the staff improvised skiing for this cold season's low snow conditions.
Initially, practice sessions were held indoors to give the children a sense of balance and motion.
Sari Vartiainen, a preschool teacher leading the under-threes group, said the kids embraced the idea immediately.
"We didn’t need to coax them. Their reaction to milk-carton skiing was instant: wow!" she told Yle.
For this introduction to skiing, there is no need to buy equipment. Ordinary milk or juice cartons will do the job.
To get the cartons ski-ready, they are rinsed, and a long slit is cut along the side to fit a foot inside. The youngest kids can slide in with winter boots. For larger feet, a woollen sock can be used as padding instead of a shoe.
