We often discuss the World Happiness Rankings, and how the Scandinavian countries are consistently at the top.

It’s interesting, as I learned when I visited a customer’s home in Denmark, that kids don’t start school until they’re seven years old.  Does this contribute to happiness?

As my friend told me, “The rat-race starts soon enough.  Yes, the French and the Germans are ahead of us academically for a while, but by the time our kids are in high school, we’ve completely caught up.  Why not let them be kids?”

Yet there must be some who admonish that children’s minds are like sponges, soaking up whatever’s in the vicinity.  Would you rather it be cartoons or arithmetic/reading?

Also, there is the subject of socialization, which is why common wisdom would suggest that there is value in having four- and five-year-olds growing up surrounded by the peers.

I honestly don’t know.

https://www.2greenenergy.com/2026/04/01/the-scandinavians-are-quite-different-from-us-americans/