The Reggio Emilia Approach :

The Reggio Emilia Approach is an innovative and inspiring

approach to early childhood education which values the child
as strong, capable and resilient; rich with wonder and
knowledge. Every child brings with them deep curiosity and
potential and this innate curiosity drives their interest to
understand their world and their place within it.
The Reggio Emilia Approach originated in the town (and
surrounding areas) of Reggio Emilia in Italy out of a
movement towards progressive and cooperative early
childhood education
The Reggio Emilia philosophy is an approach to teaching, learning
and advocacy for children. In its most basic form, it is a way of
observing what children know, are curious about and
what challenges them. Teachers record these observations to reflect
on developmentally appropriate ways to help children expand their
academic and social potentials. Long term

.projects connect core academic areas in and out of the classroom

: The Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Learning is based on Child-
centered learning Creativity and aesthetics

Collaboration
Environments
Documentation
Working in partnership with parents The Reggio Emilia Approach is
an educational philosophy based on the image of the child,
and of human beings, as possessing strong potentials for
development and as a subject of .rights who learns and grows in the
relationships with others This global educational project, which is
carried forth in the Municipal Infant-toddler enters
and Preschools of Reggio Emilia, Italy, and has inspired other
schools all over the world, is based on a number of distinctive
characteristics: the participation of families, the collegial
work of all the personnel, the importance of the educational
environment, the presence of the atelier and the figure of the
atelierista, the in-school kitchen, and the pedagogical
.coordinating team Focusing on the centrality of the hundred
languages belonging to every human being, in the
atelier spaces young children are offered daily opportunities to
encounter many types of materials, many expressive languages,
many points of view, working actively with hands,
minds, and emotions, in a context that values the expressiveness
and creativity of each child .in the group
In class room
The significance of environment. "The environment of the school is
seen as the third educator," after the teacher and the parent, says
Lyon. Most Reggio classrooms include a studio, or "atelier," which
is filled with materials such as clay, paint and writing implements.
Children use these materials to represent concepts that they are
learning in a hands-on way In Reggio schools, time is not set by the
clock, but by the child's needs and interests

Teachers carefully organize space for small and large group projects
and small intimate spaces for one, two or three children.
Documentation of children's work, plants, and collections that
children have made from former outings are displayed both at the
children's and adult eye level. Common space available to all
children in the school includes dramatic play areas and worktables
for children from different classrooms to come together

The Parent as Partner

Children, teachers, and parents are three equally important
components in the philosophy's educational process. Parents are
encouraged to be active contributors to children's activities
in the classroom and in the school. Considered essential in Italy,
parental participation is manifested in daily interactions during
school hours, in discussions regarding educational and
psychological issues, and in special events, field trips, and
celebrations. Curricular and administrative decisions involve parent-
teacher collaboration, and parents also serve as .advocates for the
schools in community politics
The Role of the Teacher
The teacher is trying to learn about each child, not just what is
typical of 3- or 4-year-olds. The teacher in Reggio Emilia is the
researcher, the data gatherer, the learner, and the strategic
contributor to the child's capacity to learn. The responsibility is on
the community
of teachers to provide the contexts for learning,

The teacher's role within the Reggio Emilia approach is complex.

Working as co-teachers, the
role of the teacher is first and foremost to be that of a learner
alongside the children. The teacher is a teacher-researcher, a
resource and guide as she/he lends expertise to. Within
such a teacher-researcher role, educators carefully listen, observe,
and document children's work and the growth of community in
their classroom and are to provoke, co-construct, and
stimulate thinking, and children's collaboration with peers.
Teachers are committed to reflection about their own teaching and
learning
Teachers are trained to recognize a child's interests and create on-
going projects that stimulate a child's curiosity the role of the
teacher as an observer is extended to documenter and researcher.

The Role of Parents

Parents are an essential component of the school. They are an
active part of their children's learning experiences and help to
ensure the welfare of all the children in the school. All families are
members of the Family Team Reggio approach views the parent as
an essential resource for the child's learning. To foster community,
Reggio schools host a variety of events throughout each school
year, including conferences and special lectures for parents.
Materials
a welcoming environment encourages a child to engage in activity
and discovery. Wall-sized windows, mirrors placed on floors, walls
and ceilings establish a space filled with opportunity. The Reggio
Emilia approach integrates nature into the curriculum so that the
.child learns to appreciate the physical and structural environment
Documentation is central in the Reggio Emilia approach.
Documentation communicates the life of the center to others
visiting the center. It also provides opportunities for children to
revisit the experience. Documentation is a process that involves
observation, reflection, collaboration, interpretation, analysis, and
is made a part of the classroom multiple forms of documentation:
photographs, audiotape transcripts, videotapes, note taking and
the actual product of a child's work create a multi-sensory
"memory" of an activity.

• Add some play silks and scarves to your dress-up box. They will
compliment the costumes your might already have as well as have
the potential to be any and all things.

• Add simple wooden blocks to your block collection

• Add fabric scraps in various sizes and textures to a small collection
of animal figurines or people

• When creating a small world imaginative play scene, rather than

adding all the elements from plastic play toys, try using reusable like
cardboard tubes, popsicle sticks, cotton wool or natural materials
like rocks, sticks, pinecones, bark and leaves. Leave scope for your
child to arrange and engage with the materials. You might like to
add a few animal or people figurines but try not to define
the play scene too much. You want your child to make it
their own and explore in their own way.
• Add natural materials to your play area. Try to have them
dotted around where ever your children play. Natural materials have
wonderful aesthetic qualities. They stimulate the senses by how they
feel, smell and look. Add a basket of pebbles to the block area and
see how your child incorporates them into their play.

• You can pick up off-cuts of mosaic glass or ceramic tiles from

kitchen stores, often for free or very cheaply at least. Add them to
your construction area, play kitchen, or in a basket on their own with
a picture or book nearby to inspire mosaic

• blocks (or other kinds of plank blocks) are wonderful open-ended

materials. Endless possibilities for construction.
• Treasures If you find something beautiful, a vase or a stone or a
starfish; anything that captures your too. Pop it into their play area
and let them explore. Try to think beyond its general purpose and
let your child explore/play with it in their own way.

The environment as the "third teacher.

The educators in the preschools schools of Reggio Emilia place
high value on the physical environment of the school, often
referring to it as the "third teacher" or "third educator" (Gandini,
1998, p. 177), in conjunction with the two classroom teachers.
Created from, but
going beyond mere physical space, an environment is seen as a
living, changing system.

Documentation as communication

Documentation serves many functions and is an important tool in

Reggio Emilia-inspired programmes. Gandini (1996) wrote "teachers
routinely take notes and photographs and make tape recordings of
group discussions and children's play" (p. 82). Documentation of
the children's projects is carefully arranged, using transcriptions of
children's conversations and remarks, photographs of ongoing work
and activities, and the products that have been
produced by the children to represent their thinking and learning
(Gandini, 1993). Teachers' commentaries on the purposes of a
project, along with transcriptions of children's verbal
language, photographs, and representations of their thinking are
provided in accompanying panels or books designed to present the
children's learning processes. The documentation shows children
that their work is valued, makes parents aware of class learning
experiences, and allows teachers to assess both their teaching and
the children's learning

Long-term projects as vehicles for learning:

The curriculum is characterized by many features advocated

by contemporary research on young children, including reallife
problem-solving among peers, with numerous opportunities for
creative thinking and exploration. Teachers often work on projects
with small groups of children, while the rest of the class engages in
a wide variety of self-selected activities typical of preschool
classrooms. The projects that teachers and children engage in are
different in a number of ways from those that characterize
American teachers' conceptions of unit or thematic studies. The
topic of investigation may derive directly from teacher observations
of children's spontaneous play and exploration. Project topics are
also selected on the basis of an academic curiosity or social
concern on the part of teachers or parents or serendipitous events
that direct the attention of the children and teachers. Reggio
teachers place a high value on their ability to improvise and
respond to children's predisposition to enjoy the unexpected.
Regardless of their
origins, successful projects are those that generate a sufficient
amount of interest and uncertainty to provoke children's creative
thinking and problem-solving and are open to different avenues of
exploration. Because curriculum decisions are based on
developmental and cultural concerns, small groups of children of
varying abilities and interests, including those with special needs,
work together on projects. Projects begin with teachers observing
and questioning children about the topic of interest. Based on
children's responses, teachers introduce materials, questions, and
opportunities that provoke children to further explore the topic.

Advantages.
The Benefits Include
• Environmental Stimulation - Children benefit from having the
environment as their third teacher. Art is hung at children’s eye level.
There is an emphasis on using natural materials that can be used in
more than one way to encourage an interest in the natural world
and exploration.
• Community and Parental Involvement – Children benefit in being
equal partners with, parents and teachers in the learning process.
This gives children the power to direct their learning and grow their
creativity. “Hundred Languages” of Expression - Children
benefit from using many “languages” to express themselves.. The
languages include writing, building, sculpting, and dramatic play.
Children develop skills and problem-solving ability through hands-
on practice
• Getting Involved with Long Term Projects - Curriculum planning is
based on children’s interests leading to open-ended and often long-
term projects that allow children to further explore their interests
with teacher direction.

the teacher, parent and child as collaborators in the process of

learning.
Teachers get to know children (strengths, needs and personality)
because children stay with the same teacher and the same peer
group for two years Projects provide the backbone of the children's
and teachers' learning experiences. They are based on the strong
convictions that learning by doing is of great importance and that
to
discuss in group and to revisit ideas and experiences is the
premier way of learning. Project ideas come from experiences of
the children and teachers, a chance event or problem .posed. They
can last from a few days to several months In Reggio Emilia they
believe children have an enormous potential and curiosity. Children
strive to understand the world, making their own theories to explain
how it functions.