Adapted from: http://www.brainy-child.com/article/reggioemilia.shtml

I wanted to explore how Reggio Emilia Approach works, so the following is the gist of it! The 3 power house in addition to student’s curiosity and wonder are as follows:

The Role of Three Teachers

Reggio Emilia schools believe that there are three teachers of our children:

• the parent,
• the teacher and
• the environment.

The Parent

Parent participation in the life of the school is an essential component of the educational experience. Families are actively involved in meetings, school activities and events, such as student-led conferences or education seminars that cover topics on early literacy, play and social skills.

Partnering with parents is important in order to maintain a consistent and positive experience both at home and at school. The school engages parents by providing feedback about their child’s work, and keeping them updated on what’s happening in the classroom. I can see Fresh Grade as a tool to bridge teacher and parent relationships and as a way to maintain open communication.

The Teacher

Teachers play a critical role in preparing your child for a lifetime of learning.

• Help children see the connections in learning and experiences. (activating prior knowledge)
• Explore the learning experience with the children.
• Provoke ideas, problem solving, and conflict resolution.
• Take ideas from children and turn their curiosity into areas for further exploration.
• Help children express their knowledge through representational work (e.g. the visual arts).
• Document children’s progress through blogs, journals, photographs, videos or portfolios.
• Have a dialogue about classroom projects with parents and co-teachers.
• Foster the connection between home, school and community.

The Environment

The school should be a friendly and inviting learning place. Classrooms reflect the natural environment. The walls are white or soft yellow to make the classroom a calm environment that allows the focus to be on the documentation of the children’s learning processes. Both the indoors and the outdoors (playground, garden and gym) should be used as learning spaces.

Teachers have carefully arranged the room and materials so that the children can make thoughtful decisions when working and exploring. Children’s artwork and projects are displayed. Items found in nature are incorporated into classroom materials and are considered an important part of developing an appreciation for the world around us.

It is a wonder to see how enriched environment can nourish each child’s development and curiosity. If we know it has a positive impact on student’s learning, given limited space, and resource, I wonder how we can set up a nature-based environment such as the Reggio Emilia approach. Perhaps we can take bits and pieces of it into our lesson designs.