Author: Mahima

About The Art Piece

100 Languages

 

This art piece and display is called “No Way”. This piece is a collection of 100 found objects that I used to represent the 100 languages of children. I wanted to challenge viewers of the piece to investigate. At first some are skeptical that there are really one hundred items there. Unlike art pieces in a traditional gallery, I encouraged visitors to touch the materials, pick them up and play with them. I also wanted to represent the theory of loose parts, an idea in Reggio Emilia that is borrowed from architecture. In it’s simplest summary, materials that are not held down and can be manipulated inspire creativity. It was also important to me to practice the same principles I advocated for in the project. Namely play, creativity and authenticity. I wanted visitors to be able to play with and experience my inquiry. This was just one of the ways I chose to make my thinking visible and add my voice to the conversation.

An ongoing investigation…

Over the past several months I have been investigating the Reggio approach using Pinterest. I should emphasize… this is not simply a board of ideas. I am searching for images that have been tagged as “Reggio” not for the sake of collecting them. I am trying to evaluate each one and comment on exactly what about the image of the post represents the philosophy of the Reggio Approach. This allows my voice to be a part of the conversation and makes my thinking visible.

 

Reggio Inquiry

https://www.pinterest.com/mahimal/reggio-inspiration-and-inquiry/

Mahima Lamba

Mahima

 

Welcome to my Inquiry Project.

My questions is “How can I honour the 100 languages of children in the Intermediate years?”

I have been lucky enough to experience teaching both full day and half day kindergarten and work in various other early childhood contexts. Working with young children is so joyful and this year I wanted to bring that joy with me up to the intermediate years. I am influenced by the Reggio Emilia Approach and wonder about the ways I can create a Reggio inspired environment that is still appropriate for older children. The more I investigated the more I found that almost any grade can be like kindergarten…

This project is about play, it’s about inquiry, it’s about new ideas, creativity and a deep respect for children.

Thanks for stopping by,

Love from

Mahima Lamba

 

 

Annotated Bibliography

The following papers, articles, lecture series and books have inspired my inquiry process and informed my research. I will continue to update this section.

 

Schonert-Reichl, K. A., Canadian Public Policy Collection, & Canadian Health Research Collection. (2010). Our children’s voices: The middle years development instrument: Measuring the developmental health and well-being of children in middle childhood United Way of the Lower Mainland.

This study outlines why middle childhood is an important developmental time. This includes important notes on brain development, developmental tasks and social relationships for children in middle childhood (Ages 6- 12). As Kindergarten is a transitional time there is extensive research on the importance of this time for children’s emotional and cognitive growth in the early years. The study demonstrates that the development that occurs in middle childhood is of equal importance. With the switch to Full Day Kindergarten many school districts are focusing on high quality programming for the early years. The number of alternative approaches that are popular for Kindergarten and preschool indicates that communities and caregivers view the early years as important. This study proves middle childhood as a time of equal importance. As such, programming for children aged six to twelve deserves the same care, time and attention. This study outlines the wellness of children living in Vancouver and discusses developmental assets such as positive relationships and connections to supportive adults.

 

 Rushowy, K. (2014, September 2). Full Day Kindergarten Impacts Grades 1,2 . The Toronoto Star. Retrieved from

http://www.thestar./yourtoronto/education/2014/09/02/fullday_kindergarten_impacts_grades_1_2.html

This article discusses how Ontario Full Day Kindergarten may have an effect on curriculum and instruction of other grades. As a result of the full day students have more time for play and inquiry. This means that in a play based full day kindergarten students have more autonomy and choice over their activities, their topics of studies and their movements throughout the classroom. This article summarizes some of these issues and offers the lens of public opinion.

 

Fraser, S. (2012). Authentic childhood: Experiencing reggio Emilia in the classroom. Toronto: Nelson Education.

Although I had heard of and briefly learned about the Reggio Emilia approach prior to this year, reading this book really piqued my interested in the approach as something that could be applicable to my practice. The author of this book documents, explains and annotates the development of the Reggio Approach in British Columbia through the experiences of teachers, early childhood educators, student teachers and researchers at various locations in British Columbia. These locations include Douglas College, Quadra Island Preschool, Vancouver Child Study Centre and Marpole-Oakridge Community Preschool. The history of the Reggio approach as documented in this resources started in 1995 with the travelling exhibit “The Hundred Languages of Children”. The experiences of the teachers and children documented in this book are highly relevant to me as they are from unique setting of diverse and multicultural communities that exist in British Columbia which include children from diverse cultures, children with multiple languages and children with special rights. The Reggio approach in Italy was borne from socio political circumstances and the approach itself emphasizes a sense of place. Because of this, the preschools in Reggio Emilia in Italy can never be truly recreated. However, how the Reggio inspired approach looks like in Canada and specifically in the Pacific Northwest should be a topic of inquiry for all educators in BC who are interested in this approach.

Ritchhart, Ron; Church, Mark; Morrison, Karin (2011). Making Thinking Visible : How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners. Retrieved from http://www.eblib.com

This book describes the work of researchers at Project Zero in regards to creating a culture of thinking in classrooms. It emphasizes the role of questions and inquiry as the start of, as well as a product of learning. The researchers describe several ways of making student’s thinking visible including questioning, modeling, constructing understanding, facilitating thinking, listening and documenting. The ideas in this book ascribe to new ways of thinking about teaching, specifically in regards to viewing teachers as facilitators. Several “thinking routines” are described in this book, some of which I have already tried with my practicum class. Some of the ideas described in this book and presented by Ron Ritchart at the dinner series in Delta have framed my own beliefs about the way I think about teaching students in the intermediate years.

 

Krechevsky, M., Mardell, B., & Rivard, M. (2013). Visible Learners : Promoting Reggio-Inspired Approaches in All Schools. Somerset, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com

 

This book describes further research from Project Zero in making thinking and learning visible. Documentation is explored from the perspectives of teachers in pre-kindergarten to grade 12. Several authentic projects are described and the Reggio approach is made relevant and applicable to teachers of all levels. This book pays particular attention to using these approaches in a practical way and in a context where teachers are held accountable by modern assessments and standardized tests. The process and theory behind documentation of learning is also discussed at length and in detail.

 Jensen, E. (2005). Teaching with the brain in mind. Alexandria, Va: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

This book frames many decisions teachers make from a neuroscience perspective. Topics such as classroom design, motivation and instructional strategies are all discussed from the perspective of current brain research. Especially relevant to my inquiry topic is the discussion of novelty and choice in learning.

 

 

Always a hundred

I challenged myself to come up with 100 examples of ways children show us what they know, what they think, how they feel and what their stories are.

Please link to my blog if you use this list.

What languages have you observed? Feel free to add to my list in the comment box.

 song beading
dance collage
laughing movement
pretend smelling
running listening
jumping holding
skipping appreciating
drawing concentrate
sculpting wonder
whispering delight
shouting giggles
telling construct
love excitement
happiness curiosity
silliness dream
interest friendship
imagination zipping
noticing cooperation
touching cutting
feeling understanding
resting knowing
questioning looking
talking capability
observing confidence
smiling breathing
crying squirming
anger pushing
frustration tasting
independence showing
innovation hugging
building asking
watching acting
shaking joining
tapping lying
making promising
painting drama
silence hiding
stretching storytelling
sharing experiencing
growing discovering
helping inventing
smelling joy
doing counting
viewing sadness
challenging pondering
joyfulness encouraging
gratitude kindness
choosing compassion
games writing
caring reading

How do Reggio inspired teachers view themselves?

Listen, Provoke, Support

     Teachers in the Reggio approach are co-constructors of knowledge and partners to student’s learning. You might find a Reggio inspired teacher circulating the room asking questions of their students, listening to ideas and participating in conversations with children about topics that are student selected.

 A teacher inspired by the Reggio approach is like a researcher in that they are observant of children’s needs, progress, and strengths. The teacher may also be busy documenting student’s experiences and work. Reggio inspired teachers document students work as a way to listen to children, honour their ideas and value their learning.

The teacher creates a community of learning by sharing the responsibility of teaching and learning with other partners in the school community including teachers, parents and the students themselves. It is not uncommon for teachers who are inspired by this approach to welcome parents and community members into their classrooms to share their knowledge and experiences.

In the traditional model of Kindergarten children see teachers and adults as experts and sources of knowledge. To young children the teachers may seem “all knowing”. Of course, teachers are highly educated individuals and know a great deal of information across multiple subject areas. There is nothing wrong with this and in fact being an expert or source of knowledge is something that makes children feel safe around you. However, if you always have the right answer or know exactly what to do in every scenario the students never have an opportunity to see you model learning or may never see themselves and each other as sources of knowledge and information. Teaching in an intermediate classroom has been eye-opening for myself in this regard. I am occasionally faced with interesting questions that I don’t have the answer to. The students still look to me as a source of knowledge but both the outcome and process is different. Instead of showing or telling them, I am guiding them.

You don’t need to change your entire classroom or even philosophy to be inspired by this approach or draw on some of the elements. Challenging your ideas about your own role as the teacher may be a simple and small experiment.

The old way of doing things was to stand and deliver, I am interested in Listening, Provoking and Supporting students in their learning journeys.

 

 Another important role of the teacher is to carefully craft they physical environment of the classroom as the environment is considered to be “The Third Teacher”.

What is the role of the physical space?

 

In the Reggio Emilia Approach the environment is considered to be the “third teacher”. The teacher, students, and physical classroom create a partnership.

Children spend a significant portion of their time in the physical space of the classroom. Of the hours children are typically awake they spend the majority of them at school. As such, it is vital that the classroom is a space that is welcoming to students and meets their needs. In the Reggio approach no two spaces or classroom will be identical, have the same materials or even feel the same. The unifying characteristic is the amount of care and attention that adults have devoted to the space.

Teachers should craft purposeful environments that match their image of the child and support relationships. One of the aspects of the environment that I am particularly interested in is the idea of Transparency. In Reggio Emilia, the room is full of reflection and light. This is evident in aspects as literal as the use of mirrors, shadows, windows, lights, and reflective surfaces. The room is also transparent in a metaphorical sense in the access that children, families and teachers as partners have to documentation and the materials in the room.

“Transparency is seen in the openness of the educators of Reggio Emilia to learning from the ideas of others working in the field of early childhood education” (Fraser, 2012)

A common misconception about the Reggio Emilia Approach is that Reggio describes a “nature” kindergarten. While natural and authentic materials are absolutely a component of the theory, the entire approach cannot be reduced to just the physical space or appearance of the room. The physical space in Reggio inspired classrooms is interesting, but only one part of the whole approach.

In the Reggio approach the hundred languages of children are honoured through artistic expression and having a beautiful environment. The beauty in the room is meant to heighten children’s response to aesthetics and influence them in the creative process. The room often has specialized spaces within it that are specific to creating art. These mini studios or ateliers are accessible to children and everything in the room is meant for children to be able to touch.

The municipal preschools in Reggio Emilia will never be recreated exactly because they were borne out of unique social and political circumstances. The approach likely looks very different in Canada than it does in Italy.

One hypothesis I have about the Reggio Emilia approach is that the use of nature and natural materials may be overemphasized in Reggio approaches in the Pacific Northwest. This is not a bad thing, it just seems that educators in this part of the world are drawing a lot of value from that one aspect of the approach in this geographic area. Since the approach values beauty and aesthetics it is possible that in our cultural context we view natural materials as supremely beautiful over all other materials. This is a positive thing as reflecting the culture and environment of the school context can give children a sense of place and secure footing to explore.

In an intermediate classroom this approach might look like:

-Alternative seating arrangements including tables that accomodate groups, quiet spots, standing desks, and whole group meeting space

-Areas in the classroom dedicated to creation

-Colours that are soothing

-Space to move around

 

 

How do Reggio inspired teachers view their students?

Reggio inspired teachers view their students as protagonists. They view students as the main characters of their learning who are active in their experiences at school. The image of the child is one of respect and admiration. Children are viewed as powerful, naturally curious and creative.

Some believe that traditional schooling and perspectives underestimate children and “underestimate the depth of children’s thinking” (Fraser, 2012). This is not the case in the Reggio approach.

“…We in the Reggio Emilia view children as active, competent, strong and finding meaning. Not as predetermined, fragile, needy and incapable.” (Innovations, 2001)

Childhood in itself is viewed positively, rather than as a temporary state requiring remediation or “fixing”. Unlike in the Montessori approach, children are not treated as “little adults”. All the languages of children are treated with respect- including imagination, pretend and drama.

I have been challenging my own views of the image of the child, and this has proven to be an ongoing process.

 

IMG_1352_3

This picture is from a lesson I did with a group of four and five year old children. I thought I had designed an excellent early literacy lesson. I read a book with a high amount of print exposure and repetition of the word “WOW”. I then showed students on a chalkboard how I could use four lines to make the letter “W”. I followed this up with an activity. I gave students strips of paper as a provocation to see if they might be able to make a letter. Some students did make letters including the predictable W, and even some first initials like the letter “A”.

I kneeled down beside once child and asked “And which letter is this?” I thought she had made an attempt at the letter “V”. She looked back at me with an incredulous look on her face. Perfectly calmly she said “It’s Pants”.

I looked again. They were in fact pants.

It's Pants

I realized my activity was less open ended than I had believed. My direction and interpretation of the scenario was entirely teacher driven. In my mind I had limited the acceptable languages to only cognitive-linguistic representations.

The art the student had produced was highly novel, creative, and symbolic. Although it was not the outcome I had expected, it was noteworthy in it’s own right. In an early childhood context, I was simply happy to witness the joy and creativity in her expression.

I wonder if I would have felt the same about an unexpected outcome in an intermediate context where there is more pressure regarding curriculum outcomes and assessment. I wonder about what other types of evidence of learning I could accept. Honouring the 100 languages of children would mean expanding my ideas and opening my mind up to alternative ways of showing understanding. I will keep reflecting on my own image of the child as I continue to be inspired by the Reggio approach. I will also be challenging myself to document and make children’s thinking visible in order to see one hundred languages in the intermediate years.

Innovations in early Education: The International Reggio Exchange. Detroit: The Merrill-Palmer Institute, Wayne State University.

How does the Reggio approach support the new draft curriculum?

The draft curriculum and Transforming Curriculum and Assessment will allow more room for project based learning and emergent curriculum. Teachers will work with students on problems that have “Surface Area”. Teacher planning will allow for multiple pathways of expression.

With less specific learning outcomes teachers will have the opportunity to implement authentic projects that are interesting and culturally relevant to the unique learners where they are teaching. According to the draft curriculum document “Deeper learning happens when students use their understandings and competencies to solve problems, make decisions and inquire into real-world issues.” The Reggio approach is all about authenticity, in projects and materials. Teachers will not be tasked with creating hypothetical word problems. Instead, classroom investigations will be concerned with real life complexity (Meier, 2013).

This might mean that units of study may look unusual. As described in “Visible Learners” the kindergarten class embarked on a project and unit of study entirely about doors. A quick look at the blog of Reggio inspired Quadra Island Preschool shows that a topic of interest at the school right now is step-ladders. These two projects are in stark contrast with predictable themes one comes to expect after working in schools for several years. For example Egypt in grade 7 or Owls in grade four. When project plans are driven by student interest they tend to be highly culturally relevant or directly applicable to the classroom’s own unique culture and community.

The yellow door project from Visible Learners was created out of a social problem in the classroom about sharing the door. One of the assistant teachers was a woodworking expert and able to help. Thus the unique skills of a member of the community were incorporated into the project. In many ways the teacher in this project served as the Pedagogista by guiding the learning and ensuring the idea had “surface area” and the teaching assistant acted as the Atelierista by working with children using authentic materials and processes.

The learning that occurs through these types of authentic projects is so rich and exciting that it is possible that 10 years from now that themes in a traditional sense could be a relic of kindergartens past. Perhaps gone are the days when a Kindergarten teacher will spend their Friday taking down one theme and setting up for the next.

My personal belief is that learning is continuous. Even if a theme or topic is “over” it is not erased from the child’s mind. Learning does not occur in discrete units.

Of course, “Project Plans” are not necessarily a wildly radical new idea. Bobbi Fisher, a celebrated Early Childhood Author, describes what she calls the “generative curriculum” in an 1998 update to her landmark book “Joyful Learning in Kindergarten” which was first published in 1991. However, in the Reggio approach engaging in projects are a part of the fabric of a classroom community, and not a “one-off” special event. From my understanding of the draft curriculum, it will be difficult to meet the core competencies without doing projects.

I believe that the “space” available in the draft curriculum will make it possible for teachers of all grades to move forward with authentic projects based on student interest.

 

 

 

 

 

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