What is Reggio Emilia?

Northern Italy after World War II was a place of change and upheaval. A man named Loris Malaguzzi led a group of adults in their quest to devise a new way to educate their children. They saw that schools had become something that didn’t fit with their observations of children. They knew they needed an educational revolution.

And so the Reggio Emilia approach was born. Since then, the towns have devoted approximately 80% of their taxes to early childhood development and become an epicentre of education. Educators from around the world visit their centres, and many Reggio Inspired early childhood centres have popped up. Longitudinal studies show that children who experience the authentic, play based learning that comes from the Reggio approach have greater lifelong wellbeing.

The Image of the Child

Each child has the right to be respected and valued. Children are active protagonists in their learning. Children have exponential potential. There are hundreds of different images of the child. Each one of you has inside yourself an image of the child that directs you as you begin to relate to a child. This theory within you pushes you to behave in certain ways; it orients you as you talk to the child, listen to the child, observe the child.

The Hundred Languages

This concept comes from a poem LINK written by Loris Malaguzzi himself, and is now a famous educational concept. Children have a hundred ways of thinking and of expressing themselves. In Reggio inspired settings, children are provided with lots of ways to express themselves.

Participation and Listening

Children, parents and educators are all stakeholders in the child's education. Participation is both a value and a strategy. Active listening is an ongoing process in participation. It is a requirement for dialogue and change that raises the threshold of attention and sensitivity of others.

Individual and Group Construction

Every child is an active constructor of knowledge, competencies and autonomy. While each child is unique in their own learning, they are also learning alongside their peers and adults.

The Environment as the Third Teacher

The first teacher—the parent—takes on the role of active partner and guide in the education of the child. The second is the classroom teacher. The teacher assumes the role of researcher and intentionally engages children in meaningful work and conversation. The third teacher is the environment—a setting designed to be not only functional but also beautiful and reflective of the child’s learning. The layout of the environment promotes relationships, communication, collaboration, and exploration through play.

Documentation

Documentation gives value and makes visible the learning of the individual and the group. Revisiting documentation helps to give deeper meaning to the learning.

Progettazione

The process of planning and designing learning takes place without applying predefined curricula. It is respectful of the learning process for children and adults.