Reggio Emilia Approach to Education

Child

• Learn age appropriate skills within the Saskatchewan Early Learning Guidelines

• Explore their environment through creative play

Teacher

• Guide children in a nurturing, bilingual environment

• Provide early education unique to each child’s individual learning style

What Does it Mean to Be Reggio Emilia Inspired?

At Alerces we choose to follow the Reggio Emilia approach of education because we believe that children are curious innovators that will grow to lead positive change, invent amazing things and be global ambassadors who lead by example.

Children are the guides of their own education, finding subjects of interest, exploring their curiosity and constantly investigating their environment. We observe the children within the environment we have created for them in our classrooms as well as the natural environment outside of our school. We provide enriching, enticing spaces for children to explore and develop their core abilities and skills.

The Role of a Reggio Emilia Teacher

Teachers within the Reggio Emilia classroom guide children through activities that they take an interest in. This method of teaching uses an emergent curriculum and the Cycle of Inquiry where the teacher observes the children, creates lessons based on observation and works together with the children in that learning opportunity. In this method there is the teacher as guide, the child as a teacher initiating the inspiration for the lesson and the environment as the third teacher. Children also learn new vocabulary in both Spanish and English, and build social skills through interactions with each other.

What is a Typical Day Like in a Reggio Emilia Classroom?

Reggio Emilia classrooms provide teachers and children with limitless opportunities to be creative, explore and play. At Alerces, the teachers have fun learning through the curious eyes of our preschool and kindergarten students. Children who are registered in the Before and After School program can also continue learning and playing in a caring, safe environment.

History of Reggio Emilia

Reggio Emilia is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region.The Reggio Emilia approach was developed after World War II by parents in the villages around Reggio Emilia in collaboration with Loris Malaguzzi who was a teacher himself. Children are deeply inquisitive and capable of expressing themselves in what seems to be a hundred different ways. It is from this very observation that Loris Malaguzzi and others decided to build and run a school for young children. Their goal was to unite and develop childrens’ "hundred languages": innovation, construction, fantasy, art, music, dance, building, writing, talking, singing, science, body and soul. The hundred languages are used to help children build knowledge and understand the world around them.

The Environment is the Classroom

At Alerces we take the classroom outside when the weather permits providing the children with fresh air, exercise and a new environment in which to stimulate their curiosity and foster a love of learning. Playing with blocks improves motor skills, counting, cooperation and creativity.  These are just some of the examples of how we teach through the Reggio Emilia philosophy to inspire creativity and nurture learning. We believe maintaining a consistent daily schedule contributes to a child's well-being and ability to feel comfortable and confident as they build routine and habits.