We had the opportunity to visit the newest school in Reggio Emilia that was opened on February 23, 2009 in memory of Loris Malaguzzi. Some of the main ideas or themes that were shared about the space were that it was designed to encourage ‘connections’. These connections are about ongoing dialogue between everyone that inhabits the space, but most importantly, for the children. Transparency between spaces; viewing spaces from multiple perspectives from diverse openings (being able to view from up high, down low, the side) to enable thinking about situations in diverse ways; open spaces for bodily expression; intimate spaces for quiet moments; indoor and outdoor gardens with natural materials available for exploration.
The rooms were connected and flowed from one into the other. The belief is that children can learn from others when they can view them from different perspectives. Time for reflections is given to children to think about what they see and perhaps represent it (i.e. visually).
Color was infused into the school space, which was a surprise and a source of discussion for many participants in the study tour. The school was rich in different technologies (i.e. computers, LCD projections – large video and still image projections, smart board, multiple light sources). What is unique about this school is the introduction of a grade 1 classroom. The Reggio representatives explained that the teachers are provided by the state and so the dialogue is rich with diversity as the Reggio educators and the teachers seek to find common footing.
We are not permitted to photograph any of the schools that we will visit on this study tour. So we hope that our writing will be descriptive enough.
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It will be so interesting to hear your view on the school Linda and Carolyn. This is an area teachers are always trying to conceptualize for themselves in the classroom. When I was there the school was being built and we all agreed we wanted to return to see it once it was completed. What grade will it go up to or is it just grade 1?
ReplyDeleteLinda and Carolyn, your daily posting makes me so curious about the history of Reggio Emilia and Loris Malaguzzi! while i was reading, i thought that I so wanted to see how the school looks like, but unfortunately,,,:)
ReplyDeletenow I need to go up and read it again carefully to visualize the school settings~