March 10, 2025

Dear colleagues,

Greetings in this perilous time in the United States, which has such impactful reverberations around the world. We’re writing to you as comrades committed to inspire thoughtful, ethical action on behalf of children, families, educators, schools, communities. We who have been nourished and challenged and fortified by the schools in Reggio Emilia have a significant responsibility and opportunity to speak out and act up.

Too often, the historical context for the creation of the first schools in Reggio is overlooked. If ever there is a time to call that history forward, it's now, as citizens in the US confront a authoritarian coup that is unraveling our democracy.

You know the story well, and Malaguzzi's telling of it. You know his declaration that:

We are part of an ongoing story of men and women, ideals intact, who realize that history can be changed, and that it is changed starting with the future of children.

And you’ve heard his reflection that:

The first philosophy learned from these extraordinary events [Mussolini’s rise to power], in the wake of such a war [World War II], was to give a human, dignified, civil meaning to existence, to be able to make choices with clarity of mind and purpose, and to yearn for the future of mankind.

What choices are we called to make now, in the face of the “extraordinary events” that are taking place? What clarity and purpose can we mobilize to guide our choices? How can we join together to chart a course forward for our work?

This is a time for our courage. Those of us who look to Reggio for inspiration and heart have a responsibility to speak out about why a pedagogy inspired by Reggio matters. A responsibility to spotlight the ways in which this approach cultivates curious minds and expansive imaginations—children’s and our own; grows an appreciation for questions; enhances our capacity to engage complexities beyond either/or thinking; opens us to a wider embrace of our shared humanity. Strengthens our capacity to resist authoritarianism and to creatively construct the society that we want to see flourish.

Many of us, both in the US and outside this besieged country, are building a resistance movement to the “extraordinary events” taking place in the US that are aimed at dismantling structures and spaces dedicated to progressive education, social justice teaching and learning, and the rights of children, their families, and educators to live proudly in the fullness of their identities. How might we allow ourselves to be truly inspired by Reggio, joining together to act, “ideals intact,” committed to change history?

As we mobilize our courage, consider the forums in which we might individually or collectively take action in our communities:

Are you a member of NAREA or a state Reggio network? Will you be attending the NAREA conference in Hamilton?

Do you have a podcast?

Do you teach adults?

Are you a director or pedagogical leader of an early childhood education program?

Are you involved in a Community of Practice? In a book group?

Consider questions that we might pose with colleagues to launch dialogue, learning, and action:

Matt Karlsen and Susan Harris MacKay, at the Studio for Playful Inquiry, ask us: What is the nature of teaching for democracy, and how might that be different than teaching for autocracy?

Let’s ask each other: What lessons can we learn from the story of the founding of the schools in Reggio Emilia, where citizens turned to a pedagogical vision to ensure that fascism would find no toehold in the lively minds and engaged hearts of children?

What action can we take that is worthy of the legacy of Reggio’s founding? Action to protect the immigrant and transgender children, families, and teachers in our schools? Action to teach the true history of the US—Indigenous history, the history of resistance to enslavement and white supremacy, the history of women rising up together, the history of workers and unions, the history of disability activism? Action to resist the dismantling of the Department of Education?

How might we come together to support each other in our boldness and determination, in our efforts to develop broad, effective strategies of collective resistance, to nurture our joy and to sustain our lives beyond fear and despair? How might we comfort and reassure each other in our tears, exhaustion and rage? What existing organizations and undertakings might move into a coordinating role to further our thinking and connections?

This is a time for us to respond to Malaguzzi's call to action. This is a time for each of us—and for us collectively—to join the ongoing story of people who realize that history can be changed.

Please add your name to ours and send this out to people in your networks. If there’s an arena in which you can imagine taking action or inviting dialogue, jot that down, too, as you forward this. None of us has to do everything, but there is something for each of us to do.

So much is possible when we stand strong, together.

With hope in collective resistance,

Ann Pelo and Margie Carter

Exploring the Languages of Snow and Ice

Presenters: Joey Schoen and Kristenza Nelson

Reflections from Participants:

A wonderful morning of exploring the many joys that can be taken from the winter season.  Joey and Kristenza started the event with asking participants what their favorite seasons were and why.  This was a great way for everyone to share in the dialogue.  We learned that our outlook and enthusiasm makes all the difference in presenting experiences to children.  

Winter is full of possibilities for exploration, as all have access to snow and ice.  Snow and Ice are open ended and the creativity in children, bursts out of them.  Every child enjoys building snowmen which opens up conversations on different types of snow and learning about the science.  Children are always ready to go outside but they don’t have long term memory and quickly realize they’re cold.  Be mindful, check in with the children often and teach them how to shake off mittens.  Have provocations ready to go when the children arrive outside.  Some children are going to enjoy the experience and some are not, embrace both.  Keep it fun! 

Snow activity ideas: picnics, bring the outside in and vice versa, pull dolls in sleds, use time lapse photography, look for revelations in outdoor surrounding, snow stories from animal tracks, discovering scat, winter affects on sound, moonlight on snow, tree shadows on snow, different layers of snow and how it captures light, snow forts, using like glue-imbedding objects in. Designs and patterns from boots and other items, melting snow, drawing in snow, sculptures  with natural materials and snow, pushing heavy snowballs-requires collaboration, cut chunks of snow and build with, use snow saws, make big piles, pack it down, hollow it out, ask parents to help build Quinzi mounds.

Ice Activities ideas: puddles, smashing, wood pick made from sticks, how much weight can ice hold, air bubbles in layers, breaking ice-using  pieces, molds-ice cube trays, color droppers, freeze twine in molds to hang ice shapes.  Use Sensory tables for combining ice and snow-colored water and eye droppers, brushes.  Ice cubes outside can become treasure, ice slides, water freezing in gutters 

Reflections by Kelly Kritsberg Assistant Director/Toddler Teacher South Metro Montessori School

After attending the workshop on snow and ice, it brought me back to my sense of wonder and curiosity of the natural world.  What a great opportunity to meet with other educators and discuss our own experiences with snow and ice while exploring Dodge Nature School’s space and the work of their teachers with the children.  As I walked the environment, I could see the beauty of materials that was offered to children and I could see learning happening.  I will take these experiences/conversations back to my own environment and develop provocations for snow and ice in our own context. Snow and ice evokes a sense of serene beauty, purity and the stark transformation of the wintry landscape. 

Reflections by Cecilia Condra Preschool Teacher South Metro Montessori School

It was a very rich experience, in the sense that we were able to get to know other participants, talk about what we like and share different perspectives about the topic at hand.  It reminds us again, that it is a matter of observing every detail before our eyes and discovering through provocations, that children can think beyond what their eyes observe.  There were lots of ideas and themes presented on how to take advantage of the season.  Participating in these gatherings always gives me more ideas from the opportunities to discuss the unique experiences presented.  I was very grateful to participate and meet new teachers!

Our Youngest Citizens: Living and Learning Democracy in Early Childhood Classrooms
Meredith Dodd
Meredith Dodd is an early childhood and teacher educator. While a Head Teacher in the Nursery School at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, Meredith focused on the craft of pedagogical documentation. She thinks deeply about the role children have in democracy, cultivated by her connection to her Kanienkéha:ka (Mohawk) ancestral homelands of the Six Nations of the Grand River. Meredith learned about the incredible influence the Kanienkéha:ka, and all the Nations within the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, had on the creation of democratic thinking and governing structures of the United States. Meredith’s passion is to support people of all ages to open the doors of self-acceptance, self-love and to know how it feels to belong, the essence of living fully in a democracy.

What happens in early childhood classrooms is more than preparing children for adult life; children are doing much more than just practicing how to become citizens in society. Children are active participants in the cultures that define and impact the governing structures of their nation.

In the United States, schools are the connective places where children from a diversity of backgrounds come to learn not only academics, but the democratic cultural practices and values of the nation. Therefore, educators in the United States are inherently democratic cultural practitioners. Each educator plays a role in the nation’s cultural expression through school programming, pedagogy and practices for daily participation in the U.S. constitutional democracy.   

If schools are key to learning the culture of a nation's democracy, then early childhood educators are its gatekeepers. Early childhood programs are essentially spaces where a culture of care and democratic thinking develop together, setting the stage for children’s understanding of themselves as citizens within a democratic community.  

That’s a whole nation of grown women and men, who are acknowledging a six-year-old boy…So you know what that little boy must feel like? That his whole nation loves him. That he has a place in his own nation. And they’re all doing this for him. So there’s a lot of power there. And that’s what they’re teaching him.

  

–Sakokweniónkwas Tom Porter (Porter, 2008)

Children engage in everyday democracy through their schools’ and teachers’ interpretations of democratic ideals of freedom, community, equity and justice. How teachers care for and educate children in their classrooms—how they talk to and care for each other—reflects their own experiences and understandings of how they value democracy and live democratically. Early childhood educators are one of the essential culture bearers for children’s democratic development. As such, the profession and each educator is obligated to look at their practices and themselves.

The rights of children must, importantly, include the right to be themselves and to talk for themselves.

–Nelson Mandela (2003)

One School Community: University of Chicago Lab School

The University of Chicago Lab School, where I taught for the majority of my career, was founded by John Dewey in 1898. Loris Malaguzzi, the founder of the Italian-based Reggio Emilia Approach (REA), was inspired by Dewey’s belief that learning is an active process, not a transmission of a prepackaged curriculum. The school is also influenced by the philosophy of American educators Frances and David Hawkins, protégés of John Dewey. The Hawkinses and Malaguzzi shared the belief that teaching requires students and teachers to learn together through a variety of relationships with subject matter.

The ideas of Dewey, the Hawkinses and Malaguzzi represent a philosophical triangle whose core educational ideas are straightforward. In order to know how and what to teach with a particular group of students, the teacher needs to be curious alongside the children “messing about,” listening to what the children already know (Hawkins, 1965).

Reggio Emilia Approach 

The Reggio Emilia Approach considers children citizens of the school and larger community. Children’s ways of knowing the world, their ideas and expressions of knowledge are essential assets for partnering with educators, families and the community. The schools of Reggio Emilia were founded upon democratic pillars and social constructivist practices. 

In their work, the teachers of Reggio have struggled to raise the emancipatory potential of democracy, by giving each child possibilities to function as an active citizen and to have the possibility of a good life in a democratic community. 

-Rinaldi (2021)

The Reggio Emilia Approach and the Deweys

Malaguzzi and the early pioneers of the Reggio Emilia Approach drew upon a range of thinkers, among them Piaget, Vygotsky, Freire and the American educational philosophers, John Dewey and Alice Chipman Dewey. Through their writing, teaching and practical methodological suggestions (McEwan & Bull, 1991), the Deweys in particular explored connections between school, society, democracy and art (Dewey, 1934), communication (Hook, 1950) and the lived experience of the child (Gandini, 1993). 

We must learn how the school may be connected with life so that the experience gained by the child in a familiar, commonplace way is carried over and made use of there, and what the child learns in the school is carried back and applied in everyday life, making the school an organic whole, instead of a composite of isolated parts. 

-Dewey (1907)

The Reggio Emilia Approach is an ever-evolving, responsive way of teaching. The Approach interprets Dewey’s vision of teaching and learning as an organic system of reciprocity, much like a game of ball where the child throws a ball one way to the teacher and the teacher throws it back another way (Inviting Children’s Creativity - a Story of Reggio Emilia, Italy | ChildCareExchange.com, n.d.). This game of ball keeps the players fresh to interpret and integrate alternate techniques learned outside that particular ballpark (Edwards et al., 2015). The Reggio Approach recognizes that cultural and societal changes impact what is learned and how it is taught. In fact, the REA school environments are designed for children to be active participants in the production of culture and knowledge within the school and the larger community.

Schools provide children the opportunity to learn and practice democracy throughout their lives as students. In Reggio Emilia, the primary role of teachers is to communicate a robust image of the child as a person with thoughts, desires, competencies and perceptions of their experiences. The student forms an image of themselves as a democratic participant through their collection of experiences in school. The educator’s teaching methodology is informed each year by the nature of the group and the particular children that comprise it.

The democracy we practice in early childhood classrooms does not look the same as the democracy we think of when we celebrate the Fourth of July or cast a vote. As children progress through school, they will learn facts and concepts related to government and history. In early childhood, however, the questions asked, the possibilities considered and thinking together are the most important part of learning democracy. It is a sharing of power in the name of living together with respect.

 A democracy is more than a form of government; it is primarily a mode of associated living, of conjoint communicated experience.

–Dewey (1926)

In my classroom, respect means we think together, we participate in taking turns to voice our ideas, listen to other people’s perspectives, raise additional issues to consider and negotiate solutions. To be successful, democracy must be inclusive. The classroom becomes a sacred space for a culture of care that learns about our roles and responsibilities within our shared world.

My intention is to offer a place where children are valued meaning-makers. Educators play a role in creating the kind of relationships that support a democratic community within the classroom. Our choices for school and curriculum design reflect our image of children, our understanding of democracy, the role of the child in the democracy and the future outcomes we hope for children in this democracy.

These democratic ideals are especially relevant to young children in early childhood classrooms:

1. Freedom
People, including children, have rights. We all should be free to make choices and determine our own future within a context of community.

2. Community
People in a community care for each other and make decisions together. Everyone has a voice in our decisions. Sometimes decisions are made by voting, consensus and negotiation.

3. Equity
In a democracy, everyone has fair access to opportunities and resources. Everyone is included.  

4. Justice
When something goes wrong, everyone has a responsibility to help make it right. We are always learning and growing. Where there is injustice, we must speak out and act.

Democracy is evident in how the children play and inquire. Children have a great capacity to accept, acknowledge, forgive, reflect and grow together as a group. Their confidence and openness come from curiosity. The most important parts of learning democracy are the questions asked and the resolve to act. The broader message to the children is this: Democracy is important. The way we relate to each other and work together matters. 

References

C. (2018, April 17). Influence On Democracy - Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Haudenosaunee Confederacy. https://www.haudenosauneeconfederacy.com/influence-on-democracy/

Democracy Definition & Meaning | Britannica Dictionary. (n.d.). https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/democracy

Derman-Sparks, L., Olsen Edwards, J., & Goins, C. M. (2020). Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves, Second Edition (2nd ed.). NAEYC. https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/books/anti-bias-education

Dewey, J. (1907). The School and Society. University of Chicago Press.

Dewey, J. (1926). Democracy and Education: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education.

Dewey, J. (1934). Art as Experience.

Edwards, C., Gandini, L., & Nimmo, J. (2015). Loris Malaguzzi and the Teachers: Dialogues on Collaboration and Conflict among Children, Reggio Emilia 1990. Zea E-Books, 29.

Gandini, L. (1993). Fundamentals of the Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education. Young Children, 49(1), 4–8. http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ474815

Hawkins, D. (1965). Messing About in Science. National Science Teachers Association, Science and Children, 2(5), 1–4.

Hook, S. (1950). John Dewey, Philosopher of Science and Freedom: A Symposium.

Inviting Children’s Creativity - A Story of Reggio Emilia, Italy | ChildCareExchange.com. (n.d.). http://exchangepress.com/article/inviting-childrens-creativity-a-story-of-reggio-emilia-italy/5008538/

McEwan, H., & Bull, B. L. (1991). The Pedagogic Nature of Subject Matter Knowledge. American Educational Research Journal, 28(2), 316–334. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312028002316

Messing About. (n.d.). Hawkins Centers of Learning. https://www.hawkinscenters.org/messing-about.html

Paley, V. G. (1986). On Listening to What the Children Say. Harvard Educational Review, 56(2), 122–132. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.56.2.p775487x30tk69m8

Porter, Tom, and Lesley Forrester. And Grandma Said ... Iroquois Teachings : As Passed down through the Oral Tradition. Philadelphia, Pa.] Xlibris Corp, 2008.

Rinaldi, C. (2020). The child as citizen: holder of rights and competent. The Reggio Emilia educational experience. Miscellanea Historica-Iuridica, 19(1), 11–22. https://bibliotekanauki.pl/articles/1945364

Rinaldi, C. (2021). In Dialogue with Reggio Emilia: Listening, Researching and Learning. Contesting Early Childhood.

On Thinking Together
Patti Loftus

Patti Loftus B.A., M.A., is a retired early childhood teacher whose career included twenty-eight years in the Pre-K program at Blake School (Minnesota). She’s been interested in the Reggio approach since 1992 and has served as a RINM Board member. She’s currently a RINM Communications Committee member.

As described in Fundamentals, one of the central ideas of the Reggio approach is “participation,” the relatively non-hierarchical involvement of many stakeholders – children, parents, teachers/pedagogistas/atelieristas, other school personnel, community members and various civic organizations – who bring different points of view, and each perspective is valued.

“... it develops in a multiplicity of occasions and initiatives for constructing dialogue and the sense of belonging to a community…Participation generates and nurtures the feelings and culture of solidarity, responsibility and inclusion; it produces change and new cultures that contend with the dimension of the contemporary world and globalization.”

–Indications

There are many dimensions to participation – convening meetings, listening carefully, asking thoughtful questions, offering a point of view. In Reggio-inspired practice, thinking together is an essential dimension of participation, a quality of engagement/dialogue that moves toward an undetermined outcome.

  –Reggio Children, Shoe and Meter (1997)

Participants who think together come up with ideas that they might not have anticipated. It’s unlikely that Loris Malaguzzi and the people he worked with at the time imagined that leveraging the leftover rubble of WWII – a tank, six horses and three trucks – would launch a world-wide and evolving educational project. 

This aspect of participation involves deep thinking about values, working to align theory and practice. Through documentation, referencing a common trace – text, drawing, video, images or narrative – participants pose, revisit, refine and relaunch questions that fuel next steps. Playing generously with ideas prompts new thinking.

The Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota has supported “thinking together,” from its inception. Since its early days, the Network organized Monthly Gatherings open to everyone interested in Reggio-inspired theory and practice. Offerings grew over the years to include Book Studies, Community Conversations, Documentation Labs, Loose Parts Lab and an unstructured get-together called “Let’s Talk,” all of which have provided the possibility for in-person and virtual spaces for participants to share perspectives and ponder questions together. This quarterly newsletter, which we have been publishing for more than thirteen years, is another place for the meeting of writers’ and readers’ minds and the exchange of ideas. 

Books can be powerful resources for thinking together. Many find that writing from Reggio is difficult to understand and remote from our context. In their 2018 book, From Teaching to Thinking: A Pedagogy for Reimagining Our Work (Exchange Press,) co-authors Ann Pelo and Margie Carter, both with deep roots in Reggio study, invite readers to join their process. Pelo and Carter’s thinking, firmly lodged in the U.S., is deeply grounded in Reggio principles, yet very approachable.

They reflect on their decades of work in a back-and-forth format, “Ann offers theory, story, and core concepts in her writing, and Margie offers a response that speaks to the ideas that especially stand out to her, and the questions for practice with which she wants us to engage,” (p. 29). They encourage the reader to “join the conversation” and invite colleagues to read and think together. 

They pose questions for their readers, starting with: 

“What kind of people do we want to be?
What kind of world do we want to live in?
What is the purpose of education?”

They describe: 

The authors agree with Peter Moss “that new stories are necessary, that ‘offer hope that another world is possible, a world that is more equal, democratic and sustainable, a world where surprise and wonder, diversity and complexity find their rightful place in early childhood education, indeed all education.’” 

Pelo and Carter ask the question, “What convictions drive your work?” (p. 28).

They discuss the importance of “creating a culture of inquiry” that prizes questions and the process of investigating them, more than arriving at answers. It “values complexity, not-knowing, uncertainty, divergent and contradictory ideas.” These ideas remain fresh, relevant and more important today. 

Thinking together requires intention on the part of participants – first in finding time and space to gather and then determining productive questions and resources as the subjects for consideration. Ongoing dialogue is an avenue through which multiple perspectives can encounter one another to build/deepen understanding and chart next steps. Participating in RINM events, discussing books, such as From Teaching to Thinking, and focused dialogue among interested colleagues can be starting points.

References

Pelo, A., Carter, M. (2018). From Teaching to Thinking: A Pedagogy for Reimagining Our Work. Exchange Press.

Reggio Children (2010). Indications: Preschools and Infant-Toddler Centres of the Municipality of Reggio Emilia.Reggio Children.

Fundamentals: Participation
In order to create a pathway for people new to Reggio-inspired work and deepen our shared thinking, we offer a regular column, Fundamentals, to introduce and explore central principles of the Reggio Approach. The Reggio Approach is a complex system of thought and practice with many dynamic entry points that interact; it is not a method, program or curriculum. (Key Principles)

Typically, we understand participation to mean ‘to take part’ or ‘to attend.’ However, the straightforward definition misses the rich implications of this Reggio concept. Reggio educators mean something more complex. To participate is to act as a protagonist, to have agency, to belong, to bring one’s unique point of view, skill or interest. This participation is multifaceted and dynamic, operating both on the individual and community levels.

“Participation, in fact, is based on the idea that reality is not objective, that culture is a constantly evolving product of society, that individual knowledge is only partial; and that in order to construct a project, especially an educational project, everyone’s point of view is relevant in dialogue with those of others, within a framework of shared values. The idea of participation is founded on these concepts: and in our opinion, so, too, is democracy itself.”

–Paola Cagliari, Angela Barozzi and Claudia Giudici

Participation goes back to the founding of the Reggio educational project as an act of citizens, particularly the women, who insisted, “we don’t want our children to be duped by fascism, as we were.” Malaguzzi described school as a place characterized by uncertainty, complexity, wonder and solidarity and, perhaps most importantly, a context to practice participation and democracy. 

Participation creates a web of relationships that is strengthened through ongoing exchange. U.S. educators might regard this level of participation as highly inefficient, but it’s also highly productive – it is circular, dense and leads to results that astound us.

Participation is understood as an opportunity, a strategy and a responsibility.

The Value of Individual and Organizational Self-Care in Nature
Karen Walburg
Karen has been teaching and leading nature programming at Westwood Early Childhood Center for over 35 years. She is an advocate for the well-being of early childhood educators, especially in nature. She is open to assisting other organizations in recognizing the value of Self-Care in Nature and to bringing the subsequent benefits to their members and communities. She can be reached at k.walburg@westwood.church

This is the story of the evolution of an idea, as seen through the lens of the inspiration of Reggio Emilia. The Reggio way of seeing the world is an expression of universal truths and the natural world of which we are a part.

In this story we will see an example of those truths playing out for the educators and staff at the Westwood Early Childhood Center (WECC). Using a continuous cycle of Observation, Possibilities and Actualities, we will share a long-term investigation into the value of our place in and with nature as crucial to our well-being. In more or less apparent ways, you will find Reggio inspiration embedded in every step of this investigation.

Observations
For many years, the WECC observed the value of experiences in and with nature for the well-being of children, staff, families and the entire WECC community. We observed that staff well-being translated into deeper, richer and higher quality care and relationships with the children and the community. Two and a half years ago, we also observed that our current staffing situation and other resources might allow us to realize a dream of providing those kinds of experiences in the form of restorative time alone in nature for all staff during their busy work days. Using these and other observations, we developed the WECC’s Self-Care in Nature (SCN) initiative. The initiative’s tentative Mission Statement and Guidelines reflect an ongoing evolution of observations, possibilities and actualities. 

WECC’s Self-Care in Nature tentative Mission Statement
WECC believes there are spiritual, emotional, physical, mental, social, recreational and environmental benefits to taking time alone in nature. The Self-Care initiative gives educators and staff time during their work days, away from other commitments to WECC, to focus on their own self-care and access those benefits. Through work and life, the effects of those benefits are consequently spread to the wider WECC community and the world beyond.

WECC’s Self-Care in Nature tentative Guidelines

• Self-Care in Nature time must be spent for self-care alone in or around nature.

• Self-Care in Nature will occur at locations agreed upon by educator/staff person and administration.

• Cell phone use is permitted only for the purposes of photography, music conducive to self-care or to research discoveries made while in self-care time.

• Self-Care in Nature time may include required reflections such as an entry into a shared journal during allotted time.

Possibilities

Four key possibilities were initially identified:

Logistics - Would our resources be sufficient to support the establishment and maintenance of this initiative?

Benefits - What could/would the benefits be for individuals, the organization, the community and beyond? What would the cost/benefit ratio be?

Evolution - In what ways would/could the initiative evolve? What might drive those changes?

Replicability - Would others see the value in this practice? Would there be a desire to replicate this initiative in other settings/organizations? If so, how might that happen? What could it look like? What part might we play in that exploration?

These possibilities overlapped in many ways as the actualities of this initiative took shape.

Actualities

Logistics - We discovered that we did indeed have the resources to begin this initiative.  

Each educator/staff person is offered 1 or 1.5 self-care hours in nature (depending upon variables) approximately every 2-3 months. Our goal is that everyone will have at least one turn during each of the four seasons. Feedback from educators and staff reflected a desire for more SCN time, to experience the benefits received from that time. Although we are not able to provide more during working hours, staff have found ways outside of work to spend more time in nature either alone or with family or friends.

The staff person who schedules creates an SCN schedule that is basically repeatable for every rotation, with vacations, illnesses, etc. included.

The educator/staff person’s time out is covered by an on-staff float teacher who is qualified to fill each person’s position for that time frame. In our case, this float teacher also provides occasional opportunities for creative expression during a person’s SCN times. She also documents participants’ reflections to share with the WECC community.

We have access to a lakeshore woodland trail onsite. We began our initiative exclusively using this access for SCN.

During the winter months we set up a small tent near the lakeshore, with a battery powered heated blanket, microwaveable heat wrap for the neck and warm beverages available. When the Minnesota cold makes even warm tent time impractical, we have set up an indoor space with an outdoor view.

During the summer months there are cold beverages available. A portable sand play therapy tray is available for use during any SCN time. 

Many participants share that this initiative and these added touches show how deeply they are appreciated and cared for by the organization. This feeling and knowledge of being valued contributes greatly to the well-being of the individual as well as the organization.

Benefits

We created a backpack to be taken along each SCN hour.

The backpack contains a shared journal and pencils, pens, colored pencils and markers to make entries into the journal. We ask that during each SCN hour, a journal entry or another form of documentation be made. This documentation serves as a way for participants to reflect upon their experience and share it with others. It can be as simple or as complex as the author/illustrator desires.

“For the first time, in a long time, I finally feel safe where I work. I feel free to be myself. I feel free to turn mistakes into learning experiences. I feel free to grow. Thanks to you.”

The value and benefits of journal entries go beyond self-expression, insights, memories, gratitude, spiritual connection and cathartic release for the author/illustrators of the entries. They include the benefits of shared experiences and feelings with the wider community, now including you. 

Evolution

The position of the float teacher was originally a volunteer role. Over time, after weighing the cost/benefit ratio, it was determined that the benefits merited the cost of making the position a paid role in the program. This shift also better reflected the embrace of the initiative by the entire organization.    

Weather and other factors dictated that we expand our options for agreed-upon locations for a person’s SCN time. Locations now include the small wooded lakeside area on our campus,  a nearby nature center and a few other sites close enough that the majority of the hour could still be spent alone in nature.  

For the first year there was no structure to the time; it was entirely left to the participant to choose how the hour alone in nature was spent. The second year, we added the occasional opportunity for artistic expression, which was always optional. The third year, we added more in-depth learning opportunities about self-care. Extra time was given for reading and journaling as a more structured approach, but we soon realized that the structure could be too limiting. The learning opportunities were subsequently made available in a more ongoing model, available at any time and without expectations.  

Replicability

WECC has found the benefits of this initiative to be varied, impactful, far-reaching and replicable. We have given presentations about this initiative at conferences and gatherings, working with individuals and groups interested in beginning similar practices.

Avoiding Burnout: The Importance of Self-Care
Q&A with Jen Johnson as told to Eileen Galvin
A reprint from the 2017 RINM newsletter
Jen Johnson is the Director of Willow & Sprout in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In spring 2017, they hosted a Monthly Gathering at their center. During that Gathering, Jen talked about the importance of self-care, which resonated with those attending. We followed up with her about the importance of self-care in a teaching practice that requires observation and reflection.

How do you define self-care for yourself and your teachers?

For me, it is about being mindful and intentional to nurture and love one’s whole self – your mind, your body and your spirit. We, the staff, sit down and create personal goals for each of those areas, and it is the same thing that we do with the children. We have leading questions – how do you love yourself? How do you notice yourself – your whole self, your mind, spirit and physical body? And then, how do you nurture yourself? How do you love yourself? We separate those because nurturing can be different than loving. I tried to make it as simple as possible. This could be a new topic for some of us, and I didn’t want to make it too complicated. 

One of the things I think about is how do you rest? How do you replenish? How do you find those quiet spaces in your day so you can replenish and get a break from daily rhythms? 

How do the goals work? Weekly? Yearly?                                           

We have yearly goals and then every month I do a check-in and then if they need something different in between we can talk about it and change it. Up until now the check-ins have been via email because that was what we all wanted. This year we are going to go deeper into the work with a physical check in addition to email. We need to figure out if email needs to be bi-weekly. With email it is easy to let the work go; with a physical check-in there is a different level of accountability. It is vulnerable work.

Why is it important for a practice that requires teachers to be present and reflective to have self-care as a priority?

When I looked at the profession I really saw high turnover. At my first teaching job there was turnover after turnover after turnover. We know from research and best practice that young children need consistency. There are many factors that go into consistency, but one of the things I noticed across the profession was that the teachers are really not looked at as professionals.

They need to be treated with respect as professionals and as a whole person...with hobbies, interests and families outside of work as well. 

We have a huge disparity in how the teachers are valued and seen, not only in their organization, but as a culture. We have some work to do; we need to consider all of the parts that create a caring environment in our early childhood communities. It has to be about holistic living. It has to be about connection. It has to be about the four parts - children, environment, parents and teachers. We need to consider all of those entities. Also, in order to be present and reflective you have to be able to do that for yourself. If you don’t take that time, there is often a huge disparity between what you say you want and desire and what you can actually do. I do like the airplane analogy. Put on your oxygen mask first; then you are stable and you can go and nurture others. Then that becomes the ripple effect and they become as regulated as they can be.

Jen provided the following update:

Currently, we have monthly staff check ins. This is a place where we reflect and set goals for each month. In our reflection time we go over what we connected about the month prior. What happened or didn’t happen and why? Maybe new ideas and goals were pursued that we get to capture in our time together. Sometimes they do get accomplished and we articulate how it was accomplished. Next, we work on setting new goals for the upcoming month based on what we discovered during our reflection time. Lastly, we do take time to connect about where things feel full of flow and spaces where the flow may be feeling stopped. In other words, where are spaces that feel things are going well and what support may you need during times of stress in your day? 

I have found that when humans feel a sense of worth and contribution to a community they are more dedicated to themselves and the community as a whole.

From All Outside to Functioning Outdoor Classrooms
Amy Warzybok
Amy has her M.A. in Early Childhood Education from Sonoma State University and her B.S. in Business from the University of Minnesota. Before Dodge, Amy taught preschool using a Reggio Emilia approach, managed family, preschool and camp programs in nature and environmental centers and was an Adjunct Child Development Professor.

In 2019, I joined the Dodge Nature Preschool team as the Preschool Director.  Little did I know six months later I would be collaborating with an amazing teaching team to figure out how to move forward with preschool during a pandemic. After finishing our 2019-2020 school year with Zoom story times and car parades, we knew we wanted to get back to in-person preschool, but how? A team of eight brave teachers came together for three weeks in summer 2020 to figure out how to utilize our large outdoor nature playscape to meet the safety needs of preschool during the pandemic. 

Our team had been discussing an outside model, which we adapted and adjusted as we learned more about the pandemic. We piloted strategies in a small summer camp program and landed on dividing our large outdoor space into three separate outdoor classrooms. We created tree swings, found loose part slides, built new sandboxes, added planter gardens, playhouses and much more. The teachers put a lot of love into designing these spaces so we could run an All Outside Preschool.

In 2023, we knew we wanted to continue this design into the future, but we had a hill that was sinking, creating some unsafe conditions. We partnered with Aune Fernandez Landscape Architects to create a design with input from preschool staff, preschoolers, preschool families, nature center staff, board members and other stakeholders in the community. After six months we had a design, and once funding was secure, we selected Parkos Construction and Natural Landscape Designs to help us with the build in summer 2024. We ran our summer camp amidst construction during which preschoolers shared their appreciation for the hard work of the construction team with artwork, cards, lemonade and tea with herbs harvested from our gardens and grounds. We wanted to allow these campers to experience the playground after the build so we hosted a summer playground celebration in September to bring them back to play. Preschoolers, siblings and grown-ups alike enjoyed a morning of playing together in the sandboxes, gardens and playhouses.

As we live in our new outdoor classrooms; I think of all the hardship and stress caused by the pandemic. The children taught us how wonderful outdoor classrooms could be as we experimented together, with different materials and designs. I wonder what Dodge Nature Preschool would be like today if we didn’t have the opportunity to learn with the children in 2020. 

Fundamentals: Organization

In order to create both a pathway for people new to Reggio-inspired work and deepen our shared thinking, we offer a regular column, Fundamentals, to introduce and explore central principles of the Reggio Approach. The Reggio Approach is a complex system of thought and practice with many dynamic entry points that interact; it is not a method, program or curriculum. (Key Principles)

In our contexts, organization is often understood as an administrative concern, influenced by cost, efficiency and practicality. Sergio Spaggiari, former director of the Infant Toddler Centers and Preschools of Reggio Emilia reminds us: “I urge you to think of the value of organization…we believe it is an integral part of the educational project…a decisive element…Organization, in itself, is a pedagogical thought.” 

Viewing organization as a value means that organization of environment, time, roles and responsibilities and materials is not an afterthought, incidental or a bureaucratic set of decisions. Rather, it is essential in strengthening relationships between families and schools and creating opportunities for collaboration among educators. 

The many roles in Reggio – pedagogista, atelierista, cook, educator, family, public official – are layered, organized to maximize interaction and collaboration both within and across the preschools and infant-toddler centers and the city.

In Reggio, they make intentional organizational decisions that prioritize relationships. They group children and schedule staff to “foster stability, continuity, and a sense of belonging.” For example, children remain with each other and their teacher for multiple years. 

Additionally, physical space, furnishings, materials and schedule support small group work, and the walls reflect the history of the children’s experiences. 

“The organization of the work, the spaces, and the time of the children and the adults is a structural part of the values and choices of the educational project.”

The learning environment is itself a teacher. It communicates to children and adults many possibilities and invites multiple responses. The spaces, light, colors, attractive and appropriate materials and visual images surrounding children support learning. Reggio-inspired educators carefully select, arrange, organize and plan a learning environment that is rich, inviting, beautiful, unhurried and stimulating. Time and schedule are also components of the environment. Deliberate choices are made to slow down, to support uninterrupted play, exploration and interaction among children, building connections between experiences. An environment supportive of learning allows children to make choices, use a wide variety of materials, move around, work both alone and with others, engage all the senses, have new experiences and reflect on experiences.

Role of the Learning Environment

As Reggio educators allocate resources (time, space, relationships and attention) they deliberately enact and strengthen their stated mission and values, integrating theory and practice.

Resources

Edwards, C., Gandini, L., Forman, G. (Eds.), (2012). The Hundred Languages of Children: The Reggio Emilia Experiences in Transformation (3rd ed., p. 35). Praeger.

Reggio Children (2010). Indications: Preschools and Infant-Toddler Centres of the Municipality of Reggio Emilia. Reggio Children.

Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota: Role of the Learning Environment

Getting to Belonging Part Four
Putting Design into Practice
Rie Gilsdorf and Christy Spencer
Rie Algeo Gilsdorf, MS, MA, has broad experience as a principal, arts administrator, instructional coach, teacher of science and dance and parent in many settings, including the Reggio-inspired programs of Portland’s Opal School and The Blake School in Minneapolis. Rie is a past Board Co-Chair and Civic Engagement Committee Chair of the Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota and current member of its Resource Development Committee. She now provides racial equity seminars, coaching and consulting through Embody Equity (www.EmbodyEquity.com).

Christy Spencer, MA is inspired by children’s curiosities and perspectives, and roots her practices in relationships, deep listening, designing dynamic learning environments, observation and pedagogical documentation. Christy has worked in various Reggio-inspired contexts, including The Blake School, Boulder Journey School and the Minnesota Children’s Museum. She has been a RINM Board and committee member. Current professional interests encompass exploring the intersection of design thinking and the Educational Project of Reggio Emilia, mindfulness practices, anti-racist theory, neuroscience around empathy and humanitarian projects focusing on children’s rights.

Over the past year in Getting to Belonging we have had our heads deep in theory, explicating the relationship between a design process and Reggio-inspired pedagogy as they pertain to developing a broader consciousness of race and difference. We’ve broken down each into component parts and attempted to weave them together. This entails oscillating back and forth between theory and practice. It is time to venture into practice.

Documenting Two Prototypes
In this piece we reflect on documentation of two prototypes and the insights they reveal. Similar to the Reggio-inspired practice of offering a provocation and then reflecting on it, we chose current RINM formats, Let’s Talk and Doc Lab, two virtual events. They were opportunities to explore the future by doing, gathering feedback and reflecting on what worked, what didn’t and what might come next. The first, Let’s Talk in January 2024, offered an open-ended conversation framed as an opportunity to explore considerations and anxieties involved in talking with young children about race. February’s Doc Lab focused on exploring race in early childhood by studying documentation of children’s work.

Structurally, Let’s Talk emphasizes dialogue with an invitation for participants to bring their own questions. This event, following previous Network Gatherings, asked, “What do you worry about in exploring race and culture with young children?” Thus, educators’ anxieties became the springboard for this discussion. The conversation had an organic flow and was lightly facilitated with the only ground rules being to listen with curiosity and speak your truth.

By contrast, Doc Lab focused on transcriptions of student conversations and utilized a formal protocol to structure the conversation. The protocol included specific prompts, each with an allotted time, from observation and description, to questioning, to speculation about children’s strategies for constructing understandings. The structure positioned participants as careful, nonjudgmental observers and colleagues. It also required more active facilitation as well as in-depth note taking to enable later reflection.

The Role of Intentionality
There was a palpable difference between the two prototypes, despite significant overlap in participants. As we later reflected on documentation of the events, we became more aware of the nuances within the structures. As our awareness grew, it became apparent that we had unintentionally created a discrepancy in tone between the two.

The Doc Lab felt collaborative and supportive. The protocol positioned the presenting teacher to first listen, saving clarifications for later. This listening practice involved letting go of the role of teacher as expert. The predictability inherent in the structure invited vulnerability, of the presenting teacher and of the observers who must comment on children’s work with minimal context.

Let’s Talk began with prompts about anxiety, unconsciously positioning people to show up either in certainty or defensiveness. As a result, a subtle tone of rigidity arose. Unlike Doc Lab, this format had neither traces of children’s encounters nor a structured protocol to provide a supportive container that would have allowed participants to embrace ambiguity. The conversation spiraled away from possibility as it amplified limiting concepts we fully believe, but that are figments of the imagination. “We can’t. . . because. . . .”

The language we captured from each conversation is also telling. In Doc Lab, we noted words such as “tricky,” “nuanced,” “context,” “interconnectedness,” “dynamic,” “flexible.” These words acknowledged the complexity of the children’s expression and the teacher’s nimble responses. On the other hand, Let’s Talk produced words such as “ominous,” “fear,” “pressure,” “confronting,” “avoidance,” “roadblock.” These words indicated a mindset that is not conducive to curiosity, creativity or compassion. Doc Lab’s language of potentialities was strengthened by its protocol’s progression from observation through speculation.

Making Space for the "Why" and "How"
In Let’s Talk, participants shared books, websites and scope and sequence documents, but we now realize this exchange didn’t encourage deeper critical discourse. Rather than “How might we use this?” the conversation leaned toward “I did this,” or even “Do it this way,” adding to a tone of certainty. While these resources were useful, a “why and how” conversation might have deepened the conversation.

One metaphor that came up during Let’s Talk was Malaguzzi’s idea that “the eye jumps over the wall,¹” which suggests going beyond boundaries to see with fresh eyes. This generative idea moved the conversation to the notion that we as adults need to go over the wall; children are always ready to do this. This is just the kind of organic flow that we have seen arise in Let’s Talk. However, it was quickly squelched as conversation reverted to how adults can get past the anxieties of going over the wall. Soon the voice of certainty crept back in, attempting to grasp onto resources as a way of coping with these anxieties.

Doc Lab participants also shared resources. The difference lay in the foregrounding of the “why” and “how” – the children’s responses and the exchange between teacher, children and resources. Broad themes such as democracy, fairness/justice, interconnectedness and gratitude were woven together in a process of revisiting and recombining resources and experiences. The resources, from a classroom scale to an outdoor pond, served as tangible scaffolding for the big ideas and these ideas provided a thematic framework for the resources. This beautifully illustrates the iterative and generative process of negotiated curriculum.

Intentionality and consciousness – the “why” and “how” – come into play in selecting resources and using them as provocations. Both are crucial. Even the most excellent book or resource only creates part of the conditions for rich understandings to be made. And, with “why” and “how” in mind, resources are literally everywhere. For example, in the exchange presented at Doc Lab, the presenting teacher wove a common classroom scale into themes of race and belonging. In addition to providing a concrete metaphor for these abstract ideas, it offered a reference point for children to enter the conversation.

Suggested Iterations: Let's Talk & Doc Lab
What comes next? What could we tweak and try again? Reflecting on Let’s Talk, we want to make clear that this format leads to valuable emergent conversations if presented with intention. In the case of conversations about race, it could include starting from “How do we?” vs. “I’m worried about.” The latter leads to a deficit mindset, expressed as “we can’t.” Starting from the “why” and “how” promotes an asset mindset that reveals more possibilities.

Historically, Let's Talk and Doc Lab have not been paired. If we were to prototype a similar pairing we might reverse the order and use Let's Talk to continue the conversation. This would allow all participants to share inspiration they took from the Doc Lab, how they translated it into their environment, how children responded and how it affected their practice. Our intention would be to create space for new curiosities to arise and dive deeper into the discourse in a spirit of collaboration and support.

Both the Doc Lab and our reflections on it have been fruitful in that they promote a spirit of prototyping and experimentation that inspires action. It strikes us that this should not be a “one and done,” but rather an ongoing practice that invites multiple people to share documentation on the topic of equity across human difference. We could also experiment with different modalities: video, audio, transcripts, photos, artifacts. We also learned that we should allow a full two hours for conversation.

Conclusion:
In this series, “Getting to Belonging,” we proposed a Reggio-inspired design process for adults, to animate substantive change and actualize early childhood communities that are dialogic and democratic. The series explored how these ideas might support complex and nuanced conversations about human difference, especially racial difference, that engender a sense of belonging. Doc Lab and Let’s Talk are practices that support this work. These adult conversations must precede dialogue with children, and the arc of this learning comes to fruition in ongoing work alongside children.

Getting to Belonging Part One
Getting to Belonging Part Two
Getting to Belonging Part Three

Citation:

1. Spaggiari, S. (2004). “The path toward knowledge: The social, political and cultural context of the Reggio municipal infant-toddler center and preschool experience.” Innovations in Early Education: The International Reggio Exchange.