At last!!!  I have dreamed of going to Reggio to study since I first fell in love with the approach nine years ago and I have been counting down the days for over a year now!  I know that the opportunity to study in Italy will be transformative for each of us personally and also for our schools.  The work of the educators of Reggio Emilia is internationally known and acclaimed for many reasons:

• the image of the child as powerful and capable
• the image of the teacher as a researcher
• the profound respect for children, families, culture and community
• the environment is the third teacher
• the relationship between aesthetics and learning and the importance of beauty
• the values centered around the promotion and preservation of the culture of childhood

As I look forward to studying and soaking in all that I can on this journey, I know that I cannot replicate what I will see, but I hope that experiencing this work first-hand,will better equip me to access the power of our own unique context, here at U of M Flint.  I believe there are rich educational and cultural opportunities that we have not yet begun to unlock for ourselves and that belief pushes me to question all that I do in my practice at the Early Childhood Development Center.

My Learning Goals –

• How does a school become rooted in the culture of the community that holds it?
• How does documentation play a role in building a sense of culture and place of belonging?
• How does the environment speak of the culture that holds the school?
• How do families participate in the life of the school and bring their own stories and culture to the environment?
• What relationships with community people and places extend and enrich the sense of belonging for a school and its children?