Visit to the Loris Malaguzzi International Center and Sardinia: Week 7

After World War II, the citizens of Reggio Emilia, Italy developed a new approach to education in which children learn how to construct their own knowledge and think critically instead of passively accepting information. They developed this method to prevent future generations from being brainwashed by corrupt ideas and political figures. That being said, the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education is extremely unique and people come to Reggio Emilia to visit these schools, so they developed a historical center, known as the Loris Malaguzzi International Center, which is basically a replica of the classrooms. I got to visit this center last week.

This is the outside of the Loris Malaguzzi International Center.

These are some powerful quotes regarding this approach to education that were displayed around the center. The main idea behind this approach is that children are competent and possess the rights to construct their own knowledge. The teachers facilitate learning by designing projects in which children interact with various instruments to develop an understanding of the world. Along the way, teachers will ask probing questions to guide the learning.

These five pictures are all from the "Ray of Light Atelier." As you can see, various elements of light can be explored by the children. In this way, children are researchers, meaning that they are able to investigate the different ways in which light operates. For example, in the image above, the children can discover that light creates shadows.

These are pictures from the "Atelier of Paper." As you can see, there are a bunch of different materials and types of papers that children can use. Instead of giving children one type of material or paper, children are offered an array of various materials, offering them the opportunity to further construct their knowledge about different materials and create a multitude of different creations.

This is an art project that students in Reggio Emilia made. I don't know about you, but this is much better than anything I could make...LOL.

There is even an "Atelier of Mechanics," in which children can explore the mechanisms behind mechanics (e.g., how wheels work). 

This is a poem titled "The Hundred Languages of Children," which is also central to the Reggio Emilia approach to education; children have a plethora of ways of expressing themselves and this approach embraces all of them. Overall, this visit was extremely meaningful and it was so interesting to see such a unique approach to education.

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At the end of the week, my friends and I took a trip to Sardinia, Italy, which is an Italian island.

I woke up early on Saturday so I could spend as much time as possible at the beach. This beach was a 10 minute walk from our Air B&B. Look at how beautiful the water was!

Later in the day, my friends and I went on a boat!

As you can see, we got to swim and snorkel. The water was absolutely stunning.

These were some views from the boat. I know I sound like a broken record, but, wow, the water was unreal.

After the boat, I went back to the beach to watch the sunset.

The next morning, I woke up EXTRA early to watch the sunrise over the beach before heading to the airport. I could literally be at the beach all day and never get bored. I'm so glad and grateful I got to end my week at the beach, my happy place.