The Reggio Emilia approach to early years education

The Reggio Emilia approach to early years education puts children in the driver’s seat and sees them as curious individuals with the power and potential to develop and learn from their environment and the relationships they build with others.

The image of the child as a subject of right is central to the philosophy. Instead of viewing children as having needs which must be fulfilled, they are viewed as strong and intelligent individuals who should be given every opportunity to reach their potential.

Children are viewed as having unlimited potential and being eager to interact with and contribute to the world.

This means learning is driven by the child who takes an active role in co-constructing their own knowledge and gives the child control over the direction of the curriculum. This encourages self-expression, communication, team work thinking and problem-solving in the child.

Children are influenced by everything that is around them and the environment itself acts as a ‘third teacher’. The progress and learning experience are consequently subject to the community, surroundings and resources of each setting.

Teachers observe children and work in close connection with parents to understand how each child learns. Teachers then plan and adapt the learning process, activities and resources appropriately based on the child’s interests.

The learning process is considered to be of much higher importance than the final product and teachers create in-depth projects based on information from parents and observation as well as the interests of children.

The origin of the Reggio Emilia approach

The Reggio Emilia approach to education was developed after the second world war in the northern Italian town with the same name.

It was founded by a teacher named Loris Malaguzzi with the help of local parents and citizens (mainly women) living in the town and the surrounding villages.

Devastated by the destruction of the war, Mr Malaguzzi and people in the community believed that the educational system had to change. Parents in the area were looking for childcare that fostered critical thinking and collaboration.

Mr Malaguzzi opened the first Reggio Emilia preschool in 1963 and the approach has since evolved and gained popularity in the UK and around the world.

The child-centred approach was based on Malaguzzi’s belief that a child has 100 languages to express themselves, and he wanted to use these languages to support children’s learning and understanding of the world.

Reggio Emilia and ‘The 100 Languages’

Allowing children to express themselves is key, and ‘The 100 Languages’ is a metaphor used to describe the many different ways young children show their understanding, learning and thinking, which is why expressive arts is one of the most important elements of the Reggio Emilia approach.

Although literacy and numeracy are recognised as important, Reggio Emilia-inspired settings put additional value on the many non-verbal ‘languages’ children communicate through, such as gestures, glances and emotion.

The philosophy encourages children to express themselves and their knowledge through painting, sculpting, dramatic play, dancing, writing, construction, puppetry and many other expressive activities.

Reggio Emilia activities, such as exploring the effects of light and shadow using black cards and torches, allow children to create stories and make children a part of their own learning.

Further, it allows children to revisit the activities and subjects that interests them in different ways to gain a deeper level of understanding and seeing the same thing from multiple perspectives.

How does the Reggio Emilia approach work at a nursery?

Each setting that follows the Reggio approach has its own unique environment and community. The philosophy is flexible, and one nursery will not be the same as another.

Nicola Cargill, senior practitioner at Little Learners Childcare Corby in Northamptonshire, said one of the best things about the approach is its flexibility.

“Although originally inspired by the Reggio approach as we have developed as a setting we have found that we’ve created our own approach.

“We have been influenced by the variety of staff and our vast knowledge base; the parents inspire us with the weird and wonderful resources that they know we’ll love and most importantly we are inspired by the children.”

Ms Cargill said a typical day is very dependent on the children, but usually the morning includes breakfast, small jobs for the children indoors such as tidying up.

“until 11.30 where we will then tidy up the rooms we are in; our children really engage in making the rooms beautiful rather than tidying up”.

“We will then come back together within our base rooms for a quick group time before preparing for lunch at 12pm. This process is then repeated in the afternoon.”

The core values and principles of the Reggio Emilia philosophy

The Reggio Emilia approach is based around fundamental principles that each individual setting draws from and adapt according to their unique environment and community.

Children are capable of taking an active role in their learning

Children are seen as strong and capable protagonists in their own learning and the approach supports the opinion of each child.

The belief is that every child understands how to construct learning on their own and have the ability to express their knowledge and understanding.

Children possess 100 languages and should be encouraged to express themselves 

Because children learn and discover the world around them in many different ways, they should be encouraged to use a variety of materials, resources and strategies in their education.

As natural communicators, children should be encouraged to share and demonstrate their learning, thoughts, ideas and feelings in whatever way they can.

An emergent curriculum

The topics and direction of learning come from the children themselves. The curriculum is decided according to what is known to be interesting to the child, such as music, dancing or painting.

Teachers closely observe and listen to the children, talk to parents and have team planning sessions to create strategies that allow the children to build upon their interests and to create community involvement.

Dictated by the child, projects are created which they can return to when they wish rather than imposing strict timetables.

Learning always takes place in small groups as building relationships and experiencing different points of view are considered essential to the learning process.

Educational documentation

Documentation is an essential part of the Reggio Emilia approach. It is a fundamental part of the teacher’s role to document the child’s learning process as it gives structure to the theories and practices.

Documentation happens during the child’s learning and can be in written form or through photographic and written wall panels.

It also makes the learning process visible. Teachers, parents as well as children can look back and evaluate progress to understand how the child learns.

Community involvement and building relationships

The Reggio Emilia approach is based on the belief that we learn through making connections between things, concepts and experiences. We make these connections through interaction with others and the environment we are in.

The participation of parents and the community is one of the most distinctive features of the Reggio approach. Parents should always be invited to play an active part in their child’s learning process to create a link to the community.

Creating a connection between the early years setting, the home and the community promotes continuity in the children’s lives and creates a strong sense of common identity for all participants (children, parents, teachers, community).

Teachers are equal learners who guide and nurture children’s learning and growth

Rather than telling children what to do, teachers are instead considered partners in the learning process and guide the children through the experiences and projects set out in the emergent curriculum.

The teacher’s role in the Reggio Emilia approach learn alongside the child, to closely listen, observe and involve themselves in the child’s learning and play.

The teacher looks for opportunities to guide the child to further explore their interests and to enable them to reach their potential.

The environment as a ‘third teacher’

The Reggio approach sees the environment as a third teacher that influences the child on a daily basis. Because of its influence, it provides children with a wealth of learning opportunities that encourages them to explore, discover and problem-solve on their own.

All resources and material in the classroom and other areas of each setting are thought-provoking and inviting to inspire children to think outside the box.

It can be difficult to choose a nursery and to know what is right for your child. If you are in the process of searching for an early years setting for your child, you may find our article on finding a nursery useful.