What is Reggio Emilia?

While I was hopping on one of my favorite YouTube channels, I came across a teacher giving a Ted Talk on Reggio Emilia. I had never heard of the term before and thought, "What was this style of teaching that helps children as young as preschool become active citizens?"

The Reggio Emilia approch to learning is focused on preschool and primary age students.  The pedagogy is described as student directed, experiential learning in relationship driven environments. Students learn through exploration and discover rather than having content drilled into them. It was stated that the approach was based on children at the early age are endowed with a hundred languages and have their own personalities and ways to express their ideas. I also found it quite interesting that allowing students to play in a hole dug in the ground would cover so many of the learning standards as presented in her graphics towards the end of the video.  This teacher is passionate about teaching young ones to be active citizens. I think sometimes we forget that the best way to learn is through experimentation.

I also found this video that easily explains the whole process of the Reggio Emilia philosophy that I though you may find interesting to check out. I believe every child learns differently and they need to be given the chance to explore and find their own voice.