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The Florida Reggio Collaborative was founded by Simonetta Cittadini and the faculty from L’Atelier School in 1995 with the intention to host the exhibit The Hundred Languages of Children from Reggio Emilia, Italy. We dreamt of having an organization that would support our efforts to create professional development initiatives around the Exhibit and support the power of thinking and investigation of educators, parents, and community people around the Reggio Emilia philosophy and experiences.
About the Exhibit The Hundred Languages of Children…
The Hundred Languages of Children is an exhibit created in the city of Reggio Emilia, Italy, by Loris Malaguzzi, pedagogista and philosopher, founder of the Reggio approach to education. This exhibit created in 1981 is rooted in forty years of experience of the educational institutions operated by the municipality of Reggio Emilia, Italy.
The exhibit bears witness to the originality and the extraordinary nature of the years of research that have led the Reggio infant toddler centers and preschools to become a primary point of reference for those who work in education worldwide.
The exhibit wants to witness the pedagogy of the possible “giving visibility to processes and life situations that cannot be linked to standard pedagogical models or reconstituted educational premises, theoretical certainties, or general practice. Rather, the experience is based on incessant research and actions that take place with a chorus of many voices, many hands, and many intelligences, the center of which is the image of a child who is competent in building knowledge, and a constant seeker of meaning.”
During the 2005 year The Florida Reggio Collaborative and L’Atelier school hosted two conferences and several workshops:
March Conference
“The Hundred Languages of Children,First Spring Reggio Emilia Conference:An Exploration of the Reggio Approach”
With the collaboration of Amelia Gambetti, Reggio Children Consultant
Sergio Spaggiari, Director of the Infant toddler centers and Preschools of Reggio Emilia,
Mara Davoli, Atelierista Pablo Neruda School, Reggio Emilia Italy.
October Conference
“The pedagogy of Listening”
With the collaboration of Carla Rinaldi, President of Reggio Children.
After the exhibit left we paused to think and revisit the many gifts and questions the exhibit had left us.
March 2007
Hosted the Second Spring Reggio Emilia Conference:
“The power of Collaboration among Teachers, Parents and Children when Developing Meaningful Experiences in the Classroom”
With the Collaboration of Amelia Gambetti, Reggio Children Consultant
Our continuous commitment towards creating a community and learning how to learn took us to envision the Florida Reggio Collaborative as a shared and participated organization. Three Reggio-Emilia-inspired schools were invited to become part of the Board of directors of the Collaborative. In 2008 we were happy to welcome The Joy of Leaning, La Scuola, and The Biltmore School.
March 2008
The Collaborative hosted the Third Spring Reggio Emilia Conference:
“Creating a Sense of Belonging: The School as a Place to Build Community”.
The keynote speaker was Amelia Gambetti, Reggio Children Consultant; and the four schools, L’Atelier, The Biltmore School, The Joy of Learning and La Scuola, presented their interpretation of the Reggio Emilia philosophy. We welcomed 190 participants.
September 2009
With the aim to expand geographically, the Collaborative invited two schools, Kids Learning Adventure and Palm Beach Day Academy, to join the board of directors.
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