Ciao

I had a dream last night that I was on a tour bus in Reggio Emilia, trying to secretly take photos out the window. And I got in trouble for it.

I leave tomorrow night for Reggio Emilia, and after a cheap flight and a few trains, I'll arrive on Saturday afternoon. I'm looking forward to listening, looking, writing, watching, and eating. I'm looking forward to being inspired by people and spaces.

I got my schedule today - We visit quite a few primary schools. How will that look? What is similar between preschool and primary school in Reggio Emilia? I know of the links and commonalities between the infant/toddler centers and the preschools...but then what happens? Is there a big transition, or jump, for the children to make? Do the primary schools work on an inquiry based system?

It was my biggest hope that I could have been in Reggio Emilia this week, for the week on documentation. It didn't work out - it's a big week here on campus and my director wasn't letting anyone out - not even for professional development. So my week is about "The Experience of The Preschools and Research Contexts and Continuity With Primary School" - quite a mouthful. Our preschool program here is play and inquiry-based; but when the children walk up the stairs to Kindergarten, they are in the world of math block, literacy block, and french class. There is time for free play, and time for the children to choose, but there is something about the first year you start having "Writer's Workshop". It sounds like serious business. And "Writer's Workshop" doesn't sound like something a child would call mandatory writing time.

This is mostly babbling - if you are still reading I'm surprised. The point is, I'm looking forward to learning about something I didn't know I wanted to learn about. I focus so much on young ones, that I forget that they become older ones. They need support even further on their journey, too.