Like thousands of other educators around the world, I was shocked and deeply saddened to hear that our beloved Sir Ken had died. As educators who followed his thinking, listened to his impassioned presentations, and read his books, we are mourning his sparkling intellect, his understanding of our world, his delightful and wicked sense of humour, and most of all, […]
”The Big Re-Opening” – Possibilities during Covid-19
Re-setting our ECE settings I must admit, I’m feeling wobbly about writing on the topic of Covid-19 (a little like the image of the knot that you see here!) I am not a scientist, or a medical professional. I am an early childhood educator, teacher educator/collaborator, advocate, consultant, and writer. And yet, part of my role is to support educators […]
Sketch-Noting for Educators
I am fortunate to regularly have the opportunity to have lively discussions about pedagogical documentation with colleagues and friends who are not only early years educators, but also artists or graphic designers. Their creative methods and thinking have taught me so much about using many perspectives (lenses) with which to view situations, think about them, and find multiple possible meanings […]
Why do you document?
In classrooms that use inquiry-based approaches – including those who use Emergent Curriculum, engage in long or short term project work, or are inspired by Reggio Emilia – we work hard to find the time to document children’s ideas, thinking, and learning. It’s not easy to find the time and mental energy to do this in a packed classroom day […]
The Journey of Pedagogical Documentation
An inspiring visit to Sioux Lookout Those of us who are on the journey of documenting children’s ideas, thoughts, play, investigations, and questions know that it is a process. In my book ‘Pedagogical Documentation in Early Childhood,’ I refer to CarolAnne Wien’s ideas of teacher progressions with pedagogical documentation. Rather than ‘stages,’ these progressions (Developing Habits of Documentation, Becoming Comfortable […]
Notes from Reggio: Seeing and re-seeing
How do we move forward in our work? (Notes from lecture by Maddelena Tedeschi) ‘Loris Malaguzzi wove together politics and culture, and was capable of ‘seeing beyond the wall.’ He combined scientific rigour with political perserverence.’ This statement from Maddelena led me to think about how politics, both local, provincial and federal, affect our daily practice with children. From local […]
Beginning Reflections on Reggio Emilia study tour
Processing the experience One would think, after a visit to Reggio Emilia, that anyone would have so much to say about the experience that they would not be able to stop talking about it. Yet, two weeks after returning from Italy, I am so moved by the experience that I am almost overwhelmed into silence. Where to begin? Which part […]
Thoughts on children and silence
Do children sometimes need peace and quiet? In a recent college class (along with a group of student teachers), I was watching a video of an experienced teacher in action as she worked alongside toddlers with watercolour paints. The atmosphere in the room was one of engagement. The children were fascinated with the materials and happily experimented, with occasional support […]
A boy and his flowers
What happens when a child is given access and time to pursue his fascination with painting flowers? Open access to varied art media can result in some fascinating studies by children. I’ve long believed that art is a language, and children show us over and over again, through their art, what is interesting or puzzling for them. In this case, […]
Planning within Emergent and other Inquiry-Based Curricula
What do we mean by ‘planning?’ I have just returned from an exciting and stimulating trip to Ontario, where I engaged with Early Childhood Educators, Supervisors, College Instructors and other professionals. It was interesting to discuss ideas around planning within Emergent Curriculum, and all the different images and ideas that come to mind when we use that word ‘planning.’ We […]
