A dynamic forum focused on the experience of childhood and the process of learning



About Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota

Vision
We envision a community that equips its people to invigorate democracy and expand the concept of learning through dialogue, reflection and collaborative work.

Mission
The Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota is a dynamic forum for collaborative inquiry, exchange and advocacy focusing on the experience of childhood and the process of learning. As a community of educators, parents and citizens who share an interest in the philosophy of the municipal preschools and infant-toddler centers of Reggio Emilia, Italy, we affect the lives of children and their families by:

  • recognizing the inherent power, competence and rights of children,
  • supporting relationships,
  • drawing from our local cultures and contexts,
  • making Reggio-inspired work visible.

Goals

  1. Promote the integration of theory, practice and decision-making to support children and families
  2. Enrich the connections and communication among the community of learners, locally, nationally and internationally
  3. Raise the visibility of children and the work of the Network
  4. Grow the community of learners engaging in dialogue with Reggio philosophy and practice
  5. Build the resources necessary to support the mission and work of the Network

Click on the following links to find resources that will help you:

Connecting With The Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota

Join us in the Twin Cities area for our Monthly Gatherings and Book Study groups.  All of our public events can be found on our Calendar.  Join our mailing list to receive our quarterly e-mail newsletter. 

Recent Newsletters

Visit newsletter archive for past issues.

Volume 11, Issue 1 | Winter 2024
Download PDF

    • Editor’s Introduction
    • Fundamentals: Formazione
    • Getting to Belonging, Part 3
    • Playing with Music
    • Reflections from Study Tour
    • First Encounters with Reggio Emilia
    • Loose Parts Lab Update
    • Open Book Study
    • Sponsorship Opportunity
    • Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota Scholarships
    • Calls for Participation
    • North America Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA)
    • Public Library Resources
    • Job Opportunities

    Volume 10, Issue 4 | Fall 2023
    Download PDF

    • Editor’s Introduction
    • Fundamentals: Teacher as Researcher
    • Getting to Belonging, Part Two
    • Reflections on Growing as a Reggio-Inspired Educator
    • Loose Parts Update
    • Open Book Study
    • Sponsorship Opportunity
    • Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota Scholarships
    • Calls for Participation
    • North America Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA)
    • Public Library Resources
    • Job Opportunities









    Reggio Resources Available Through The Minnesota Library System

    The Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota is thrilled to partner with the Debra S. Fish Early Childhood Resource Library to provide local access to literature about the Reggio Approach. Click on the below link for a list of Reggio-inspired resources available at the Debra S. Fish Library.

    debra fish 2018.pdf


    The resources available  at the Saint Paul Debra S. Fish Library are accessible through your local public library and MELSA system via interlibrary loan. This collection is part of the Saint Paul Public Library system’s catalog http://www.sppl.org/ and is available through the statewide virtual library, MnLINK at https://www.mnlinkgateway.org.

    Resources
    The links to professional resources below are avenues for connecting with organizations, ideas, and materials inspired by and in collaboration with the municipal preschools and infant toddler centers of Reggio Emilia, Italy. You will find resources that are significant, topical, and current in the Reggio-inspired community.

    Reggio Children
    North American Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA) 
    Reggio Emilia Aotearoa New Zealand
    Clearinghouse on Early Education and Parenting

    Organizations offering Reggio-inspired conferences, institutes, coursework or research:
    Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education Making Learning Visible
    Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education Children Are Citizens
    Boulder Journey School
    Lesley College, Cambridge
    MAReggio Children Foundation
    Malaguzzi Center YouTube videos

    Books
    Learning Materials Workshop Routledge Education

    Arts
    Art Scraps
    Ax-Man
    Continental Clay
    Leonardo’s Basement
    Minnesota Clay

    “Found” materials
    “Found” and recycled materials surround us. These often-discarded and overlooked objects offer rich shapes, colors and textures that can stimulate active learning. Below are some lists of “found materials” compiled by experienced teachers. Feel free to use the lists with families and colleagues to collect materials that will inspire you and your children. Materials List 1 (from the Blake School)
    Materials List 2 (from Sandy Burwell)

    One way to rediscover our own creative impulses is to see possibilities in materials. Children possess a natural openness to the potential of materials. When adults become aware of this process, they find ways to watch and listen to children. Children and adults become collaborators as they discover, collect, sort, arrange, experiment, create, construct and think with materials.” 

     Lella Gandini and Cathy Weisman Topal in "Beautiful Stuff!"

    Monthly Gatherings Annual Scholarship

    The Monthly Gatherings Scholarship sponsors an individual to participate in the Saturday Gatherings for one calendar year.  Anyone with a deep curiosity about Reggio Emilia is encouraged to apply. If you are awarded the scholarship, you will be asked to write reflections on some of the Saturday Gatherings. This scholarship, established by the Network's Board, is in honor of Sandy Burwell, a founding member of the Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota. Sandy has been particularly devoted to the Saturday Gatherings.

    The dates for the Monthly Gatherings Scholarship cover a full calendar year, from January to December each year. Apply now!


    Download Application


    The RINM Education Scholarship
    The RINM Education Scholarship is a new opportunity available to those interested in learning more about the Reggio Approach. Network members are invited to apply at any time of the year (a minimum of 6 weeks before an event you plan to attend). This scholarship may be used for registration costs to local, national or international Reggio-inspired workshops and conferences. Preference will be given to professional development opportunities where educators from the schools of Reggio Emilia, Italy are presenting. Funds are limited and awards are made at the discretion of the Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota Board. 


    Download Application

    Essential Readings
    Here is a list of books that members of the Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota have found to be useful, instructive and/or inspiring resources as we refine our own practices. Below the list, you will find annotated bibliographies of several books written by Network members who especially recommend them.

    About the Reggio Emilia Approach (by Italian authors from Reggio Emilia, in English)

    • Art and Creativity in Reggio Emilia by Vea Vecchi, published by Routledge (Contesting Early Childhood series)
    • Brick by Brick, published by Reggio Children
    • Children, Art and Artists, published by Reggio Children
    • Children, Spaces and Relations, published by Reggio Children
    • Dialogues with Places, published by Reggio Children
    • Everything Has a Shadow Except Ants: an exploration of a project about shadows, published by Reggio Children
    • In Dialogue with Reggio Emilia: Listening, Researching and Learning, by Carlina Rinaldi, published by Routledge (Contesting Early Childhood series)
    • Making Learning Visible: Children as Individual and Group Learners, a joint volume produced by Project Zero of the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Reggio Children
    • Reggio Tutta: A Guide to the City by the Children, published by Reggio Children
    • The Grammar of Fantasy, by Gianni Rodari
    • The Hundred Languages of Children, edited by Carolyn Edwards, Lella Gandini and George Forman
    • The Languages Of Food: Recipes, Experiences, Thoughts, published by Reggio Children (Read Annotated Bibliography)

    Reflections on the Reggio Experience by Others

    • Authentic Childhood, by Susan Fraser and Carol Gestwicki
    • Beyond Quality in Early Childhood, by Gunilla Dahlberg, Peter Moss and Alan Pence
    • Bringing Learning to Life, by Louise Boyd Cadwell
    • Bringing Reggio Emilia Home, by Louise Boyd Cadwell
    • Ethics and Politics in Early Childhood Education, by Gunilla Dahlberg and Peter Moss
    • First Steps Toward Teaching the Reggio Way, by Joanne Hendrick.
    • The Art of Awareness: How Observation Can Transform Your Teaching, by Deb Curtis and Margie Carter (Read Annotated Bibliography)
    • The Hundred Languages of Children, edited by Carolyn Edwards, Lella Gandini and George Forman

    Environment and Materials

    • Beautiful Stuff! Learning With Found Materials by Cathy Weisman Topal and Lella Gandini (Read Annotated Bibliography)
    • In the Spirit of the Studio, by Lella Gandini, Lynn Hill, Louise Cadwell, and Charles Schwall
    • Rapunzel’s Supermarket: All About Young Children and Their Art, by Ursula Kolbe (Read Annotated Bibliography)
    • It’s Not a Bird Yet, by Ursula Kolbe

    Annotated Bibliography

    The Languages of Food: Recipes, Experiences, Thoughts. Edited by Ilaria Cavalinni and Maddalena Tedeschi. © 2008. Reggio Children srl, Via Bligny 1/a – C.P. 91 Succursale 2 42100 Reggio Emilia, Italy: Reggio Children. 111 pgs. ISBN 978-88-87960-48-8.
    Much more than an Italian recipe and cookbook, The Languages of Food brings us into the culture and history of the culinary arts of Italy as well as the classrooms of the Infant-Toddler Centers and Pre-schools of Reggio Emilia, Italy. While giving menus, recipes and nutrition information, it also offers the flavor of the children’s dining experiences. It is filled with images of children arranging flowers, smelling herbs, setting tables and helping in the kitchen. There are drawings by the children of table setting and garden arrangements. Beginning with an introduction by Sergio Spaggiari and ending with “A Fragrant Future,” this book will inspire all who wish to enjoy food with children. (by Sandy Burwell)

    Beautiful Stuff! Learning with Found Materials. Cathy Weisman Topal and Lella Gandini. 1999. Davis Publications, Inc. Worchester, Massachusetts. 107 pgs. ISBN: 0-87192-388-2
    Beautiful Stuff is a wonderful hands-on book for teachers and those interested in working with young children using aspects of the Reggio Emilia approach. Focusing on observation and recordings of children’s and teachers’ processes, this book offers a variety of ideas and uses for “found materials.” Beginning with collecting, discovering and organizing common materials found at home, the teachers and students go on to show us ideas for setting up a studio, creating collage, self-portraits, puppets and wood sculptures. This book is full of pictures showing children involved in their discovery and exploration. Each chapter includes a chapter summary called “What We Learned” that gives insights about what the teachers and children figured out along the way as they used their “found materials.” (by Terry Schroeder)

    Rapunzel’s Supermarket: All About Young Children and their Art. Kolbe, Ursula. ©2001. PO Box 280, Paddington NSW 2021 Australia: Peppinot Press. 128 pgs. ISBN 0646416553.
    Rapunzel’s Supermarket celebrates the magic of looking at the world through the eyes of children. It offers inspiration, advice and examples of ways to look at everyday things such as textures, patterns, marks, and lines. It also explains kinds of image making—for example, bookmaking, clay work, collage, and construction—that are useful in helping children explore, communicate, and represent their ideas. Suggestions for materials, tools, strategies, and stories assist adults in challenging children. There are pointers for creating special spaces and for documenting and displaying children’s work. Color illustrations of displays and materials and reprints of art masters inspire exploration and discovery. (by Ethel Beuch)


    The Art of Awareness: How Observation Can Transform Your Teaching. Curtis, Deb and Carter, Margie. c. 2000. St. Paul, Minnesota: Redleaf Press. 173 pgs. ISBN 1-884834-84-1.
    One of the most important skills an early childhood teacher must have is being a good observer. In the preschools of Reggio Emilia, observation of children that is thorough, detailed, descriptive and reflective, is the basis of the teachers’ planning and curriculum. This workbook-style book takes readers through activities and questions designed to heighten teachers’ awareness and improve their observation skills. Each of the “study sessions” emphasizes an aspect of observation, asking teachers to focus on, for example, children’s perspectives, how children use their senses, how they explore, invent and construct or how they connect with the natural world. It includes plenty of photographs and specific examples of children’s interactions for reflection. The book would be ideal for use with a team of colleagues or at staff trainings to improve teachers’ observation skills step-by-step. (by Joanne Esser)

    All content and articles may be used for educational purposes with proper citation (Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License).

    Reggio-Inspired Network of Minnesota is a 501(c)3 non-profit located at 525 Pelham Blvd. N., Saint Paul, MN 55104 

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