Essential Reading
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)