Reggio Emilia Approach

Reggio Emilia is a province in northern Italy and the Reggio Emilia philosophy/approach to early childhood education was started by the schools built in Reggio Emilia after World War II. Loris Malaguzzi is considered the father of Reggio Emilia and, with others, developed the Reggio approach. The philosophy has become famous and educators from around the world come to Reggio to take part in study tours of the schools and approach.

Reggio-Inspired Classrooms

When schools and educators study and use principles from the approach, they are considered ‘Reggio inspired.’ However, they are not ‘Reggio schools and teachers,’ because they do not have the context or culture that exists in Reggio Emilia, Italy. There is not a certification/credential to became a Reggio teacher like there is with the Montessori Method or Waldorf Education. The best way to learn about the approach is through reading about it (our Reggio-Inspired Teacher Playbook, attending presentations or conferences, taking a Reggio course, touring Reggio-inspired schools, and attending a study tour in Reggio Emilia. There is valuable information on the Reggio Children website at reggiochildren.it.

Remember the famous words of Loris Malaguzzi, “Nothing without JOY!

Teaching Tools

What does it look like to embrace and support the Reggio-Inspired philosophy in your classroom? There are specific pedagogical tools that can support this idea! We go more in-depth with these ideas and more in our Reggio Courses and Reggio-Inspired Teacher Playbook.