Westminster College Alumni to Present Reggio Emilia Program Model to Education Majors

NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - The Westminster College Department of Education will host a presentation on the Reggio Emilia Program Model Wednesday, Oct. 24, at 11:40 a.m.-12:40 p.m. in the Maple Room in the McKelvey Campus Center.

The Reggio Emilia model's key elements are incorporating visual arts and projects into the learning experience, letting the child explore topics of their choice through visual projects and allowing them to return to those topics to advance their understanding. It also promotes collaboration among teachers, students and parents, and documentation of the learning experiences in order to assist teachers and parents, and to allow children to reflect on their learning experiences.

The presentation of the Reggio Model will be made by Westminster College alumnae Carla Freund '77 and Kendal Kennedy Broderick '07, who are now employed by the Cyert Center for Early Education at Carnegie Mellon University. The center is a full-day early care and education program, serving the children of the university's faculty, staff and students. The children range in age from three months to kindergarten. The center is strongly influenced by the Reggio Emilia approach.

According to the Cyert Center website, "The Reggio Emilia approach challenges us to consider how we respond to the rhythm and pace of children's experiences. Children are provided with the space, time, and support to create and follow their own agendas. Independence, autonomy, freedom, joy and time to experience complex relationships with the world sets the frameworks of daily organization. The routines occur with both flexibility and predictability paying attention to the natural rhythm of each individual child."

Following the presentation pizza will be served to education students on the third floor in Old Main.

Contact Diana Reed, education lecturer, at (724) 946-7181 or email for more information.

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