Conversations and Documentation

"Language links us to the world and others." - Louise Cadwell
Author of Bringing Reggio Emilia Home

We recently read a chapter from a well known book titled, Bringing Reggio Emilia Home by Louise Cadwell.  The chapter focuses on the importance of conversations with children - small group, large group, the role of the children, the role of the adult, analyzing these conversations, and using them to guide the work in the classroom. We have been discussing this in our teaching teams and as a whole staff. Conversations are central to our work with the children, and we hope to further emphasize this in our documentation (blog, classroom, presentations, etc.). 

We would like to share a few thoughts with you from this chapter: 

1. "It is through speaking and listening to ideas [...] that shared meanings are shaped and our singular perspectives are enriched." - Cadwell, pg 62

2. "As children listen to the views and understanding of others and stretch their concepts to find common ground; as they collaborate and argue with others, consider new alternatives, and recast their ideas to communicate or to convince, they advance their ideas in the process of participation. It is a matter of social engagement that leaves the individual changed." - Rogoff, 1990 pg. 195-196

3. "The motivation for placing these conversations at the center of the curriculum is to enable children to develop their critical and creative thinking ability to its fullest; to promote cooperation, interaction, and negotiation among children and to celebrate children's natural curiosity and wonder about the world and how it works." - Fyfe and Cadwell, 1993​

Conversations and Documentation

We are always learning and adapting our approaches to documentation. A consistent goal is for the children to know and understand that their voices matter. Their words, their ideas, their contributions to our community, matter. It is their voices that drive the work that we do. ​ 

"That's my symbol. Why is it my symbol here?" - Eliza

This year, we have added the children's symbols to conversations that are posted around the room. Recently, the children began to notice their symbols and ask about why their symbols are stamped on these conversations and photographs. We emphasize that their symbols represent a conversation in which they participated and read their words back to them. These conversations are also shared during whole group meetings/reflections

"Draw the notes." - Cully, 3.4 years

The children also begin to notice and internalize that we are regularly writing down their words and/or videoing them so that we can remember what they have said. As we engage them in the process of writing their words and bringing them back to the group, the children often ask for us to do it. They want to be sure that we have documented their thoughts. They know that we are valuing their ideas and perspectives. 

Photographs as tools for communication

Children often associate reading with books and the written word/symbols. They are, however, always reading the environment and images in their environment. As you know, the Visual Projections have been a wonderful tool for projecting our work and involving the children in this process. From the beginning, they have been reading the images and using them to make sense of our days. 

As we build the habit of looking at the projections each day, while also reflecting on past weeks and months and looking forward to the coming weeks/months, the children are demonstrating the ability to read these projections for themselves. 

​In this video, Will (and the others) are reading the images to understand that we will have sing-along coming up soon. This lead to a discussion about Brown Room leading it and how we must plan for that by choosing songs. 

​In this video, Eliza is reflecting on our January projections and thinking about what we might want/need to do in February. Zoe also joins in and suggests that we might work with more clay slabs. 

This week, we shared a blank Visual Projections page and asked the children to help us think about what we might need for February: 

"Valentine's. It's to make our friends happy." - Eliza, 3.3 years
"It's sing-along." - Gracie, 3.3 years
"That's Jill." - Caroline, 2.8 years

If you're interested, we'd be happy to share a copy of this chapter from the book (approximately 8 pages). It is a wonderful peek into the process of having conversations with the children, documenting them, analyzing them, and using them for projecting the work.