{"id":16012,"date":"2026-05-14T14:34:33","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:34:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/16012\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T14:34:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:34:33","slug":"princess-of-wales-highlights-italys-reggio-approach-for-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/16012\/","title":{"rendered":"Princess of Wales highlights Italy’s Reggio Approach for children"},"content":{"rendered":"

REGGIO EMILIA, Italy (AP) \u2014 The Princess of Wales\u2019<\/a> visit to Italy has put the spotlight on an Italian early childhood educational model that helped revolutionize how toddlers learn in school<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Reggio Approach, used in public daycare centers and preschools in the northern city of Reggio Emilia, values a child\u2019s inherent curiosity and potential, with teachers acting as facilitators, not instructors, and parents and the surrounding community actively involved. And Princess Catherine, who has made early development her signature cause, is spending two days seeing it up close. <\/p>\n

\u201cI love that you put children and childhood at the heart of the community, and I\u2019m really fascinated to learn more about it,\u201d she said as she arrived at one of the town\u2019s preschools on Wednesday. <\/p>\n

Reggio partially grew out of the Montessori philosophy and both Italian approaches have spread around the world, standing as counterpoints to models in places like the U.S<\/a>. and Britain that emphasize standardization and testing for children so young they haven\u2019t begun to read. <\/p>\n

Reggio appeals to some Italian parents who themselves received education with rote learning \u2014 but only to a point, according to Kathryn Ramsay, a longtime early-childhood educator who runs a Reggio-inspired project north of Rome. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the children are 3 or 4, they\u2019re totally fine with it,\u201d Ramsay said. \u201cAnd then when they hit 5, they (the parents) start getting a little twitchy because they\u2019re thinking about Grade 1,\u201d when children have to sit still for longer periods and learn to read and write. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Britain's<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s Kate, Princess of Wales sits with children during her visits the Salvador Allende preschool to observe how nature-based learning is embedded within the Reggio Emilia approach, part of a two-day trip, in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Thursday, May 14, 2026. CORRECTION: changes the day from Tuesday to Thursday (AP Photo\/Antonio Calanni, Pool)<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s Kate, Princess of Wales sits with children during her visits the Salvador Allende preschool to observe how nature-based learning is embedded within the Reggio Emilia approach, part of a two-day trip, in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Thursday, May 14, 2026. CORRECTION: changes the day from Tuesday to Thursday (AP Photo\/Antonio Calanni, Pool)<\/p>\n

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A postwar approach to childcare <\/p>\n

The Reggio Approach was born as Italy began to rebuild after World War II and a group of mothers in hard-hit Reggio Emilia, a center of anti-Fascist resistance, banded together.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey sold the metal from a German tank for funds and they hand-carried stones from the river to reconstruct a place for the children to be cared for while the rest of the village went about the business of putting life back together,\u201d said Margie Cooper of the North America Reggio Emilia Alliance. <\/p>\n

An innovative pedagogical expert, Loris Malaguzzi, built on Montessori and other educational reform movements to help articulate Reggio\u2019s child-centered approach, which covers children aged 0-6. <\/p>\n

His poem exploring how young children communicate and make sense of their world through drawing, painting, dancing and singing served as something of a manifesto. Valuing the capacities and experiences of children was unheard of at the time. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe child was only an adult in formation and didn\u2019t have things to say or competencies already realized,\u201d said Roberta Cardarello, senior professor of didactical and special pedagogy at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia. <\/p>\n

The Reggio Approach spread to other towns, especially in the north\u2019s left-leaning municipalities. But Italy\u2019s central government in Rome \u2014 headed by conservative Christian Democrats until the 1990s \u2014 resisted promoting it widely, perhaps because of its association with Reggio Emilia\u2019s communist history.<\/p>\n

Today, that red scare is gone, but the model\u2019s adoption often depends on whether cash-strapped local administrations invest in training or teachers have trained independently, according to Elisabetta Nigris, professor of didactic programs and evaluation at the University of Studies Milan-Bicocca. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Britain's<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s Kate, Princess of Wales sits with children during her visits the Salvador Allende preschool to observe how nature-based learning is embedded within the Reggio Emilia approach, part of a two-day trip, in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Antonio Calanni, Pool)<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s Kate, Princess of Wales sits with children during her visits the Salvador Allende preschool to observe how nature-based learning is embedded within the Reggio Emilia approach, part of a two-day trip, in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Antonio Calanni, Pool)<\/p>\n

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How Reggio works and what are its outcomes<\/p>\n

Reggio employs features common in high-quality programs, including a focus on adults and children in relationship that promotes social and emotional well-being, according to Sylvi Kuperman, senior researcher at the Center for the Economics of Human Development at the University of Chicago. Her 2017 study on Reggio in Italy found greater high school graduation and employment outcomes compared to kids who didn\u2019t receive formal childcare. <\/p>\n

Children typically spend multiple years with the same teacher, she said. They participate in meal preparation. Classrooms feature windows and natural materials, like wood. Gardens and artwork are a staple.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, Catherine visited the \u201cSalvatore Allende\u201d daycare and preschool in Reggio Emilia, playing with children in the garden, using a magnifying glass to look in the grass and at one point letting a slimy newt crawl in her hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn London, we have newts like this too,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Catherine\u2019s visit is significant for Britain, since the Reggio Approach isn\u2019t recognized in its national educational policy, and most early childhood programs are run by private organizations for profit, said Peter Moss, emeritus professor at the University College London\u2019s Institute of Education.<\/p>\n

But he stressed that Reggio developed in a very particular time and context that is hard to replicate. <\/p>\n

\u201cReggio Emilia is a reaction to 20 years of authoritarian rule under Mussolini and, after that fell, of course a lot of places in Italy were asking the question \u2019How do we make sure that never happens again?\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Britain's<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s Kate, Princess of Wales, takes part in an immersive clay atelier workshop at the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre, part of a two-day trip, in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (AP Photo\/Antonio Calanni, Pool)<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s Kate, Princess of Wales, takes part in an immersive clay atelier workshop at the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre, part of a two-day trip, in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (AP Photo\/Antonio Calanni, Pool)<\/p>\n

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A Reggio-inspired center called Wild Joy <\/p>\n

At Ramsay\u2019s Reggio-inspired, bilingual project north of Rome, there is a large grassy garden but no typical playground equipment or bright decorative posters lining the schoolhouse walls. Rather, the tiny log cabin with a covered porch is spare and neutral-toned. Most learning takes place outside: the \u201cmud kitchen,\u201d where kids play at a table with dishes, a digging pitch, a big rock to climb up and slide down in the dirt. Called \u201cWild Gioia\u201d (Wild Joy), it currently has five children enrolled, aged 3-6. <\/p>\n

Ramsay points to evidence suggesting that the best preparation for reading and writing is play, because it teaches children to concentrate. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t learn to concentrate by being told what to concentrate on,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re learning to concentrate by having the freedom to be able to follow their own interests.\u201d <\/p>\n

___ <\/p>\n

Winfield reported from Rome. Hollingsworth reported from Kansas City, MO.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"REGGIO EMILIA, Italy (AP) \u2014 The Princess of Wales\u2019 visit to Italy has put the spotlight on an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16013,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[11933,9896,11934,2036,4292,11911,437,240,5,352,11908,11910,11909,5659,40,587,243],"class_list":{"0":"post-16012","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-italy","8":"tag-adoption","9":"tag-arts-and-entertainment","10":"tag-child-care","11":"tag-children","12":"tag-education","13":"tag-elisabetta-nigris","14":"tag-entertainment","15":"tag-general-news","16":"tag-italy","17":"tag-italy-government","18":"tag-kathryn-ramsay","19":"tag-margie-cooper","20":"tag-roberta-cardarello","21":"tag-schools","22":"tag-united-kingdom","23":"tag-wales","24":"tag-world-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}