By Kimberly Macenko
We are enjoying the warm sun this week. I have enjoyed seeing
kids in swimwear and the smell of sunscreen in the air!
This week we are moving on to Chapter 2. What a perfect time to
learn about Principle #1, “We are all in this together,” as we head into our
annual class transition time.
A word that is used often in this section is the word UNITY. Unity is oneness, or being a unit. We
are all working together to make this school work. We don’t see ourselves as
separate classrooms but as a family unit. We rely on each other every single
day. Not because we can’t do things independently but because together we can
do so much more!
In Reggio programs family and community are integral parts of
the school family environment. We are focused on connections -- connections
between children, teachers, parents, school, and through which everyone
interacts and works together. How does this relate to our transition times?
1. Teachers in different
classrooms are connected to each other and to students even outside of our
classrooms.
Our teachers are more than just colleagues; we are friends and
often times extended family for one another. We spend time outside of work building
relationships. We have staff meetings where we work on building team morale and
many of us choose to come to the school on our own time to fix up our
classrooms together. We spend
several hours together each day on playgrounds, in gross motor areas, and in
the art room. We even swap classrooms occasionally. We know many of the
children’s names outside of our classroom and work hard to develop special
relationships with children who aren’t in our rooms. So, none of us are
strangers, and transitions will be made into rooms where children are familiar
with their teachers and have already started building a trusting relationship.
2. Parents and Teacher’s
attitudes directly influence the children. Remember we are a unified family.
Change can be hard. We get comfortable with something and tend
to like to stay there. But it is good for us, and good for our children.
Remember in the last chapter when we discussed controlling our own upset? Our
attitude towards life and what is going on around us is absorbed by our
children. It is easy to look at new people in our lives apprehensively -- especially
new people who will be working with our children. But, the way we as parents
act towards new teachers is noticed by our children. When our children see us
act positively towards new things and excited about upcoming changes they will
follow our lead and be more inclined to feel secure and safe as we encounter
change.
For example. My daughter will be transitioning into the Bear’s
classroom. She is naturally
feeling somewhat apprehensive about the impending move.
But two of the wonderful teachers at this school, Bamborough and Katie, are
helping her. My daughter is very close to her teacher Miss. Bamborough so she
took my daughter, Kaitlyn, over to Miss Katie and said, “Miss Katie is my
friend. Miss Katie is also your mommy’s friend.” She let my daughter know that
her mommy and she both trust her new teacher and it is safe for her to do as
well. This made a real
difference for Kaitlyn and she is beginning to view her soon-to-be new teacher
Katie with warmth rather than resistance.
So, remember, we can all work on our composure and show our
children that they can feel safe as they move to new classrooms and meet new
teachers and friends. Learning to
adjust to new experiences, environments and people is probably the most
important learning that happens here at The Little School. Through positively experiencing change
in the context of a supportive and nurturing environment, children gain the
social and emotional skills necessary to thrive in kindergarten and beyond.
