Reflection on Documentation and Curriculum Mapping with The Cadwell Collaborative

Today is the first rainy, gloomy Saturday I have experienced here in Florida in a few weeks. It has been beautiful here, and I have been enjoying the sunshine and active lifestyle. However, having a cold and being stuck inside has given me the opportunity to begin the blog I have been wanting to start since I began my progressive education journey. I know it will be nice to have a record of my reflections, and I hope to bounce ideas off of like minded educators through blogging.

This week was FULL of reflecting, reading, and thinking. My colleagues and I had the incredible opportunity to meet and have meaningful dialogue with two individuals who dedicate their life to teaching others about their interpretation of the Reggio Emilia Approach and  Sustainability Education, Ashley and Louise Cadwell. They find the beauty in overlapping the two approaches and acknowledging that both approaches seek to empower our children while guiding them in developing 21st century skills. Here is a link to their website. It is definitely a must if you are interested in this type of work. http://cadwellcollaborative.com/

After meeting with the Cadwells, I was inspired and I felt unbelievably refreshed! I took the time to rethink my documentation walls and curriculum map. It became very clear that the web of ideas, questions, academic skills, and 21st century skills that could and should be explored in a project titled "What is Water?" were being overlooked on my part. In fact after looking back on conversations and questions my children had been asking during Morning Meetings, I found the children were practically begging me to go deeper. For whatever reason I had become caught up in moving foward with the New Year, and my listening skills had gone a bit haywire over the holidays (you know we all do it around those certain family members..JUST KIDDING MOM!). Anyway, I took a step back and started restructuring my documentation wall to give myself and more importantly the children a clear idea of the specific questions we were devling into next. Before the PD we thought our walls were beautiful like a gallery space should be, but they were lacking clarity and direction. Ashley mentioned we should think of creating posters, big ones, for the main ideas and themes. In fact, we should be thinking like graphic designers, creating clean lines that apeal to all eyes. The quotations should be in bold and BIG, as well as the questions. They should be seen from across the room.

So, the next day I got to work and I loved every minute. I took down some of the beautiful work we had been collecting gallery style on the walls, and I placed them in a folder to be created into a professional looking book both the children and parents could enjoy daily. I made our question big, and created just a few sub questions to redirect our focus. I feel great about our progress and I am looking forward to exploring with the children!