Loris Malaguzzi

The Compass School follows the Reggio Emilia learning philosophy. This approach to learning was born in Reggio Emilia, Italy after World War II by Loris Malaguzzi. As the founder of the philosophy, Malaguzzi is an inspiration to our school and those within it.

Our philosophy revolves around a singular poem written by Malaguzzi titled The Hundred Languages. We are sharing it in hopes that you find it as inspirational as we do:

The Hundred Languages

The child is made on one hundred.

The child has

a hundred languages

a hundred hands

a hundred thoughts

a hundred ways of thinking

of playing, of speaking.

A hundred.

Always a hundred

ways of listening

of marveling, of loving

a hundred joys

for singing and understanding

a hundred worlds

to discover

a hundred worlds

to invent

a hundred worlds 

to dream.

The child has

a hundred languages

(and a hundred hundred hundred more)

but the steal ninety-nine.

The school and culture

separate the head from the body.

They tell the child:

to think without hands

to do without the head

to listen and not to speak

to understand without joy

to love and to marvel

only at Easter and Christmas.

They tell the child:

to discover a world already there

and of the hundred

they steal ninety-nine.

They tell the child:

that work and play

reality and fantasy

science and imagination

sky and earth

reason and dream 

are things 

that do not belong together. 

And thus they tell the child

that the hundred is not there.

The child says:

No way. The hundred is there.

-Loris Malaguzzi

Founder of the Reggio Emilia Approach

Creating Relationships

We have established that children need time to be passionate, curious learners. This we know to be true. We also know that children need time to build relationships with their peers, educators, and environment. In the Compass School, we place a high value on our children being an integral part of our community. 

Because of this, we focus on building and extending relationships within our school. The children at Compass create strong, loving bonds with those involved with our community by staying in the same classroom, with the same teachers, for approximately eighteen months. During this time and because of this time, children develop a sense of belonging with their classroom and those in it. The bonds created between the children, teachers, and environments are full of love and respect. With these bonds, our children feel comfortable to take chances, seek affirmation, and create dialogue.

Our children, teachers, and environment are deeply respected members of the community built at the Compass School in Cincinnati. Establishing strong relationships with teachers is crucial in the learning journey. Without these relationships, children cannot truly feel comfortable to ask questions or engage in thought-provoking conversations. It is critical for the child to feel comfort, love, and peace to truly feel capable to extend their learning.

The Compass School prides themselves on the ability of the teachers and students to create these harmonious and beautiful relationships within our school. Our school is truly happy in the community we have created together. 

Taking Time

Giving children time is very important at the Compass School. We strongly feel that children need time. Time to play, time to interact, time to ask questions, time to make discoveries, time to reflect, time to try, time to think, time to wonder, TIME!

 With this respect for children, our environment is structured to allow children time. Each school year, children have an assigned classroom, to which they spend most of their time. The children are free to take time to interact with their environment and discover all of its learning opportunities! As mentioned in an earlier post, the materials and provocations displayed within our classrooms have been thoughtfully chosen by the teachers.  They are viewed as gifts to the students, and the interactions by the students with the materials are, in turn, the gift from the student to the teacher.

Our students are not rushed, but the amount of time given to the explorations of a day are determined by the students’ interest. The free-flowing pace of the day gives children time to dive deeply into their environment. They have time to pursue curiosities, passions, questions, and ideas. Children take time to conquer navigating small group dynamics, take chances, and gain confidence.

We believe very strongly that children must be respected in the time they need to engage in their environment. Here are some examples of work created from children who took some time! 

Creating a zoo 

Extending materials 

Layering materials 

Construction discoveries 

Experimenting with materials

Nature mandalas 

Mixed media art 

"Things that Fly"

Using materials to problem solve

"The City"

Small group accomplishments 

Outdoor discoveries 

"Car Garage" 

Temporary Art 

Atelier

The Compass School has opened their newest work space, the Atelier. In the Atelier children are encouraged to explore, imagine, and create! The room has been stocked with an array of open-ended materials that students enjoy in small groups. Some of the materials include small pebbles, rocks, glass beads, oil pastels, tempera paint, moss, yarn, feathers, sponges, and buttons.

With the materials, the children are encouraged to create "temporary art". This is a form of art where the process of creating is the focus. The art is set to be enjoyed for a short period of time with the understanding that the materials will be recycled and used for future art pieces. This process of art creation gives the imaginative minds an outlet!

The process of working in a small group and creating community is heavily encouraged in this work space. Small groups help children gain confidence and assume many helping roles. Children learn negotiating skills, thought organization, and navigating group dynamics. Children are encouraged to share their ideas, build from shared ideas, take risks, and rebuild ideas.

Please enjoy some pictures from our Atelier.

Inspiration from Nature 

Painting easel 

Paint Easel

Creation Table

Creative hanging decor made with a tire wheel, scarves, beads, and feathers

Material storage

Entrance to the Atelier

View into the Atelier 

An example of temporary art

Building Community

 A core component of the Reggio Emilia Philosophy is viewing children as respected members of the community. The image of the child shows that they are capable, passionate, discoverers, and deeply respected. 

Our school offers many events and activities to encourage building community with our students. To facilitate a deeply rooted student community, we offer Connecting once a week. Children in the preschool wing participate in visiting other classrooms to engage in current project topics, interact with new materials, and work closely with multiple age levels. The weekly connecting times promotes the interaction among the students within the school.

To strengthen the bonds of the parents in our community, the children of the Compass School host events to include their parents. Classrooms often invite their parents to their culminating event at the end of a project to display their knowledge or hold a special meal to celebrate their relationship. The parents show their respect for the work of the children by attending these functions.

Children at the Compass School routinely invite community members, Field Experts, into their school to share knowledge. Community members learn from the children or the children use the community members as tools to further their investigations and curiosity. 

Building community within the school is an extremely important aspect of the philosophy and highly encouraged at the Compass School.

A picture display of the members of the Compass School emphasizing

their relationships.

Photographs displayed in the classrooms to connect families 

and children to the school.

"We Are All Tied Together"  

An art piece created by Executive Director, Laura Carr, using donated ties 

from fathers of the children at the Compass School.

Nature Explorers

The Reggio Emilia learning philosophy accompanied with the project-based learning approach, encourages children to make meaning of their surrounding environment. The learning approach is inquiry-based which encourages children to ask questions and collaborate with peers, educators, and their environment to discover the answers. Many projects, based off of the interest of the child, include artifacts from the environment. The Compass School feels that projects that involve artifacts found in the daily life of the child are the most meaningful.

Therefore, the environment and nature plays a critical role in the learning atmosphere at The Compass School. The children often take their project work outdoors to aide in discovering answers. Nature becomes intertwined in their projects, creations, and investigations. With a large outdoor space, the children are capable and encouraged to use the environment to extend their learning. 

Below are some examples of how nature has played a role in the learning at The Compass School. 

The children in Sound Stage collect leaves.

Picture by Ashleigh Pylar

A child in Science Lab observes a local flowering plant.

Picture by Allison Greer

Science Lab children explore butterflies at the Krohn's Conservatory. 

Picture by Allison Greer

Siblings from the Think Tank class investigate plants at the Krohn's Conservatory.

Picture by Jillian Albertz

A Science Lab student plants a flower. 

Picture by Allison Greer

The Science Lab class plants Lima beans. 

Picture by Allison Greer

A Think Tank student creates art with tree blocks. 

Picture by Brandi Davis

The Think Tank class explores creating a city with nature.

Picture by Brandi Davis 

The Science Lab children create self portraits with nature.

Picture by Brandi Davis

An infant in Discoverers creates patterns with wood chips.

Picture by Brandi Davis 

The Adventurer class releases their butterflies.

Picture by Ashleigh Pylar

A Science Lab student measures a worm.

Picture by Allison Greer

The Trailblazers explore mud. 

Pictures by Brandi Davis