Fast Forward…..
We’re pleased to share this post from Richland Academy’s Head of School, Mrs. Marlina Oliveira, who regularly contributes her insights, research, and experiences with Inquiring Minds. I am always amazed at how quickly...
We’re pleased to share this post from Richland Academy’s Head of School, Mrs. Marlina Oliveira, who regularly contributes her insights, research, and experiences with Inquiring Minds. I am always amazed at how quickly...
Today Inquiring Minds brings you a post from Richland Academy’s Head of School, Mrs. Marlina Oliveira, as she shares her foray into the online world of social media. The first of many blog posts...
Richland has recently developed a BYOD program, and invested in iPads for our students because we recognize that technology is a powerful learning tool. In saying that, our approach to technology requires...
As learning professionals, we are passionate about providing children with rich learning experiences from the very beginning of their educational journey. We recognize that children are tremendously curious and capable of finding...
[caption id="attachment_4642" align="aligncenter" width="889"] “The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” - William Morris[/caption] Technology has many benefits; and at times these...
Every profession has its jargon, it’s ‘mutually understood’ references that are bantered about quite freely within their work place. Educators are no different; in fact, educators may be guiltier of this than most. Although, I recall meeting with a group that included financial planners and I have to say that the R.O.I.s and F.S.P.s being thrown around was impressive. To be honest, I made that last one up – I didn’t catch half of the acronyms they were referring too, and spent most of the meeting trying to control my facial expression. It was more important to me that they thought I understood, rather than actually trying to understand. Have you ever felt this way?I’ve been thinking a lot about how we as educators ‘speak’ about the work we do. And, more importantly, about whom we speak to. For the most part, we speak to parents, they are intelligent, successful people, but they are unfamiliar with what we are talking about. Now some might argue, “They’ll learn! If we keep using the terms and language they’ll figure it out.” Really? Well, parents are very capable, of course, but how about we make it a little easier for them. After all, we wouldn’t be very effective educators if we didn’t seek ways to encourage understanding. I present to you,
The Educational Terminology Cheat Sheet
21st Century Learning: 21st Century Learning means students are connected to other learners and resources, and develop skills to help them become creative, problem solvers, communicators, and leaders. They know how to take initiative, are comfortable collaborating with others, and are confident with technology.
Reggio-inspired: The Reggio approach is an educational philosophy. The name comes from Reggio Emilia, in northern Italy where the community came together after World War II to reconstruct society and build an exemplary educational system. The region has since been recognized to have one of the best municipal educational systems in the world, and welcome visitors from around the globe. Schools like Richland are Reggio-inspired, meaning we take the educational philosophy of Reggio Emilia and adapt it to our own culture and community.
Environment as the Third Teacher: In a Reggio-inspired school, the parent is recognized as the first teacher, and the class teacher as the second. The physical environment is crucial, and is considered the child’s “third teacher”. It is believed that children can create meaning and make sense of their world through environments which support “complex, varied, sustained, and changing relationships between people, the world of experience, ideas and the many ways of expressing ideas.” The environments are designed for learning, rather than decorated.
Constructivist Theory: Constructivism is a theory to explain how knowledge is constructed in people when information comes into contact with existing knowledge that had been developed by experiences. In other words, we build knowledge when new experiences influence our existing knowledge.
The summer is halfway over, perhaps you have already travelled, gone to camp, enjoyed day excursions – or maybe it’s just one of those low-key, quiet summer days. In any case, we...
School may be out for our students, but at Richland, the halls are still filled with the voices of learning – only this week they are the voices of educational professionals taking...
Recently, Inquiring Minds shared a story of one of Richland’s Prekindergarten students and his quest for excellence in drawing a dolphin. At Richland we are committed to the pursuit of excellence; recognizing the...
Inquiring Minds would like to thank one of our PreK parents for sharing this link with us. This is an article from Parents Canada, which she felt Richland Academy was delivering on...