As an organizing structure underlying our approach to working with young children,Beverley Hills uses The Creative Curriculum, a framework that is consistent with developmentally appropriate practice guidelines established by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. A developmentally appropriate curriculum is based on the developmental growth stages of young children and how they make sense of the world around them over time (as known through research). It is dynamic in that it supports children’s individual growth patterns and learning strategies as well as their family structures and socio-cultural contexts. Our underlying assumption is that children actively construct knowledge about the world around them through direct action on materials and social interactions with peers and teachers that help them deepen their learning. The teacher’s role is one of skilled and caring guide who facilitates children’s explorations and increasing acquisition of knowledge and skills, while nurturing positive dispositions for lifelong learning such as curiosity, resourcefulness and persistence.

BHCP teachers are notable for their own dispositions as inquisitive lifelong learners as well. With the strong emphasis on professional development at Beverley Hills, they are supported in their quest for deeper understanding and skill. The atmosphere of the school, playful and intense at the same time, encourages the teachers’ creativity and investigation of new ideas and innovative practices. Our emphasis on collaboration between teachers, children and parents fosters a climate of mutual regard and respect as well as taking responsibility for oneself and one’s community. Learning at Beverley Hills might be fun, challenging, messy, surprising, even contentious at times, but underneath it all, it is a joyful enterprise for our community.

It was a natural outgrowth of our values about learning together as a community that brought the staff to early encounters with the innovative approach to early childhood education found in the public preschools of Reggio Emilia, a community in northern Italy. As a result of our deepening awareness over the ensuing years, the influences of Reggio Emilia are now seen more and more in our classroom environments and in our whole way of existence as a community. Some of the ways in which the inspiration of Reggio Emilia can be seen at Beverley Hills are described below; others are no less important, but are more subtle and seem to seep in over time.

First, as a three-part community of children, parents and teachers, we try to incorporate authentic partnership and interdependence among all of the “constituents.” The adults act as mirrors and models of the behaviors and dispositions that we hope to instill in the children. Valuing collaboration and creativity means that the teachers do not set out with generic prescriptives for learning. Instead, curriculum is said to be co-negotiated between the children and the teachers. The activities that children engage in are highly dependent on their skills, interests and questions. An initial idea for a project might come from a child, a teacher, a parent, or even a serendipitous event. When planning, teachers start with intentions or predictions of how children might react to experiences and materials, but from the moment the children actually begin to engage with the materials and think about the project at hand, planning is fluid, flexible and highly dynamic. It will be organized from that point on around the teacher’s observations of the children’s reactions, ideas, questions and initiatives. In addition, groupings of children are a direct outgrowth of their individual and collective reactions to the learning frameworks designed by the teachers. At times you may see one teacher working for a long time with one small group of children who are engaged in an in-depth study of a topic or sub-topic, while another larger group is engaged in dramatic play or exploring a new material. The groupings, like the planning, are flexible and based on the teachers’ observations and knowledge of each child. Over the course of the year all children will engage in in-depth project work with their classmates about ideas and topics that intrigue them.

A second way in which the influences of the REA are evident is is through the classroom environments. Our intent is to create environments for children that are not only aesthetically pleasing, but that offer intriguing and varied elements. Many of these come from the natural world but all are chosen with an eye towards nurturing the creative, not the materialistic spirit in young children. The colors, textures, and placement of various classroom furnishings and elements provide interest as well as a sense of well-being and comfortable intimacy. In our classrooms, "less is more". This helps children not only learn to respect and care for what they do have but also shelters them from too much visual stimulation. In addition, there are a number of mirrors and additional sources of light in our classrooms to bring children multiple perspectives of themselves and the materials at hand.

A third lens on the Reggio influence at Beverley Hills is the strong emphasis on children learning through multiple arts-based “languages” of self-expression. In most traditional preschools learning centers are found. They are found in our classrooms as well such as housekeeping, math and science, table toys, sand and water as well as art, reading and writing centers. These are all important components to any learning environment for young children as they offer settings for children to express themselves and learn. You’ll find them in Beverley Hills classrooms too. However, the development of thinking, reasoning, creativity and dispositions for learning expands when children are offered the materials and technical assistance they seek in using artistic media and materials to represent their ideas and theories in the making. Clay, wire, sculpture, paper, drawing and painting are but a few of the modes of expression we support to enhance children’s construction of knowledge about the world around them. In this way, children can add much breadth and depth to their repertoire of resources for inquiring and finding out about the world, at a time in their lives when they have no preconceived notions that they’re “not good” at any of these skills.

Lastly, we have come to understand the absolute centrality of reflecting on our experiences together. We make meaning by reviewing our work together. We deepen our understandings by taking what has been done and talking to others about it. At school, we do this not only in conversation, but also in written and visual (photos or drawings) formats. This process, known in Reggio Emilia as documentation, permits learners to make their learning visible to others as well as to deepen their own understandings, and it applies equally to children and adults. You will see evidence in the classrooms and hallways of our use of documentation to plan curriculum experiences, improve our teaching practices, and make meaning with you about your child’s experiences at school. Documentation, reflection, and an openness of mind to new ideas and perspectives are what permit us to travel with you on a collaborative, evolving, and deeply enriching learning journey at Beverley Hills.