The Competent Child – SA Chapter forum

The CEFPI SA Chapter held the inaugural Pedagogy and Architecture Forum on Wednesday 24 June. This event was attended by 40 educators and 25 from the design profession.

Early Childhood Teachers Karen Wunderlich and Sarah Phillips of the Halifax Street Children's Centre and Preschool presented two Provocations that led to enthusiastic discussion and debate.

The starting point was a Vision for South Australia drawn from the text of Re-imagining Childhood The inspiration of Reggio Emilia Education Principles in SA by Carla Rinaldi, published in 2013.

For The Competent Child, nothing lies outside the realms of the possible or imagined for our youngest learners. Therein lies the ultimate inspiration and provocation.

Video footage recording the richness of the normal everyday activities at HSCC underscored the need for active listening and deep observation.

The Circles Are More Than A Shape project was a shared learning journey for 2-3 year olds. This evolving story encouraged us to be more connected with people and place.

A series of questions were considered by the audience in small groups. Ideas were shared and there was a collective yearning for more. The group discussions are being summarised.

We are delighted that this Forum has connected with a network of educators. This is core business for CEFPI. Topics for future Forums are being discussed. This was a memorable event.

PETER MOECK

CEFPI SA Chapter Chair