WoRKshoPs

We’ve created a series of workshops designed to enhance a teacher or caregiver’s understanding of our approach to childhood education. Our workshops highlight different topics based on social, emotional, and early childhood development. You can choose from one listed below or have a workshop tailored to your interests. These workshops are offered at $250 for up to ten participants or $25 per person. Please contact our Chief Learning Officer Shannon Blady at sblady@lcm.org to learn more or to schedule a workshop.

Workshop Overview

The Louisiana Children’s Museum (LCM) was developed and designed around the Reggio Emilia Approach® to childhood education. This approach focuses on the image of the child which describes children as being capable, creative, and curious. Our two-hour workshop will explain the roots of the Reggio Emilia Approach and explore ten guiding principles that teachers can adopt in their own classrooms. Our trained experts will also lead a one-hour guided tour through the museum to explain how it was built and designed to display and enhance how capable children truly are. During the tour, attendees will learn how each exhibit includes In Dialogue threads: tips for caregivers to be in dialogue with their children during a visit. The tour will also showcase children’s assets in each gallery and the museum’s documentation panels. Staff will share their processes of observation and documentation, both in daily programming and within their outreach programs. The tour wraps up in the Reggio-inspired atelier, or art studio, where staff will explain how they design experiences that honor their image of the child.

This two-hour workshop explores three important concepts of the Reggio Emilia Approach® To Childhood Education: provocations, observation, and documentation. We will study ways in which we invite children to express themselves in their 100 languages, how to listen intently, ask open-ended questions, make observations, and document the experiences. Our trained experts will lead a one-hour guided tour through the museum, sharing with attendees how each exhibit includes In Dialogue threads: tips for caregivers to be in dialogue with their children during a visit. The tour will also showcase children’s assets in each gallery and the museum’s documentation panels. The tour wraps up in the Reggio-inspired atelier, or art studio, where staff will explain how they design experiences that honor their image of the child.

This two-hour workshop highlights the importance of play in early childhood education. Participants will dive deep into the research behind what play offers children cognitively, socially, and emotionally and will learn ways to provide playful moments in everyday tasks. Our trained experts will lead a one-hour guided tour through the museum, during which participants will have a chance to play and explore and will then reflect on their thought processes, emotions, and connections during the experience.

Join us for a workshop that provides ways you can include open-ended learning to accomplish the goals of any curriculum. Our sessions will offer guidance on the following:

• how play-based provocation activities can be used for assessment and even test preparation
• how to integrate open-ended questioning and the pedagogy of listening
• how to balance the cognitive needs and social-emotional health of students
• the benefits of interactive opportunities for children with learning and behavioral challenges

Join us for a workshop that provides ways to encourage open-ended learning in the pre-school years (infants - four). Our session will offer guidance on the following:

• how to design and facilitate play-based activities and guide provocations with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers
• how to integrate open-ended questioning and the pedagogy of listening
• how to balance the cognitive needs and social-emotional health of students
• the benefits of interactive opportunities for children with learning and behavioral challenges