A special place in every Reggio Emilia school is the atelier. The Reggio Emilia curriculum allows students to further their inquiries with atelier subjects.
The atelier is a laboratory of sorts; a place full of a variety of materials, mediums and tools that allow students to further their inquiries, explore new ideas and express themselves. Loris Malaguzzi, founder of the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood learning, believed that children have ‘100 Languages’ or more with which to express themselves. In an atelier, student learners might use art, classical drawing, music, graphic design, coding and tinkering, among other things, to illustrate their learning.
Please join me today in taking a glimpse into the Music Atelier at La Scuola International School, and the importance it plays within our students’ learning and development.
The music program at La Scuola begins in Preschool and extends through the end of Middle School. As one of the ‘One Hundred Languages,’ children study music by listening, singing, playing, reading, and composing, from the start of the Reggio Emilia curriculum to graduation. We inquire into music as science, as culture, as history, as math, connecting through all disciplines.
Photo: Jutta Kamp Photography
In addition to our K-8 formal music classes, the school is full of music, with songs accompanying many preschool routines, and classroom teachers regularly accompanying students in concert or joining in a class. As an immersion and Reggio Emilia school, La Scuola recognizes the value of music in teaching language and concepts. Many La Scuola Preschool children’s first Italian words are in song.
Throughout the school year students attend music lessons on a weekly basis. They also participate through music in various class activities, school assemblies and special events. At the end of each semester, the K-8 classes celebrate music with two all-school concerts, which are open to our K-8 student body and our students’ families. A great opportunity for our artists to show off their skills and enjoy social interactions. Each year we celebrate the Winter Concert and incorporate it into our Grandparents and Special Friends Day celebration.
Photo: Jutta Kamp Photography
Students who want to take music training further can join the Ambassador Ensemble, open to our Middle School students, which is a plucked string orchestra that rehearses and performs for special events, and represents the school throughout the Bay Area.
Listen to our La Scuola Ambassador Ensemble, performing a Tarantella at the San Francisco Giants Game, on Italian Heritage Night.
We see that our students and graduates speak the language of music—it is one more tool they have to express themselves. And when they make music together, they witness the beauty and impact of collaboration and the benefit of diversity.
In addition to the Music Atelier, La Scuola has the Atelier subjects of Gardening and Environmental Studies, Tinkering and Design, and Visual Arts. To learn more about the Ateliers at La Scuola, why not take an in-person tour of the school, by contacting our Admissions team.
We look forward to sharing the magic with you soon!
Micheline Savarin
Director of Marketing
La Scuola International School
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