eNews
Contents:
INTRODUCTION
1.

Message from the Founder

ETONHOUSE INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONGROUP - NEWS & EVENTS
2.

EtonHouse celebrates 20 years of Excellencein SIngapore - Launches EtonHouse
Community Fund to give back
SG50 Charity Art Exhibition “Singapore
through the Eyes of a Child”

3.

EtonHouse now offering a Secondary
Programme – a seamless transition fromPrimary to Secondary
Another EtonHouse campus receives IB
Authorisation
E-Bridge opening a purpose-built largeChildcare Centre with an Innovative
Ecological design by mid 2016

4.

EtonHouse Mountbatten 223 awarded
Early Childhood Innovation Award (Distinction)from ECDA
EtonHouse International School, Broadrick
awarded EduTrust certification

Islander Pre-School – a new member of the
EtonHouse family
Save the Date – Reggio Conference inSingapore, 10-12 March 2016

ETONHOUSE INTERNATIONALEDUCATION GROUP
5.

Uniting the Community throughDocumentation at EtonHouse

The role of Documentation in enhancing
Quality of Education in EtonHouse
Preschools
SINGAPORE
6.

Making Learning Visible

7.

Making Learning Visible: An Investigation
into Pine Cones

8.

Documentation as Research andRelationship

9.

Documentation - Making Teaching and
Learning Visible

Documentation as a Collaborative Practice

Documentation - a Tool for Thinking
Together
CHINA

10. Empowering Children’s Thinking andInquiry through Documentation

Using Documentation to inform Prospective
parents of Learning and Teaching

11. Documentation - making Teaching and
Learning Visible
KOREA
12. Making Learning Visible by ListeningJAPAN
13. Making Teaching and Learning Visible
for our Community
INDONESIA
14. Making Teaching and Learning Visible
through Documentation
INDIA

15. Documentation - Making Teaching and
Learning Visible

Newsletter • 3 - 2015

Message from the Founder
This
year,
Singaporecelebrates SG 50. At
EtonHouse, we celebrate EH
20, since we turn 20 years
old this year! As our nation
celebrated our journey, I
reflected on our journey
here at EtonHouse and thelives we have touched. It
has been a humbling andfulfilling experience, madeeven more rewarding when
I meet former EtonHouse
students making a mark intheir chosen field. I havemet budding doctors, artists,
actors, lawyers and many
morewonderful
young
people full of optimismand enthusiasm to makea difference. And I am soproud to say that EtonHouse
has been a contributor to At the EtonHouse 20th Anniversary Charity dinner with our guest-of-honor Ms. Sim Ann,
their learning journey. When Senior Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth & Ministry of Finance(left)
I heard what they had to say
in the video that was put together to commemorate
and open auction sales of paintings and children’s art
the anniversary, I was touched by their honesty andworks during the charity dinner.
connection with EtonHouse after all these years.
I am overwhelmed by the support we received fromAs I reflected on our journey, I realised that to build
our friends, partners, parents and students (pastcharacter, we have to demonstrate compassion. I
and present), staff and well-wishers. I would like tohave always believed that education and charity
thank all our donors for their generous support. I
are two sides of the same coin. How can you build
am touched by their altruism and trust in us. I would
character without teaching generosity to help the lessalso like to express sincere appreciation to all our
fortunate? I also believe that the gift of education isstaff members and teachers who worked tirelessly tothe best possible charity we can give because weorganise the event and our children who created theare investing in a child’s future. Therefore we set
beautiful works of art for our charity auction.
up the EtonHouse Community Fund, an approved
With such positivity and enthusiasm that surrounds
Charity to serve the less fortunate and in our own
EtonHouse, we are motivated to scale greater heights
small way, make a difference to children’s lives byin education and remain committed to the well-being
making education accessible to them. The inauguralof our community.
fund raising event was held at the charity dinner on
22nd October 2015. Our guest-of-honor was Ms.
Sim Ann, Senior Minister of State in the Ministry of
Ng Gim Choo
Culture, Community and Youth & Ministry of Finance.
Group Managing Director
We raised a total of more than S$350,000 at the
EtonHouse International Education Groupcharity dinner, including S$22,000 through the silent-1-

E t on Hous e I n ter n a tional Ed u c at ion Grou p - News & Event s

EtonHouse celebrates 20 years of Excellence in Education
Launches EtonHouse Community Fund to give backWith our partners from Dongguan, China
With the Board of EtonHouse and EtonHouse Community Fund

Beautiful performances put up by our teachers

With our partners from EtonHouse Tokyo and EIS Japanese
Kindergarten

With our partners from Malaysia, Korea and India

This year is a very special year for
EtonHouse. It marks the 20th anniversary
for us. To commemorate this significant
milestone, we launched the EtonHouse
Community Fund at a Charity Dinner on
22nd October 2015 in Singapore.
The EtonHouse Community Fund is
a Registered Charity approved by theCommissioner of Charities of Singapore
and its main objective is to advancethe causes of education for children
from underprivileged backgrounds in

Singapore.
Itspioneer
project
would be to workwith community
bodies to support
childrenfromunderprivileged
Student emcees from EtonHouse
backgrounds by
Broadrickcontributing
totheir Child Development Account, which in turn
attracts matching donations from the government.
Children from the EtonHouse Group in Singapore
played their part by putting together a SG50
art exhibition titled “Singapore through theeyes of a child”. An intriguing reflection of theirinterpretations of Singapore, their artwork
showcased Singapore’s multi-cultural society,unique culture and iconic landscapes. All proceeds
raised from an auction of their work went towards
the EtonHouse Community Fund.
We are very proud that the EtonHouse Community
Fund is able to play a part in advancing
education goals of children from underprivileged
backgrounds. As we celebrate this meaningful
milestone, we would like to thank each and every
member of the EtonHouse family for sharing our
joy as we continue to make a positive difference tothe lives of children.

SG50 Charity Art Exhibition “Singapore through the Eyes of a Child”
As a tribute to Singapore’s 50 golden years, children from EtonHouse, E-Bridge and Hampton conceptualised and created art pieces througha myriad of ways to reflect their unique perspectives of Singapore.

“Moving Fast”
K2, EtonHouse Claymore
The children were inquiring
into movement and speed anddecided to use photography
to represent the movementon the roads of Singapore.

“Colour Burst”
N1B, E-Bridge 178A Rivervale CrescentChildren were enthralled by the
fireworks they saw during Singapore’s
National Day celebrations and recreatedthe dazzling effect on canvas.

“Silver Forest”
N2 The Bandarra’s, EtonHouse
718 Mountbatten
The children noticed all the rectangles
within Singapore’s skyline and decided
to recreate them using masking tapeto make “big and small rectangles”.

“Singapore Glory”
N2 / K1 class, EtonHouse Sentosa
Inspired by their dramatic play of a
Singapore Girl who travels around the world,
the children decided to create a piece ofart that “looks like a Singapore Girl dress”.

“The Botanic Gardens”
K1 Honey Bears, EtonHouse Newton
The children see Singapore as a beautiful
place full of gardens and fflowers. Inspired bytheir curiosity towards nature, they decided
to paint “Singapore Botanic Gardens”,
one of their favourite places.
-2-

E t on Hous e I n ter n a tional Ed u c at ion Grou p - News & Event s

EtonHouse now offering a Secondary Programme – a seamless transition fromPrimary to Secondary
EtonHouse International School at Broadrick
Road now offers a Secondary Programme toprovide a seamless transition from its International
Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme
for Nursery to Year 6 students. The secondary
curriculum follows the Cambridge International
General Certificate of Secondary Education(IGCSE). Students have access to a dedicatedScience Lab and Design and Technology suite
which includes a 1-1 MacBook facility, andare supported through special study skills andpersonalised learning programmes. To learn
more, contact the school at
Broadrick@etonhouse.edu.sg / 6346 6922.

Another EtonHouse campus receives
IB Authorisation

E-Bridge opening a purpose-built largeChildcare Centre with an Innovative
Ecological design by mid 2016

EtonHouse International Pre-School at 718 Mountbatten
is now an authorised IB World School for thePrimary Years Programme (PYP). The IB PYP is
an international programme that aims to develop
inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people
who help create a better and more peaceful world
through intercultural understanding and respect. As theschool continues on this IB journey, the entire learning andteaching community remains committed to deepening their understanding of
the IB PYP curriculum framework through ongoing professional development
and parent workshops.
Read more about the school here:
www.etonhouse.com.sg/m718

E-Bridge is opening a purpose-built large childcare centre at 78 Edgedale
Plains in Punggol. Spread over 5,000 sqm, the campus has an innovative
ecological design and features never seen before in Singapore’s early years
sector, including mass temperature screening facilities, early lightning warning
system and solar powered outdoor lighting. Children will also have access toa spacious rooftop garden with a movable maze, a cycling and running track,
dedicated spaces for water play, sand play and construction, a performing
arts atelier and a food atelier with kitchen studio for our young learners. The
childcare centre will be ready to welcome up to 500 young children in mid
2016. Latest updates can be found at www.e-bridge.edu.sg.

-3-

E t on Hous e I n ter n a tional Ed u c at ion Grou p - News & Event s

Islander Pre-School – a new memberof the EtonHouse family

EtonHouse Mountbatten 223 awarded
Early Childhood Innovation Award(Distinction) from ECDA

EtonHouse is welcoming a newschool into its family – Islander
Pre-School. The childcare centre islocated on Sentosa Island and caters
to the needs of parents who work on
or in the vicinity of the island.
Offering an inquiry-based programme
for children from 18 months to 6 years old, the centre also offers flexible andday care services to provide care services for children on an occasional basis.
The rooms are arranged according to various activity areas, including blocks,
dramatic play, art, science, computer and language. Learn more atwww.islander.etonhouse.com.sg.

EtonHouse Mountbatten 223’s heritage project, ‘Our Heritage. The Early
Years’ received the Early Childhood Innovation Award (Distinction) fromSingapore’s Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA). This recognises
the centre’s efforts in nurturing a culture of innovation and is a wonderful
testament to our learning and teaching practice.

Save the Date – Reggio Conference inSingapore, 10-12 March 2016
REACH (Reggio Emilia in Asia
for Children) in collaboration
with Reggio Children is
excited to announce thatthe next Reggio Conference
would be happening in
Singapore 10-12 March 2016.
With speakers from Reggio
Emilia in Northern Italy, theconference is poised to be yet another inspiring and insightful session on bestpractice in the early years. Please mark the dates in your calendar and join us
for this professional learning initiative. Details will be coming your way soon,please email enquiry@reach.edu.sg to indicate your interest in the meantime.

EtonHouse International School,
Broadrick awarded EduTrust
certification
EtonHouse International School
has been awarded 4 Year EduTrust
Status by the Council for Private
Education (CPE). The 4 Year
EduTrust status reflects our ability
to reach exceptional standards inthe continuous delivery of quality
educational services and practices
that meet the needs of both theparents, students and staff in the areas of Pre-School, Primary and Secondary
education in Singapore. Mr Rob Stewart, Principal of EtonHouse International
School, emphasised the importance of receiving a 4 Year EduTrust certification
as it reflects the School’s commitment to CPE regulatory standards and also,
the school’s mission of seeking quality assurance of our operations.

-4-Eton Hous e I n ter nat ional Ed u c at ion Grou p

Uniting the Community through Documentation at EtonHouse
by Lisamarie Hughes, Educational Consultant“as I scribed the children’s voices,
I found out what they already knew
about wind and where it comesfrom. George preferred to show
me with sounds, Josh decided
to draw his thinking. This thenallowed me to plan the next day toextend and build on their theories!”

As I reflect upon the value of
documentation, my thoughtslean towards why we makethe teaching and learning
process visible and the various
stakeholders
who
benefitfrom this process across the
EtonHouse pre-school settings.
Lens of a child – Our
documentation
immediately
attracts
thechildrenandcultivates a sense of feelingimmensely valued, empowered
and respected. By making thechildren’s learning visible, wethen provide a platform for themto celebrate, revisit and extend Making learning visible via the 100 Languages Exhibition
their ideas. The documentation
EtonHouse Claymore 2014
not only provides an accountwhat to make visible from a very busy day, theyof the past, but also a window of possibilities fortoo sharpen their skills with observation, analysis
children to question, feel challenged and continue
and evaluation as they question what they present
their research alongside their peers and teachers.
and how it may be received. By capturing theAmy Lin (5yrs, EtonHouse Outram) suggested
power of learning, teachers revisit that moment
expanding her work after viewing her first draft
and think about what happened in a deep andillustrations on the panel ‘looking closer’- “I can
profound way. It offers an opportunity to reallysee my drawing from yesterday! Oh, I think I needunderstand the children in our care as well as
to use the binoculars again to zoom in for the roof
‘tune in’ to the ways in which we can respondpattern today!”to their diverse learning styles. Angela Wee Qi
Lens of a teacher - As teachers critically choose(Teacher, EtonHouse 718 Mountbatten) reflected

Lens of a parent - Parents
and guests then step into ourdocumentation-rich environments
to encounter what has takenplace, and they are drawn in by
the powerful images of childrenin action. They marvel at thechildren’s voices, theories andevolving ideas. They then better
understand the rich learning that
occurs within our inquiry-based
programme as they read the teachers’ voices.
Documentation at EtonHouse connects all
stakeholders; it unites the community in viewing
and embracing the joy that should always
be at the heart of any teaching and learning
experience. Sandra Versalle (Parent, EtonHouse
718 Mountbatten) shared “Eleonore beamed withpride as she brought me to her drawings and thephotographs of her organising the leaves. The
board really helped her tell me about her day!”The role of Documentation in enhancing Quality of Education in
EtonHouse Preschools
EtonHouse Education Centre
by Rani Sidhu, Director of Pedagogy

Capturing our children’s learning journeys in theform of high quality documentation contributes tothe depth of children’s learning from their project(s)and everyday intentional and incidental learning
experiences. Loris Malaguzzi (1993) points outthat documenting
children’s learningjourneysallowsthem to ‘become
even more curious,interested
andconfident as they
contemplate
the meaning ofwhat they haveachieved.’ This is
made possible asdisplaying our children’s learning journeys in theform of documentation allows us to revisit theexperiences, during which new understanding
can be clarified and deepened, and this in turnenhances our children’s learning related to the-5-areas of focus.
To further ensure the quality of our children’s
learning, teachers need to reflect on the
documentation so as to be able to discuss withchildren their ideas and the possibilities of new
investigations for the next day. This helps our
teachers plan intentional learning experiences
based on children’s interests that they findstimulating and challenging. Reflection also
provides teachers with ongoing planning andevaluation that can be done in collaboration with
their team and children. The individual children’s
strengths and progress are made visible andprovide a rich content for teacher-parent, childparent and teacher-child discussions.

Eton Hou se in Singap ore

Making Learning Visible
EtonHouse @ 718 Mountbatten
by Susannah McGuire, Principal

In
order
to
make
each
child’slearning
through inquiry visible,
our teachers create apersonalised
e-portfolioof each child’s learning
throughout the year.
Over the year, our teachers
contribute portfolio entries
documenting
significant
learning
experiences.
These include reflection
and analysis which clearlyhighlight the connections
between the documented learning experienceand areas of the curriculum in which the child has
demonstrated interest and understanding.

connection to their learning, and the portfolios will
be used as a tool for reflection and assessment
throughout the year.

These portfolio entries are also printed and placedin a folder that each child has access to daily. The
children and teachers work together to placesignificant artefacts and pieces of work they havecreated into their folders for safekeeping. This
supports children in developing a strong sense of

To ensure strong home-pre-school partnership,
the portfolios are shared with each child’s parents
at the end of each term. Parents are invited to
add their own reflections of their child’s learning.
These significant reflections are then shared anddiscussed in the class.

In addition, we share updates of the children’s
ongoing inquiry learning in class through weekly
newsletters, which we share within our preschool community. Teachers use display boards
in classes and throughout the pre-school asopportunities to highlight significant moments oflearning and interest within class inquiries.

Documentation as a Collaborative Practice
EtonHouse @ Mountbatten 223
by Kim Fitzharria, Atelierista“What did you see”?
“What does it make you wonder orfeel”?
“What ideas does this give you
about how to proceed”?
(Sarah Adams Kollitz, Child Care
Exchange)
Documenting the answers to thesequestions serves as a pathway forstudents and teachers to embark
on a journey of inquiry-basedlearning. To be on this path is toserve as a witness to a child’s ideas
and perceptions. Taking an interestin a child’s learning process is theultimate praise a teacher can give. On this path,the teacher and student are poised to become
co-constructorsof knowledge andformulate morequestions.
The
teacher’s role is
to facilitate thechild, and also
to reflect on the
moment and intuit
the direction forfurther study.
It is a common
assumption thata teacher’s role is
to give answers.

-6-

When the roleis reversed to
one of an active
participant, many
wondrous things
start to happen.
Childrenrelax
and know thatthey are safe
toexplorequestions. When children experience their own
inquiries as valuable, they develop faith in theirinborn abilities. The role of documentation is toassist children to become confident and active
learners and to help teachers be partners in thislearning.

Eton Hou se in Singap ore

Making Learning Visible : An Investigation into Pine Cones
EtonHouse @ Thomson
by Alison Hindell & Rajani Patel“Documentationisnotabout what we do, but what
we are searching for.” Carla
RinaldiThe children decided
toinvestigate
byleavingsomepine
cones outside until itrained. They considered
how to make surenobody touched theirinvestigation
anddecided to write anote explaining theinvestigation.
They
attached a note to a
box and found a place
not blocked by trees orbuildings and waited.
The teachers used theirobservations to reflectwith the children in thisPedagogical documentation
is an important tool forteaching, learning, planningand assessing. Below is
a documentation of aninvestigation that happenedin the K2 Magical Forest at
EtonHouse Thomson.
K2 children have been
focusing on the UOI ‘How
the World Works.’ This unit
is based on investigations
and takes the children on
the journey of research,from forming hypotheses through to interpreting
the results.
The investigation began by accident. During
the inquiry into the nature themed class name,the children talked about what they know about
nature and what they would like to know. Somechildren wondered if a pine cone is nature. They
decided that they would see if it grows in water.
Later in the day the children noticed that thepine cone looked different. They even thoughtsomeone had switched it! Then they realised it
was the same pine cone, but it had closed!
Here began our investigation into why the pinecone closed in water. The children made lots oftheories about why the pine cone might close.
They thought about it through the concept of‘function’- how it works.

process.
The documentation of an inquiry supports:“They close, but then next to the sun they
open.” Miraya• Capturing children’s theories

When talking about what else the children wereinterested in, the children wanted to find out ifpine cones would close in the rain or just a bowlof water. The children began to hypothesise
what would happen to the pine cones in the rain.

• Assessing children’s learning

Uta: It does close in the rain.
Miraya: No, it doesn’t, it likes rain.
Uta: But rain is water and when it is wet itgoes closed.

-7-• Making connection to the curriculum• As a reporting tool through the portfolios

Eton Hou se in Singap ore

Documentation as Research and Relationship
EtonHouse @ 215 Upper Bukit Timahby Ng Shu Ping

As a reflective educator and lifelong learner,
researching into the role and purpose of
documentation through the eyes of educators
in Reggio Emilia has certainly captivatedand inspired me. Through their pedagogicaldocumentation, I am able to see how theeducators listen to the children, with a desire tolearn and research alongside them. Their work
continues to push my thinking and creativity
further.
I started out as an early childhood educator in the
pre-nursery class. The process of documentation
then was joyful and meaningful. Here was agroup of children who were
not quite ready to respondwhen their parents asked
them at the end of theday, “How was your day
in school?” Through thephotographs and voices of
the children and teacher
written in words, parents
were able to understandwhat their child was learning,
exploring and experimenting
with daily. It was not somuch about accountability,
but rather, a way to createshared understanding anda way for everyone to bepresent.
Over
theyears,
mythinking on documentation
has been growing andcontinuallychallenged.
Documentation takes time.
As Stefania Giamminuti said at the REACH
conference Encountering Reggio Emilia : Values,
experiences and identities, 2013, documentation

is not about taking timeaway from the children.
It is about taking thetime to see more andto see better. It is about
taking the time to ‘slow
down’ to think andreflect deeply on how
children are engaging
with the materials andwhat they are reallytelling us through theirrepresentations...
Documentation
helps
us think how we canrelaunch and extend children’s initial ideas.

documentation. The teacher learns to take onother roles.
In depicting the learning through documentation,teachers must master many skills: an art director,
a writer, a photographer, and an educator. Whatam I seeing? How do I capture this? How do I
present and share this? How can I enrich thislearning experience and deepen understanding?
(Richland Academy, 2013)
Source:http://www.richlandacademy.ca/richlandWP/?p=4318

In EtonHouse pre-school, our template fordocumenting daily observations of our children
has seen many changes over the years. At thecore of our documentation lies 3 fundamental
questions – what we see (the observation), what
we understand (i.e. the interpretation) what we do(the next step i.e. our planning). We learned as
educators that there is no one way to document.
We have also reflected on the target audiencefor our documentation. From sharing solely withparents at the end of an inquiry, we now understandthe value that documentation has in supporting
the learning of the class. We
share our documentation withall interested participants –the children, teachers and allinterested collaborators whocome and dialogue together.
Daniela Lanzi, one of thepedagogiste with the Municipal
Preschools and Infant-toddler
Centres in Reggio Emilia argued
that documentation should not
only be used as follow-up fora finished process, but also
during the learning process.
Daniela explained that if you
completedocumentation
only at the end, then it is not
documentation, it is visible
communication.
Documentation has honed
my skills in many different
areas. I learned how to takebetter photographic images
and develop different ways of presentation andlayout to produce insightful and visually rich

-8-

Vea Vecchi further expounds on documentation,
When teachers learn to take photos and work on
documentation, they are not just learning a skill,
but also a careful and attentive way of seeing. It isa way of seeing that requires empathy. You must
be in empathy with the child and the surroundings
to capture the essence of an experience in aphotograph.
Source:http://myclassroomtransformation.
blogspot.sg/2013/04/on-display-lella-gandiniand.html
Now, as a parent, I am grateful that my children’s
pre-school educators embrace documentation
as a tool for learning and relationship-building.
My children revisit their learning throughdocumentation and share their reflections withme.
Documentation conveys the respect that
educators have for children’s thinking andvoices. It portrays the ways that the educators
have spent time with the children, to know andvalue them as unique individuals. It is a record of
shared memories and as Giamminuti said, a gift
to families.

Eton Hou se in Singap ore

Documentation - Making Teaching and Learning Visible
EtonHouse @ Robertson Walk
by Justine Wooden, Principal
educators’ and the children’s
thinking are made visible. All of
this stem from the fundamental
Reggio Emilia belief of theimage of child, where the childis seen as competent. Thus,
documentation is an important
testimony of respect to a child’s
learning process.

Quality documentation differs from a simple
recount in that it focuses on the aspects andprocesses of learning. Based on observablefacts, capable educators analyse the teaching
and learning phenomena, reflect upon it, and planfor the next rich episode of teaching and learning.
A competent educator will be able to recognise
learning as it occurs, pose poignant questions

and comments, and to constantly provoke higherorder thinking in the children, and hence achieve
deep and authentic learning.
Documentation offers an opportunity for an
educator to reflect on the quality of the teaching
episode through analysis, reflection and planning,as well as to record children’s responses toa teaching and learning episode. Both theThrough honouring a child’s
enormous potential, curiosityand capabilities, the teacher as facilitator theninteract with the child to inspire and provoke
learning, where the children will express throughthe hundred languages.
It is therefore clear how documentation is key
to the realization of the Reggio Emilia inspired
approach.

Documentation – a Tool for Thinking Together
EtonHouse @ Vanda
by Munia Ahmed, Principal“Documentation
is
not
about
finding
answers,
but generating questions.”(Filippini in Turner & Wilson,
2010, p. 9)
Documentation
offersaprocess for listening tochildren. It is a way to see
and shape how and whatchildren are learning. We,
at Vanda, believe in quality
documentation
which
prompts
questionsandpromotesconversations
among children and adults

that deepen and extend
learning.

This can help lead to new ways of learning.

We see children as researchers working withothers to make sense of the world, and we, as
educators, are researchers as well. By offering ourthoughts collaboratively through documentation,
we research on children’s curiosity to generatetheories about their holistic development. And
in the process, our own understanding widens,
deepens and takes in multiple perspectives.

Making children’s learning visible helps
offer insight into their thinking, feelings andvalues, which in turn allows us to study themeaning of events to them.

Reference: Turner, T. & Wilson, D. (2010).
Reflections on documentation: A discussion withthought leaders from Reggio Emilia. Theory into
Practice, 49, 5-13.

Through documentation,
we not only focus onwhat children are doing, but we makevisible how they are doing.

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EtonH ou se in China

Empowering Children’s Thinking and Inquiry throughDocumentation
by Debra Liu, Director of Pedagogy, China
The purpose of documenting in Early Years is
not only to “make learning visible” , but also to
support and power further inquiry. The mostimportant audience for documentation panels are
the children themselves, as they revisit their own
experiences and are prompted to undergo further
investigation.

visible expressions of learning.
When “visual literacy” is taken into account,documentation panels become an ongoing
journey into learning and discovery.
As the children from Eton House Suzhou Baitang
looked at the documentation of their inquiry into
buildings, they engaged in conversation to further
clarify their thoughts, which then led to further
inquiry. The first documentation panel showed
the children’s two-dimensional plans for building
construction. Their ongoing conversation led to an

The children thenparticipatedinconstructing their own
three-dimensional
documentation.
Yosan and Vincent
build block towers
next to other three
dimensional buildings
and discuss how theywould like the teacher
to “write about” theirconstructions.
The
children thus become
active participants in
documenting their own
learning journeys.

exploration of building materials.
This inquiry culminated in further exploration of
3-dimensional building construction, with the
documentation panels serving as focal points torevisit, assess and plan their future inquiry.

Mickey and Linda are looking at the documentation
panel showing their drawings of building structures. The
conversation children had regarding their building plans
led to discussions about how buildings are made.

Thus, it is crucial that documentation panels areaccessible to children. Wein (2011) discusses
the importance of “visual literacy” in ensuring that
documentation panels are not only documenting
authentic learning, but also bringing clarity to the

Yosan and Vincent revisit their experiences in building
materials through the documentation panels. Yosan
pointed out words identifying various building materials,
thus along with powering inquiry, supported thechildren’s language development.

Reference: Wien, C. (2011). Learning to Document
in Reggio-inspired Education. Early Childhood
Research & Practice, 13(2).

Using Documentation to inform prospective parents ofLearning and Teaching
EtonHouse @ Hong Kong, Tai Tam
by Allison Banbury, Principal

acted as the catalyst for dialogue
about art in our school. As children
made mooncakes, their parents
were informed of our approachto the learning and teaching ofChinese language and culture. The
light atelier was used as the basis
for discussion about our music
curriculum as children investigatedsound waves using their voice andother music makers.

Families were invited to our recent
Mid-Autumn Festival themed OpenHouse in September. Our teachers
were charged with making learningand teaching visible to parents
whilstdelivering
meaningfulexperiences to children.
Through collaborative discussion,
the teachers decided to use video
footage, photographs, learning
stories and newsletter articles toshowcase learning experiences
and aspects of our curriculum
linked to the Mid Autumn festival.
They also ensured that documentation boards
reflected learning in these aspects.
Whilst children appreciated the scent of different

fruit and herb teas, their parents were informedof other sensory experiences offered to ourchildren.
The lantern decorating experience- 10 -The Open House enabled us toexperience the power of bringing thevarious sources of documentation
together to deliver a very strong message of ourintentionally planned curriculum and the impact of
this on children’s learning.

EtonH ou se in China

Documentation - making Teaching and Learning Visible
EtonHouse @ Time Residence, Chengdu
by Carol Pedersen, Executive Principal, International Division of Southwest China
develop the practiceofobservinganddocumenting children’s
learning and using it
to examine their own
questions about teaching
and learning. Tools thatassist us in this processof making learning visible
through documentation
are videos, photographs,
computers and children’swork.

In music class, the children were playing with the instruments by themselves. They
found out that it is so much fun if they play as a team, so they decided to make a little
band.

Our overall goal of
making learning visible
is to create and sustain
powerfulculturesoflearning in and acrossthe classrooms. Learningin groups not only helps
us learn about content,

In this era of globalization, our ability to learn andfunction as part of diverse groups is essential forour capacity to survive and strive. We believethat pedagogical documentation offers more thanjust a record, it offers a process for listening tochildren, creating artifacts from that listening andstudying with others what children reveal about
their competent and thoughtful views of the world.
When we listen to children, we document live
moments with images. Hearing other thoughts
makes us realise that there are many viewpoints.
Documentation serves different purposes during
different stages of learning - it allows for grouplearning environments to shape how and what
we learn. Our educators at EtonHouse Times
Residence Chengdu work collaboratively toit also helps us learn in a way that fits with thekind of people we want to become and the world
we want to create. Learning in groups develops
critical human capacities for participating in a
democratic society - the ability to share our views
and listen to those of others, entertain multiple
perspectives, seek connections, change our ideas
and negotiate conflict.
Pedagogical documentation goes beyond thefoundation of the developmental continuum towelcome both children’s perspectives and ourstudy of their views. It is when we have madechildren’s thoughts, feelings and values visiblethat we can study the meaning of events tochildren, offering our thoughts collaboratively sothat our own understanding widens, deepens, andtakes in multiple perspectives.

Communicator: Doris uses her own words to explain her
friend how to use the thermometer.

In our “Passport Office”, students had to tell the teacher
their name, gender, age, and home country in English.

- 11 -

E tonH ou se in Korea

Making Learning Visible by Listening
EtonHouse @ Korea
by Cara Clark, Lead Teacher, EtonHouse Bundang

ideas through theirexperiences.

Listening is central to learning, sharing andgrowing. In order to pass on something that wehave learned, it is essential that we listen. Listening
gives value to the ideas and perspectives of thechild. If we are truly listening, we have to challenge
our existing ideas with the ideas of others (Rinaldi2004).

When we makelisteningandlearning
visible,we bring the ideas
and experiencesofindividuals
to the learning
community. By doing this, we create a listening
community, and when people in a community
listen to one another, ideas and perspectives arechallenged. Continually evaluating
our ideas through the ideas of others
connects us to one another. We areconnected not by our similarities,
but by our differences - it is ourdifferences that make us useful to one
another because they offer anotherperspective (Rinaldi 2004). This
creates a true learning community.

Questioning a child on their idea, taking a pictureof what they have discovered, or displaying
something they have created demonstrates ourlistening. This shows the child that we care, andthat their ideas are valued. When a child feels
like their ideas are valued, they become directive
agents of their own learning and construct their- 12 -

EtonH ou se in Jap an

Making Teaching and Learning Visible for our Community
EtonHouse @ Japanby EtonHouse Tokyo Teachers
At the end of each academic year at EtonHouse Tokyo, we celebrate ourlearning by organizing an art fundraising exhibition for our families and local
community.

Monkeypod Treehouses
The
treehouse
series(novels by Andy Griffiths
and Terry Denton) inspired
the children to look atarchitectural concepts withrecyclable materials. Eachhouse was handcrafted byeach child and is uniqueto them. The creative
thinking enabled children
to express their ideas
through the 100 languages
of Reggio Emilia. The
strongest language used
was through a series of trial
and error, as well as thelanguage of constructional
design and planning.

At EtonHouse Tokyo, we value the language of art and embrace art as aflexible medium to express theoretical thinking of our children.
Below are some amazing examples and explanations of how teachers andchildren use the language of art to make their learning visible for our learning
community.
Participation + patience + perseverance = productThis art project
was inspired bythechildren’sinterest in cuttingwith scissors andpasting with glueand brushes.
The visual imageof the art projectwas
exploredalongsidethestory of Elmer theelephant.
Duringthis investigation,
children verbally communicated their understanding of Elmer’s identity anddifferences.

Project Chair
As
part
of
our
inquiry into ways wecommunicate
withpeople around us,
the children of WhiteOak class initiateda project to design
special chairs fortheir cuddly toys.
During this process,they wrote notes toparents and measured
the length of wood
needed to construct
the legs of the chairs; these are valuable learning experiences made visible
to families and friends during our art exhibition.

Funky glass jars
Allowingchildrentouse
recycled
materials
encourages children to
engage with objects indeeper and more meaningful
ways.
By using recycled glass
jars, children were able toexperiment with the different
effects of paint on glass anddiscovered lighting andshadowing formations.

- 13 -

E ton Hou se in Ind onesia

Making Teaching and Learning Visible through Documentation
EtonHouse @ Jakarta
by Natalia Ellys Susanti Ginting, N1 Teacher

At
EtonHouse
Jakarta, we feel that
documentation is very
important to the processof teaching and learning
to the community. Everyday, observations foreach child are recorded
andwrittendown.
After school hours,
teachers discuss what
they have collectively
observed of each child.
These
discussions
and documenting of all Listening to our children is a part of documentation
observations lead tofor the parents, as well. Through the portfolios,
the development of individual portfolios. These
parents get a report on what their children are
portfolios are important to the children. They candoing, saying and learning in school. Finally,
help the children reflect on their learning journeys
documentation is also important for teachers.
by reading through their own portfolios and their
Documentation gives teachers a good overview
friends’ portfolios.. The documentation is important- 14 -

Documentation as a tool for reflectionof each child’sinterestandl e a r n i n gjourney. They
also show whattheteachers
need to focus
on to meetthelearning
goals of eachchild.
Finally,
documentation
allows teachers
planforDocumentation makes children’s tobetter and more
play meaningful
challenging
provocations that would be meaningful to eachchild.

EtonH ou se in Ind ia

Documentation - Making Teaching and Learning Visible
EtonHouse @ India
Documentation
is
not
only
retrospective; it is also prospective.
It shapes the design of futurecontexts for learning. Observationand documentation are integral to
our classrooms. The documentation
panels, including photographs,
notes and artifacts, serve as visualarchives of children’s learning.
They are looked at by children
and teachers, to reflect on theexperiences and to think about themeaning.
Documentation of children’s workshows children that their ideas,
work, efforts and learning aretaken seriously by adults in theenvironment. This results in better commitment
and satisfaction amongst children whilst at work.
Documentation makes it possible for not only
the teacher to evaluate a child’s work from time
to time, but also the parent to be deeply awareof their child’s work, experiences and learning at
school.
It serves different purposes during different stagesof learning. What seems to remain constant is that
quality documentation focuses on some aspectof learning and not just “what we did”. It prompts
questions and promotes conversations amongchildren and adults to deepen and extend learning.
At Vivero & Serra, we take pride in our efforts tomake learning visible to all. Our documentation
boards and portfolios speak volumes about ourchildren’s progress and involvement in the cycleof learning.

- 15 -