The experience of the Municipal Infant-Toddler Centers and Preschools of Reggio Emilia began in 1963 with the opening of the first preschools (children aged three to six), followed in 1970 by the infant-toddler centers (children three months to three years old). Within this experience, a pedagogical and cultural project has been developed and implemented that has continued to represent a point of reference of intense vitality for the city of Reggio Emilia. It is the subject of interest, research, and exchange on the part of teachers, teacher educators, researchers, administrators, and political and cultural figures from all over Italy and throughout the world.

The international recognition of the Reggio preschools exploded in 1991 when a panel of experts commissioned by Newsweek magazine identified the preschools of Reggio Emilia as the most avant-garde early childhood institution in the world. Other important recognitions followed immediately. In 1992, the schools in Reggio were awarded the Danish LEGO Prize. Also in 1992, an analogous award was made to the Reggio Emilia municipal infant-toddler centers and preschools by the Kohl Foundation of Chicago. In 1994, the Hans Christian Andersen Prize was awarded to the Reggio institutions. In the same year, similar recognition was given by the Mediterranean Association of International Schools.

The educational experience for children ages three months to six years is based on the image of a child who has great potential for development and is the subject of rights, a child who learns and grows in relation with others, through the hundred languages of doing, being, reflecting, and knowing. The specific identity of the early childhood services managed by the Municipality of Reggio Emilia is based on a number of distinct features: the participation of families, the collegial work of the staff, the value given to organization, the importance given to the school environment, the presence of the atelier and the on-site kitchen, and the pedagogical-didactic coordinating team.

For more information about the Schools of Reggio, Reggio Children, and for study tour information visit www.reggiochildren.it