Buffalo’s Explore and More Children’s Museum and the idea of Creative Cities.
The “Feeding the Planet…Energy for Life” theme Expo Milano 2015 will take place in the great Italian city of Milan.
Expo 2015 will be an extraordinary universal event displaying tradition, creativity and innovation in the business of food. It will bring together many themes that have already been handled by this event in the past, and set them out anew in light of new global possibilities whose common core is the idea that everyone on the planet should have access to food that is healthy, safe and sufficient.
The venue will contain a Children Park that is a venture of the Istituzione Scuole e Nidi di Infanzia of the Reggio Emilia Municipality (the Reggio Emilia Institute of Kindergarten and Elementary School). I was immediately attracted because an educational institute is involved. I immediately thought of the Explore & More Children’s Museum which will be part of the attraction at the Erie Canal Harbor (Canalside).
I am hoping that the small piece presented below with permission from its author, Mr. Gianluca Grassi at Reggio nel Mondo, and might stimulate others into some creative ideas that not only attractive visitors but also provide a memorable experience at the same time. And very possibly trigger the involvement of the Education Department at the SUNY Buffalo State College.
Travel, Sightseeing and Education can indeed be fun. Please note, the accompanying videos are but you will get the creative message.
Children Park between games and good habits
The Reggio Emilia world famous educational strategy inspire the thematic area dedicated to children and families
The educational strategy at the base of Children Park, an area dedicated to children and families at the site of Expo Milano 2015, is the heart of the collaboration signed by Expo 2015 SpA and the Istituzione Scuole e Nidi di Infanzia of the Reggio Emilia Municipality (the Reggio Emilia Institute of Kindergarten and Elementary School) on November 27th. A place of play and knowledge, Children Park will offer a moment of relax and fun for all those who visit the Universal Exhibition in Milan. On its paths the children and their families will learn healthy lifestyles and good eating habits.
The Park and its theme is of the utmost importance for the Universal Exhibition, therefore Expo 2015 SpA has decided to start a collaboration with cultural institutions and government whose excellence in the educational philosophy is recognized throughout the world. Hence the agreement with Reggio Emilia, a city of great tradition in education, known for having developed the “Reggio Emilia Approach”, and educational method appreciated and applied all over the world, from China to the United States.
This cooperation, signed by the CEO of Expo 2015 SpA Giuseppe Sala and the President of the Istituzione Scuole e Nidi di Infanzia of the Reggio Emilia Municipality, goes in this direction.
To develop the project of the Children Park, Reggio Emilia will provide its expertise in the pedagogical and educational systems and the skills acquired in design and communication. Reggio Emilia and its educational approach will be alongside the Expo Milano 2015 during events and international meetings related to the family and the children’s education issues.
Supported by a worldwide network of experts and researchers, the Reggio Emilia Institute of Kindergarten and Elementary School will give added value to the agreement with the Milan World Expo. The purpose is to define routes and occasions of game that will enhance the theme and the principles of the Universal Exhibition. The new generations, thanks to the discoveries and adventures of the Children Park, will become more aware of the great challenges of food and the availability of resources with which humanity must face.
