Week 9: Interviewing with Elsa
Mae b -
This week, I had the pleasure of getting to do a formal interview with Elsa and her husband Sean. Sean does GalaMundi’s marketing and helps Elsa with the behind-the-scenes of running GalaMundi: setting up the play areas, designing the curriculum, getting all of the necessary paperwork settled.
Here are some of the highlights from the interview…
I asked how they chose HighScope and Reggio Emilia as their guiding curriculums. “Because they are driven by play,” they told me. Learning by playing and learning by doing are important in GalaMundi. Elsa also mentioned later on that a big part of getting the students ready for kindergarten is giving them playtime to develop socially. Being able to communicate effectively with adults and with other kids and understand social situations is a really important skill – and it facilitates learning later on.
I’ve talked before about the ways they use HighScope in the classroom, but I learned in the interview that they also use HighScope’s conflict resolution pathway. It involves talking with the kids about what happened, asking them what can be done to resolve the problem, and guiding them through peaceful compromise. I like it – it reminds me of the way I would use the “peace rose” or the “talking stick” at Montessori to resolve conflicts.
I asked about bilingualism in the classroom. “What works best to teach the kids Spanish?” I asked. “Immersion,” Sean said immediately. “They just need exposure to the language.” Elsa followed up: “When they hear it, they speak it.” Only about 10-15% of GalaMundi’s students speak Spanish at home, but most of them learn to speak at GalaMundi. Lots of kids after GalaMundi go on to Spanish-speaking grade schools or to take optional Spanish classes at their schools to continue to use the language. Some parents have contacted Elsa to let her know they are grateful for what she did for their kid and that they are keeping up with their Spanish. I was excited to hear about this, especially since languages are really a “use it or lose it” skill.
My favorite part of the interview was when I asked about kindergarten preparation, and Elsa and Sean mentioned reading. They focus on giving kids a love of reading, “even if that just means biting the book,” Shawn said. It made me laugh. I’ve seen the kids use books as hats, as parts of a house, or, yes, as something to put in their mouths.
Next week, I’ll update on how my Reggio-themed decorations are going! In the meantime, here are some photos of the toddler classroom at GalaMundi’s new location.
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