Embassy Education and Reggio Children launch Little Em Reggio Emilia preschool

Little Em's, the first Reggio Emilia Approach preschool in Vietnam, opened in Vietnam

Little Embassy (abbreviated to Little Em’s) is a member of Embassy Education. “Em” also means “child” in the Vietnamese language, who are the future of the world.

Little Em’s marks an important turning point in the official education and training co-operation between Reggio Children and Embassy Education. Through an official co-operation agreement between the two organisations, Embassy Education is recognised as a partner in image development and implementing the Reggio Emilia Approach educational philosophy in Vietnam.

Little Em’s is the very first Reggio Emilia Approach Preschool to implement Vietnam’s early childhood education curriculum for children aged 2-6 years.

It will creatively apply this unique preschool model suitable to the Vietnamese social context, maintaining and promoting cultural identity. The curriculum not only prepares children with the skills they need for the future but also combines a diverse and wide range of subjects integrated with the arts to help holistic personality formation and competence development.

“Before having children, I thought I understood what it meant to be a father,” said Bui Vu Thanh, founder of Embassy Education. “But when I became a father, I realised that there was so much I didn’t know.”

“The world is changing so fast. What should I do so my children have access to all the advancements of the world, but still retain their own cultural identity? I have travelled to many places to find the answers and was fortunate to find out about the Reggio Emilia Approach from Italy.”

Little Em’s Preschool will be an exemplary model of the Reggio Emilia Approach so that teachers, parents, and educational institutions can learn and experience the model and understand how to appropriately contextualise it for the Vietnamese culture and the country’s education system.

Teachers of Reggio Emilia Approach record children’s development throughout the year to help them and their parents notice daily changes, not only physically, mentally, and emotionally but also in their skills development. This helps the children, parents, and teachers become aware of their development, thereby facilitating the exchange and planning of children’s learning in the future.

On the occasion of the opening of Little Em’s, Dr Claudia Giudici, president of Reggio Children, committed to partner with Embassy Education through its member Global Embassy to organise an education conference to introduce fully the Reggio Emilia Approach to early childhood educators, training experts, education officials, teachers, and parents and the applicability of this approach in the Vietnamese context.

Ton Nu Thi Ninh, former Deputy Chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Assembly, also participated in the opening as one of three main speakers. She shared her perspective on how to best prepare the future generation in the face of major issues such as globalisation, climate change, and technological development, to nurture the next generation of Vietnamese citizens with global thinking and local identity.