And what, if not the experience of other countries, allows you to form your own idea of what a kindergarten should look like - the same one that a child will be happy to go to every morning, where there are no semolina with lumps and absolutely no one locks you in the toilet. Let's learn about the Italian experience. What are they like, kindergartens in Italy? Of course, we will talk about municipal preschool institutions.
Nurseries in Italy
Most Italian babies go to nurseries at 3 months. 5 months - this is how long official maternity leave lasts for Italian mothers (2 months before giving birth and 3 after). You can, of course, take another 6 months, but in this case the payments will be only 30% of the salary level. Therefore, most Italian women decide to send their child to a nursery (or grandmother, nanny) at the age of about six months. This usually coincides with the introduction of complementary foods.
So, official nurseries in Italy work with babies aged 3 months and older. There are also municipal nurseries, but getting there is difficult. Private ones are also controlled by the state and cost from 500 euros per month. However, there is a catch: the nursery is only open until 16:00. Therefore, parents get out of the situation as best they can, because not everyone works until 15-16 hours (plus travel time to kindergarten). Grandmothers, nannies, neighbors with the same kids are used. In general, the presence of grandparents is very helpful; it is the older generation that is seriously involved in the leisure time of the little ones and their additional development. An Italian grandfather I know gathers all the neighbor kids (albeit older ones, about 3 years old) and digs with them in an impromptu garden.
Kindergarten in Italy: from 3 to 5
Although preschool education is not officially compulsory in Italy, almost all children between the ages of 3 and 5 attend kindergarten. In addition to private and municipal ones, there are Catholic gardens.
There is payment in municipal ones; usually parents pay for meals and buy various gaming and educational materials. The amount depends on the official income of the family: some pay 300 euros, and others 50. There are exactly the same queues, which are more likely for children with special needs, from single-parent families, or both working parents.
But it is easier to get into Catholic kindergartens; they are divided rather according to the principle of proximity of residence and provide approximately the same preschool education. They are cheaper than private ones, but more expensive than municipal ones. The nuns of the order under which the garden is organized spend a lot of time with the children.
What all Italian kindergartens have in common is something that will surprise Ukrainian mothers. Children here practically do not walk outside. Italian parents and pediatricians believe that children do not necessarily need to be outside, especially if the temperature is below 10 degrees.
In kindergartens for older children there are after-school programs that run until 18:00. Enrolling a child in them costs an additional fee, approximately another 100-150 euros per month.
They treat diapers calmly here; up to the age of 3, it is generally not customary to remove a diaper from a child. But if the parents insist, then the teachers will do the planting, but definitely not before the baby’s 2nd birthday.
Blankets, pillows, linen, bibs and other textiles in Italian kindergartens are individual for each child. Everything is given to parents on Friday for washing and replacement.
As in most European gardens, children do not sleep during the day. And if they sleep, then right on the floor on gymnastic mats or mattresses. Shoes are not removed during sleep - this is a fire safety requirement. All shoes are only with Velcro!
As for food, kindergartens usually have a seasonal menu: summer and winter. Children have breakfast at home, lunch in the garden, and for afternoon snack they eat what they brought from home. For lunch - pasta, pizza, rice, beans, potatoes, lean meat, sauces. And no soups! Dairy is also not welcome here due to the large number of allergies to cow's milk protein. Therefore, children do not bring yogurt with them, but only eat it at home.
Photo: shutterstock, depositphotos
The Italian Republic is a State in Southern Europe, in the center of the Mediterranean Sea, at the crossroads of trade routes between West and East, which is an extremely important factor in the development of the country's economy in all eras. The capital of the state is Rome. Italy is a democratic parliamentary republic led by a president. Executive power in the country belongs to the Council of Ministers.
In order to have a general idea of the atmosphere in which education in Italy began, took shape and continues to develop, let us present a brief description of the country, its economy and population composition, which are the formative basis for the development of society, culture, and history.
About 67% of Italy's population are city dwellers. Almost all residents of the country (93%) are Italians. Like many other developed countries, in Italy in recent decades the birth rate and natural population growth have been declining, the average family size is declining, and the nation is aging. The economically active population numbers 22.8 million people, of which 12% are unemployed or young people looking for their first job. Many people go abroad in search of work. At the moment, due to the large flow of migrants, Italy itself is using the labor of foreign workers. The number of legal immigrants is high, and illegal immigration from the most disadvantaged countries has recently become a serious social problem and challenges the entire way of life.
The history of the formation of kindergarten in Italy has its roots in the distant past. This organization experienced an evolution, during which it was able to establish its educational objectives, overcoming functions aimed only at the care and supervision of a child, and reaching the level of the first stage of school education.
"Scuola dell" Infanzia" - "Childhood School" - "Kindergarten" - a more familiar name for the Russian education system - as an institution, dates back to 1968, with the adoption of Law No. 444 of March 18, 1968, thanks to which, after long discussions, the tradition of state disinterest in this age category of children, which until now had only been dealt with by church parishes, religious organizations and municipalities, was interrupted.
However, institutions of this type have already existed since the Industrial Revolution (18th century), when the manual labor of women in industry began to take them away from home and, as a result, it became necessary to look after preschool children in a certain place during the working hours of their mothers. “Childcare rooms” appeared - “Sale di Custodia”, nurseries - “Asili” - literally - shelters for children, which became the prototypes of modern kindergartens.
The merit of creating the first preschool institutions, in which, along with other types of education, children were given elementary education (teachers talking about nature, telling fairy tales, reading children's books, and so on) in practice belongs to the English socialist - utopian - Robert Owen. This work experience was subsequently transferred to the UK, and then to France and Germany.
In 1839, thanks to the work of the German teacher, Frederick Froebel, “Kindergartens” were born, which became widespread and had a long life.
In Italy, the initiative to create kindergartens belonged to the priest Ferrante Aporti (1791 - 1858), who was sure that many of man’s troubles stem from his ignorance, and saw his mission in the education of young people of all ages. In 1828, in Cremona (a city in the Italian region of Lombardy), he opened the first "Asylum for Children" ("Asilo d"infanzia"), which accepted children from two and a half years old on a paid basis. Later, a kindergarten was opened, funded by the Austrian state and a rural school for children. The initiative spread to such regions as: Lombardy, Veneto, Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna.
Half a century later, Froebel Kindergartens appeared in Italy - this was favored by the interest of the political elite of that time, confirmation of which we find in a circular letter from the Minister of Education Coppino dated September 17, 1885.
The work of the sisters Rosa and Carolina Agazzi is highly important, who opened the first Mother's School in Mompiano in 1895, giving it this name, because they believed that the teacher should evoke the role and image of the mother and the school environment should accept the child as the family environment. The methods of work that were used were methods of instrumental pedagogy (John Dewey), known and used in many European countries. The point was that young children, from a very early age, learned to do everything on their own, mainly in the form of play, developing the child’s free activity and his creative potential. In one of her works, Rosa Agazzi emphasized the importance of creating a functional material environment for the development of a child. She wrote: “It is very strange that in the process of the current awakening of awareness in relation to childhood, there has not been an authoritative voice calling on planners and architects to listen not to their own imagination, but to those who live childhood and know its needs.”
The educational model of the Agazzi sisters was a huge success in Italy and in general terms it can be said that it was followed until the end of the 20th century, especially since even the name “Mother School” was adopted by the law establishing the public school in 1968.
Another famous figure in the field of preschool education, who left behind a huge contribution to pedagogy, was Maria Montessori, who, working as a physician with mentally retarded children, adopted the methods she created for children who develop normally, and obtained optimal results. In 1907, in one of the most densely populated and poor quarters of Rome - San Lorenzo, she opened the first Children's Home, for children from three to six years old, in working with whom she applied her method of scientific pedagogy, which in 1909 became a publication accepted with with great enthusiasm in Europe and around the world. The Maria Montessori method originates in a new concept of childhood, which asserts that in the freedom of self-expression given to the child are the seeds of development and growth.
Many visitors to the Children's House had the opportunity to observe children going about their activities calmly and joyfully without incentives in the form of rewards or suppression in the form of punishments.
The development of the child’s intellectual abilities was prepared by sensory education, as a result of which the baby could freely manipulate the material he chose, which helped him independently correct his mistakes, without the help of a teacher. Montessori schools spread in Italy and throughout the world, especially in North America. India was so interested in the new method of education that it invited an innovative teacher to give a course of lectures during the Second World War.
It can be argued that Montessori was recognized by the world as a teacher who “liberated” the child.
On March 18, 1968, a law was passed that established the Mother School at the state level, and a multi-year plan was approved for the creation of preschool organizations of this format throughout Italy, especially in the south of the country. A period of rapid development of the school education system began: primary schools everywhere expanded their schedule to full time, nurseries opened, municipalities established school canteens, renovated old structures and erected new buildings. However, the Mother School, just as now, was not a compulsory level of primary education, and the possibility of enrolling a child in this organization, especially in densely populated areas, was associated with the real capacity of the structure, with the teaching staff and with the economic capabilities of the Municipality.
The 1968 law marked a decisive transition from the perception of the Mother School as a place for receiving and caring for children, to a school with clearly defined goals, objectives, content, and methods. In the published Guidelines (Orientamenti), although there was a sense of direction strengthened by years of previous practice, a school of a new formation was already emerging. They contained recommendations for the use of more progressive didactic methods to promote the development of the child. Educational programs and areas were indicated as spheres of action and activity for the child to achieve his own goals, according to his own rhythm. It is the Guiding Principles that recognize the inalienable rights of children guaranteed to all by the Constitution - the right to education and education and thus mark the evolution of the Mother School into the Childhood School, as it is now called. The Guidelines emphasize the centrality of the child, recognize diversity, and pay attention to the psychophysical well-being of pupils. For a positive result of work, the following are highlighted as essential: flexibility in organizing activities, dialogue with parents, collegiality as a guiding principle in the work of the teaching staff, building positive relationships with nearby organizations.
In the 1991 decree, the "Scuola Materna" - "Mother's School" - is most often referred to as the "Scuola dell" Infanzia" - "Childhood School", since this name "is most consistent with the development that characterizes this structure at the moment."
Law No. 53, adopted in 2003, recognizes the Childhood School as the first stage of the educational process, which should affect the entire life of a person, defining its special tasks and functions as fundamental for the full development of a person in all its directions, in relation to continuity with subsequent stages of education. The Childhood School promotes the emotional, psychomotor, cognitive, moral, religious and social development of the child, teaches how to build relationships in society, reveals creative potential and personal self-determination. italy preschool education montessori
The recommendations, in accordance with what is already expressed in the Guidelines, describe the educational environment as a place for acquiring practical experience, as a first and extremely important approach to culture, naturally in forms appropriate to the mental and psychological development of the child. It is recommended that play be a factor in the child’s development and a channel of communication, an opportunity for research and search, gaining sensory experience, as well as gradual and correct progress towards symbolic representations of informal activities on the one hand, and the beginning of the path to mastering specific knowledge on the other.
The School of Childhood, based on the values of education and training, based on the knowledge of preschool education presented in Italian and foreign pedagogical literature, implements ministerial projects. Today it has become the flagship of the Italian school system, attracting the attention of many countries in Europe and the World.
According to recent studies, almost 98% of Italian children attend the Childhood School. This fact indicates the exceptional importance of a child’s primary education, the full development of his abilities, his talent for socialization, his personal and social growth.
Preschool institutions in Italy at the moment can be conditionally divided into public (municipal) and private, most often belonging to the Catholic Church - Monastic Orders, Religious organizations. There are also gardens and nurseries opened at specific institutions, factories, firms (asilo o/e asilo nido aziendale) or various Associations. A system of alternative children's institutions has been developed, such as: micro-nurseries ("micro nido") - a private institution for 12-15 children; family nursery ("nido famiglia") - a mother with special training and all the necessary permissions hosts a group of 3-4 children at home; included nursery ("nido integrato"); nursery (nursery group) as part of a kindergarten; baby parking ("baby parking"); children's center ("sePgo infanzia").
Italian kindergartens and schools, educational and cultural centers, exist, work and develop in many countries of the world - where Italians live, where there are large or small diasporas of this people. In this context, it is interesting to mention such a phenomenon as Italian emigration, when in the period from 1861 to 1976, since the creation of Italy, about 13 million people emigrated from the country. Many went to the countries of northern Europe, the USA, Canada, and Latin American countries.
According to statistics for 2014, about 3,000 thousand Italians live in Russia. Some people live and work alone, but many come with their families, or create their own families here, raising children in the cultural traditions of two or more peoples.
Having completed a brief historical excursion of preschool education in Italy, translating certain terms in literal translation, further, in the text of this work, we will replace the name “Childhood School” with “Kindergarten”, since it is more familiar to perception, and at the same time not at all contradicts the essence of the phenomenon under study.
In the next paragraph we will introduce an Italian school in Moscow, a center of Italian culture for preschool and school-age children and their parents, as well as the basis of our research.
More and more of our clients are moving with small children. And questions immediately arise: Is this possible? What should I do? Where can you place a 2-year-old baby? How do kindergartens (nurseries) work in Italy? Let's try to answer these questions.
First of all, I would like to note that a small child is absolutely no obstacle to moving to a new country, and even more so to enrolling in a university. Remember that in Italian universities, as a rule, there is no compulsory attendance and the student plans his own time. And the second important point is that small children automatically fit into the mother’s document.
So, preschool structures in Italy can be divided into two large groups: nurseries and kindergartens. Let's take a closer look at each of the groups.
NURSES OR ASILO NIDO.
For children from 3 months to 3 years, there are public and private nurseries.
To enroll a child in a government agency, you must submit a request, which will be included in the list. It is advisable to submit a request as early as possible, since the first person to apply will receive a place first. When the submission of the request ends, usually in the month of May, all applications are processed, places are allocated and confirmation is sent to your home that you have been assigned a place and date for the parent meeting. It is possible to submit a request to several institutions at once (no more than 3), which guarantees that, if there is space, you will get into one of them.
Places on the list are allocated based on the socio-economic situation of the family: in accordance with this, a contribution for payment will be determined (on average from 50 euros to 400.00 euros, depending on the income of the parents). For children over one year old there is an additional service - from 16.30 to 17.30 a teacher sits with them, this service costs approximately 100 euros per year.
As for private nurseries, everything is much simpler here. The main thing is to pay monthly, and your child is guaranteed a place in the nursery. Of course, the cost of private nurseries is much more expensive (400-1000 euros per month depending on the region).
In the nursery, children begin to learn how to draw in different techniques and make appliqués. Nurseries in Italy are equipped in the best possible way: lots of toys and books, gyms with soft cubes, ball pits and slides, on the playground there are strollers for babies and cars with bicycles for older babies.
The nursery is open from September to June each year; in July there is a summer center for parents who work. The nursery is open 5 days a week, excluding general holidays, from 7.30 to 16.30. At the end of the day, parents are given a sheet that notes what the child ate, how many times he went to the toilet, how he slept, and what he did.
KINDERGARTEN OR SCUOLA DELL'INFANZIA.
Kindergarten in Italy lasts three years and is intended for children from 3 to 5 years old. It is not necessary to attend kindergarten, that is, parents themselves choose whether they want to send their child to kindergarten or not.
In order to enroll a child in a public kindergarten, you must go to the School Services Department (Dipartimento dei Servizi Scolastici) at the municipality. The cost depends on the financial situation of each individual family. The price for a kindergarten, as well as for a nursery, is calculated taking into account the total income of the family.
A kindergarten, like a nursery, can be either private or public. According to the age of the child, they are assigned to a group of approximately 15 to 30 children. In terms of the number of such gardens in the country, Italy occupies a leading position in Europe. About 98% of Italian children attend preschool. It is assumed that when admitted to kindergarten, a child must be potty trained and be able to take minimal care of himself: wash his hands, dry them with a towel, take off his shoes, put on a jacket.
The kindergarten's operating hours are as follows: kindergarten opens at 8 am. Lunch - at 11.30, sleep from 13.30-14.00 and until 15.00. And at 16.00-16.15 the kindergarten closes
Kindergartens at church parishes are very popular. In such institutions the director may be a nun. The focus, of course, is also appropriate: at holidays, children sing songs about Jesus, and each school year begins not with a solemn assembly with the raising of the Italian flag, but with a service in church.
After the release of the above, many questions came to our inbox. After all, today more and more people are moving to Europe with children, and therefore this argument is becoming popular.
Hello, they write about “inserimento” on various sites, but I didn’t find anything like that in your article. What is this?
Inserimento is the gradual introduction of a child to kindergarten (nursery). In Italy, it is customary that on the first day of a baby’s stay in kindergarten (nursery), the mother spends the entire day with him, from morning until evening. This involvement of the child in the established routine of the garden corresponds to a strict schedule. For example, on the first day, the mother is always next to the baby, on the second day, 15-minute breaks are organized in their communication, the third day is spent with a pause of 30 minutes, and so on. Or, depending on the institution, the mother comes with the child on the first day for an hour and stays with the child all the time. On the second day, the time increases and the child stays for lunch. On the third day, the mother is asked to simply observe from afar, and not to go to the door before she is called, even if she hears the baby crying. On the fourth day, the mother is removed for 30 minutes, and on the fifth day, the mother may no longer stay.
What do children do in kindergartens? Are there any lessons or activities?
Here is an officially confirmed list of what is taught in every preschool in Italy:
- physical activity;
— Me and others (basics of living together in society, morality);
— Expanding the child’s vocabulary, rhetoric;
— foreign languages, self-expression, creativity;
- getting to know the outside world.
Some gardens also include cooking lessons, swimming pool classes, and theater performances. Of course, a lot depends on the type of structure, private or public.
I know that schools have special buses that transport children. Is there such a service for kindergartens?
Yes, in some kindergartens you can use the school bus service for a separate and very small fee. The fee ranges from 25 to 50 euros per month.
I heard that some mothers themselves organize small kindergartens at home. This is true? how to do it?
Most likely we are talking about a family kindergarten (nursery). The essence of this type of kindergarten is this: a group of children of 3-7 people is under the supervision of a private teacher in her home during the daytime, usually together with her own child. Of course, the home must be equipped in accordance with all safety and sanitation standards. The teacher must be a mother herself or have a pedagogical education, or have experience working in a regular kindergarten. Their prices are approximately the same as in private ones.
Maternity leave in Italy lasts only 5 months, so working parents have to think about finding a nursery for their baby very early.
In Italy, nurseries (asilo-nido) accept children from 3 months old. There are 3 types of nurseries: public, private and private with state accreditation.
Kindergarten in Italy
Which one to choose depends on the preferences and income of the parents.
You must register in advance for public nurseries and kindergartens. Places in them are limited and are distributed in order of priority, that is, those who applied earlier and twins have priority. The application itself is submitted to the administration at the place of registration. The amount of payment depends on the income of the parents; those whose income does not exceed 7,000 euros per year pay the minimum.
You can get into private ones at any time if there are free places.
Their cost starts from 300 euros per month, in addition, some nurseries additionally pay for food and diapers. Private nurseries have their advantages, for example, they do not close for strikes and are open almost the whole year (except for public holidays and the month of August).
By the way, in other respects, in Italy public nurseries are in no way inferior to private ones, and sometimes even better. So the choice of which nursery to send a child to, public or private, depends on the preferences of the parents and the level of income.
A child can be sent to kindergarten (scuola materna) from the age of 3. However, some parents give it earlier, at 2.5 years (this is not possible in all municipalities). The main condition for admission to kindergarten is the fact that the child must be able to go to the potty and feed himself.
By the way, you will be surprised, but in some kindergartens in Italy they won’t change a child’s pants if he accidentally forgets to run to the potty. They will call mom and dad to come and change the baby. They say that this has something to do with the fight against pedophilia. Friends, if you have encountered this, be sure to write to me about it in the comments.
Kindergartens are open from 8 am to 4 pm, from Monday to Friday (rare kindergartens are also open on Saturdays), from September to July, closed for 2 weeks on Christmas holidays and New Year.
The cost of training also depends on whether the kindergarten is public or private, as well as on the income of the parents. In state kindergartens, only food and, if desired, additional classes with children, for example, foreign languages or gymnastics, are paid. Some preschool institutions have buses that transport children (from three years old) from home to school. It must have a teacher who monitors the children during the trip.
By the way, teachers in kindergartens usually try very hard, because their job is just a dream - they work 9 months a year, a lot of holidays and non-working days, while the rest work, all social guarantees and privileges, a quite reasonable salary (around 1200 euros per month ).
Personally, it seems to me that the work schedule of kindergartens is very strange, because it turns out that at 4 o’clock in the afternoon the child already has to be picked up from the kindergarten, and the working day of parents, as a rule, is at least until 5, that is, if you are lucky, and even up to 6-7 o’clock evenings.
The Italian state somehow did not think through this issue. The same goes for summer holidays - parents only have a month off, and the kindergarten is closed from July to September. That is, families who are deprived of the support of grandparents have a difficult time with such a schedule.
The main advantage of the Italian educational system, in my opinion, is that you can send your baby to a nursery very early, allowing the mother to return to her work or just take a little breath.
The downside is the fact that the kindergarten, in my opinion, does not provide sufficient support to families regarding the daily time their children spend in preschool educational institutions (it closes too early and has a lot of non-working days).
Of course, there is the option of finding a babysitter or leaving children in so-called baby parks, but all this is not very cheap and not everyone can afford it.
Good day everyone :)
It turned out that unexpectedly (but pleasantly) there were a lot of comments on my post about the cost of food in Italy - if anyone is interested, now let’s talk about kindergartens :)
My daughter is 5.5 years old, this “school” year is the last of three in kindergarten. We live in the suburbs of Milan, in a small town with 6 thousand people. Since last year there have been three kindergartens; before that there was only one of ours that was public and one that was completely private.
The cost of visiting in the first year was 170 euros per month (paid for 10 months a year, from September to June inclusive). Last year 180 euros, and this year 190 euros per month. Inflation is obvious))
The kindergarten opens at 8 am, and until 9-15 you can take your child to the kindergarten, after which the doors close, those who did not have time are late. You can pick up your child as early as 15-45 and until 16-15. Everything after this is considered an extension and is paid separately. Lunch is included in the standard price.
Photo at the entrance to the kindergarten
Multi-colored stickers on the floor in the shape of hearts make it easy to get lost - they lead to groups that are divided by color.
At the entrance there is a notice board on which, among other things, there is a menu:
For example, the first week of the month:
Monday - whole grain pasta with tomato sauce, Edamer cheese, mashed potatoes, bread, fresh fruit
Tuesday - saffron risotto, chicken cutlet, spinach, whole grain bread, fresh fruit
Wednesday - polenta (corn porridge), veal goulash, grated carrots, bread, fresh fruit
Thursday - pureed vegetable soup, turkey escalope, green salad, whole grain bread, vanilla or chocolate pudding
Friday - pasta with pesto (green sauce made from basil and pine nuts), oven-baked flounder, oven-baked fennel, bread, fresh fruit.
I am a member of the parent committee for the cafeteria - one parent from each group - this gives me the opportunity to come unannounced to the cafeteria at lunchtime and try the food, open kitchen drawers and freezers to look at the expiration dates of food, and I remember this - great :)
Children staying for after-school hours receive an additional bun and juice... So no first and second breakfasts, as happens in other kindergartens.
Our kindergarten is considered half state, half church, that is, attached to the church. The preview photo shows that the garden is like an extension to the church. To be honest, at first this really bothered me, but then it turned out that apart from a small verbal prayer and several religious holidays a year, this is not expressed in any way.
There are only 6 groups in the kindergarten - they are named by color - blue, yellow, red, orange, green and fuchsia (pink). There are approximately 24-26 children in the group, all mixed by age, that is, in one group there are children of three, four and five years old. I think this is great, because the little ones learn a lot from the older ones, and the older ones learn to help the younger ones. The children of the first year of visit are called pulcini - chicks, the second year - cerbiatti - fawns, and the last third year - puledri - foals.
This is the entrance to my daughter’s group (as you can see, there are pink hearts on the floor):
Quiet time only for the little ones - the first year of visiting. They sleep on these folding beds, and their parents bring bed linen and pillows from home - to each their own. At the end of the week they get it back to wash and iron everything, and on Monday they take it back to kindergarten.
Since the last year, English classes have been held once a week; in addition, there are physical education classes once a week. Various holidays are celebrated - carnival, Christmas, etc..
Behind the kindergarten there is a small garden where children walk - but only when the weather is good, in winter no one takes them out)) Parent meetings three times a year..
A couple more photos of our group and the toilet room:
That seems to be all)
All the best and cat!!
