My Pedagogical Development

When I arrived from Vietnam as an international student, I was used to early education that was teacher-led and focused on rote learning. Australia’s child-centred, relationship-based philosophy felt completely new and completely right. During placements at Guardian Bruce and Kirinari UC Campus, and later as a room leader at Wonderschool Dickson, I slowly unlearned old habits and grew into a practice rooted in respect for each child’s voice, culture, and unique way of being.

My university studies became the bridge: Play in EC, Leadership in ECE, Mathematics in EC, STEM, and etc,. showed me that the first five years are not about preparing children for school, but about nurturing their confidence, kindness, curiosity, and the feeling that they belong. These are the things children will need for their whole life. Every challenge (language barriers, mistakes in leadership, gaps in knowledge) pushed me closer to this truth. 

The biggest gift from my studies was learning about Loris Malaguzzi and his idea of “The Hundred Languages of Children” (the heart of the Reggio Emilia approach). Malaguzzi said children don’t have just one way to think or show what they know, they have a hundred ways! They can draw, build, dance, sing, pretend, make shadows, mix paint, tell stories with blocks, or whisper secrets to a teddy bear. Every one of these is a real language. When I read this, everything clicked. A scribble is a story. A mud pie is science. Running in circles can be joy and learning about the body at the same time.

This idea feels close to my heart because I came from Vietnam, where we mostly learned by listening to the teacher and repeating. Seeing children express themselves in a hundred different ways opened my eyes and my heart. Now in my classroom, I set up invitations so children can choose their language: paint a feeling, build a city, act out a family party, or make music with pots and spoons. I watch, I listen, I take photos, and I help them turn their ideas into something even bigger. When we truly listen to all of children’s hundred languages, every child feels seen, every child feels smart, and the room becomes full of magic. This is the kind of teacher I want to be every day.