Making the Social Visible Within Inclusive Classrooms

There is an increasing need to address children's social development in the midst of academic initiatives for early childhood curricula. A study was conducted to make visible and support children's social interactions within inclusive preschool classrooms through documentation from the Reggio Emilia approach. Findings demonstrated that children's interactions occurred among different configurations within inclusive preschool classrooms, involving: 1) children who were typically developing, 2) children who had certified disabilities, and 3) children who were typically developing and those having certified disabilities. These social interactions occurred within three areas of the classroom context: transitions between routine activities, open-ended activities, and teachers' roles. Implications suggest that documentation techniques can serve as both a research and teaching tool for promoting social interactions among early childhood educators.