Here at Inspirations, Christmas is not just a season of decorations and gifts, it’s a celebration of children’s creativity, curiosity, and community. Inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, we believe that every child has “a hundred languages” countless ways of expressing themselves through art, play, movement, storytelling, and imagination.

This year, like every year, we invite the children to explore Christmas through those languages, and the results are magical.

Christmas in Many Languages

• Art and Making: In the Art Studio the children have been making their own tree decorations using clay and sequins, whilst all the rooms have explored art and festive mark making through paint, chalk and loose parts.
• Light and Shadow: Lanterns, fairy lights, and candles became tools for discovery. Children experimented with shadows on the wall, noticing how light transforms a space; a beautiful metaphor for the way Christmas brings warmth and brightness.
• Storytelling: Around the circle, children shared stories of family, foods, and the excitement of waiting for Father Christmas.
• Music and Movement: Singing and signing ‘When Santa Got Stuck up the Chimney’, dancing to jingling bells, and even creating rhythms with stick drums and bells — these were joyful languages of celebration that filled our nursery with energy. In the Art Studio the ukulele still provides a lot of joy and accompanies some impressive dance moves.

The Environment as a Teacher

In Reggio Emilia, the environment is considered the “third teacher.” For Christmas, we transformed our spaces with natural materials: pinecones, branches, recycled paper, and festive sensory baskets for our little ones. The children helped arrange these elements, creating a festive atmosphere that was both sustainable and meaningful.

Community and Connection

Christmas is also about togetherness. Collaborative projects, like the art work in the Baby Rooms and decorating the tree together in Pre-school  allowed children to see how their individual contributions form part of a bigger picture. This mirrors the spirit of community we value so deeply: every child, parent, and educator is part of our nursery’s story. Even really simple ideas to make such transient art -such as marking out tape or paper on the floor in the shape of a tree, snowman or bauble, and using any available resources to decorate it- can provide a wonderful activity to do as a family.

A Christmas of Many Voices

By honouring the hundred languages of children, we celebrate Christmas not as a single tradition, but as a tapestry of voices, ideas, and expressions. Parents, we invite you to see your child’s creations not just as festive crafts, but as windows into their thinking, their identity, and their joy.

This Christmas, may we all listen more closely to the many languages of childhood — and discover new ways to celebrate together.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for a great year and wish you all a wonderful Christmas a New Year. And just remember- what means the most to our children is our love and attention, and the box their gifts arrive in.

-Nathalie