L'asilo
Kindergarten must have been a very old thing, judging by the first photos you have. It was originally run by the nuns but from 1977 onwards it has been run by the municipality.
Here is the latest news on the handover.
Kindergarten: farewell to the nuns
Sister Bernadette and Sister Emiliana will probably be remembered in our country as the last nuns in kindergarten; and it will certainly be a reminder of gratitude and gratitude for their contribution of education and service, given with tireless generosity. The new provincial order for kindergarten, published at the end of last March, provides for retirement for teachers who have reached 65 years of age. And Sister Bernadette, having just those years on her shoulders, will have to leave the post of kindergarten teacher in Castelnovo, after nine years of intense activity. She would be it was a normal staff turnover, if all this had happened ten or fifteen years ago. But, being things as they are, the Institute of the Sisters of Charity of St. Croce no longer has women religious to be able to replace those who finish their office: it is an objectively insurmountable difficulty. Some members of the asylum management even went to Besozzo (Varese), the headquarters of the Congregation of our sisters, to see if it was possible to reach a positive solution, at least for a few years. But to no avail: only a few faint hopes remain. After almost thirty years of presence of religious personnel in the asylum activity, the need arises for a new orientation in the context of the directives suggested by the aforementioned provincial law. The Castelnovo nursery school annually hosts about 30-35 children, also having to reject, due to lack of staff and space, requests for attendance from outside the country. The monthly fee of six thousand lire (ten thousand lire is paid elsewhere) is used to partially support the expenses for food. The Spagolle experimental farm and the «alla Masera ›› chicken farm also contribute generously to this with fruit, meat and eggs. The administration of the kindergarten has always been entrusted to a management, whose representatives are elected by the parents of the children who attend the kindergarten. But within the provincial law another type of management is also identified: the municipal one. It provides for the contribution of the municipalities in providing buildings and premises, in organizing the functioning of the school, canteen services, etc. However, if there are already nursery schools managed by private entities (as in our case), they can continue, organized as equivalent schools. It will be up to a parental assembly to decide which of the two forms to adopt. In both cases, two teachers inserted in the provincial ranking must be hired; but greater autonomy of choice is granted to schools that are equivalent. Teaching staff and service staff (a person who prepares meals) will be paid directly by the Province. In both cases, a management committee will be appointed, ie a representation of the parents to support the administration; but, in the equivalent school, it could possibly identify itself with the direction itself. The difficulty of municipal management, in addition to the burden of assignments, lies above all in having to find a building for the nursery school (the premises where the children live are owned by the kindergarten and not by the municipality). On the contrary, the advantages of an equivalent school consist in the continuity of a service based on experience and, in practice, in the possibility of self-management of the activity, which gives more space to the parents' proposals. Thus one of the perspectives that will soon be insinuated will be that of a radical reorganization of the asylum problem. A new kindergarten, isolated from other structures, more rational and modern, in the sun and, above all, suitable for accommodating a greater number of children (two sections instead of one). There are no major financial problems: the Province guarantees almost total coverage of expenses. It is all about goodwill - on the part of the directors and those directly involved.
Voci Amiche giu 1977
News in kindergarten
It was not the lack of the sisters that delayed the opening of the nursery school by a few weeks this year, but the need to refurbish the structures of the premises to adapt them to the functionality of the institute. Before the beginning of the school year it had seemed appropriate to work on the electrical system, repaint the walls and, above all, change the old wooden floor with a new one in tapiflex. But the novelty is another: precisely the lack of the nuns. It was already talked about a few months ago, outlining a program of maximum. It has been respected, and the regularity of the nursery school is therefore not compromised. In place of the nuns there are now a teacher and a cook. The latter, Giuseppina Tomaselli in Vivian, is now continuing full-time the partial service she already performed last year. The choice of the teacher, on the other hand, was made, with the autonomy granted to our kindergarten, taking into account the experience of the candidates and their residence. The nomination it fell on Mrs. Emma Leonelli in Mignozzi, domiciled in Castelnovo near the Gescal houses, for which she gave reliability the good credit enjoyed as a primary school teacher in Spera. The activity of the kindergarten thus resumes its usual rhythm. The management, based on the indications of the provincial law, also proposes an increase in the workforce, with the hiring of a second one teacher. Only in this way, in fact, will it be possible to carry out an optimal teaching method, which takes into account the needs and personality of all children, about thirty. Already this year, however, the provision of an audiovisual projector (16 mm.) Will allow greater variety in the educational organization. Two of the rooms upstairs, previously occupied by the nuns, are now used for the asylum services. The third, left free, remains at the disposal of the Municipality. It would not be bad if it could be suitable for some community service: meeting room, library or other. It could be a small solution to give an alternative to free time.
Alfonso Epiboli
Voci Amiche set 1977
Here are some photos related to kindergarten, but I can't give the name to any of the children pictured. If someone recognizes some children, please communicate it to me or to the Municipality, so that we will meet some of the children or adults who followed them
