Article about kindergarten next year

Dear Families,

     What follows is an article Kim, Dyanne, and I wrote together.  You may also receive this in a kindergarten newsletter or the school newsletter.  Please contact me with any questions.  I apologize about the formatting.

Exciting programming changes in early childhood next year.....

 

As a Waldorf school and as Waldorf early childhood educators we are constantly looking at the question of how to meet the needs of children and families in our community and times in a healthy and sustainable way. Every day, as teachers we ask, what do the children need from us? What would help them in their development? How can we as a school best serve the needs of all the children, build strong programs and make changes that will build a strong foundation for the future of the school and all the children that attend here? How can we assist them in healthy development? How can we engage them in activities that will help grow and build strong imaginations and strong will and life forces? How can the children in our care build social relations and skills that will give them growing tools for their life so they can better communicate and potentially love each other more?" We live with these questions, consult with mentors, research programs at other schools, meditate, and ask questions.

This fall we had the honor of a mentoring visit from world renowned Waldorf early childhood educator Helle Heckman. We used our time together to review the programs we offer at our school and engaged in pedagogical conversations around the changing needs of today's children. We contemplated the basics of Waldorf early childhood pedagogy including a healthy rhythm, food, sleep, warmth, movement, spiritual intuition, mixed aged programs, full day and half day programs, protection and over protection of children, adults as role models, the importance of domestic and real willful work, story, care taking, play and continuity of care. Her insights were very enlivening and inspiring, and we were very grateful for our time with her.

We contemplated Helle's observations, ideas and comments, and then we began the work of looking at our community of children and what would serve them best. What changes could we make to enrich the children's experience? So we reflected on the experience of our current and previous kindergarten children, and it was clear to us that the children who stay for a full five days have a richer school experience than those who only stay for three days. The social connections and ease is stronger, the play richer as the week progresses, the children penetrate the rhythm of school fully. They seem to relax and breathe into our rhythm and they seem ultimately more "filled". The change in the play happened on the fourth day of school and then by the fifth the day we saw real penetration. We wondered why we had not considered a four and five day program before and were excited about the possibility of offering this to the children next year. We considered offering a three day, four day and five day option but after much consideration we chose simplicity and continuity as a priority for the children.

The kindergarten experience is such that a community is formed throughout the week, the seasons and the year.  This "community" is an essential element of the necessary socialization that is so age appropriate.  Through 20 combined years of teaching experience, as well as numerous sources from wise mentors along the way, we have learned that this "community" grows itself with the core strength of the teacher and the rhythm he/she provides.  This community is tender, in that its skin can be weakened by too many transitions, too many changes, and too many alterations in the "groupness" from day to day.  We might say that it is out of our desire to protect the children and their growing community that we would choose to offer two options for enrollment, and not more.  In other words, when the constellation of children changes too often throughout each week, the community skin becomes more fragile. We also considered only offering a five day option as most of the other established Waldorf schools do and decided this would be ideal but that this was too much change too soon for our community and that we would look at that question down the road.

We also are excited to continue our model of mixed aged kindergartens. The gift of having the older and younger ones together has many benefits and we have seen rich rewards from beginning this model four years ago. Our kindergarten will welcome 3 1/2 - 6 1/2yr old (some turn 7) children next year. The continuity of care and the long relationships that are formed between the children, parents and teachers is very rewarding and enriching for the child, teacher and parents.  Currently this relationship begins in the parent child and nursery classes with William and over the next year we will look at the question of ways to offer more of a mixed age experience, a longer school week to the younger 2 1/2 - young 3 year olds and possible ways to keep one teacher through the whole early childhood program, there is more work and research for us to do here. In the meantime we will continue with our strong nursery rhythm and program next year.

We believe that we have a strong early childhood program at our school, and our desire is to develop and change and be flexible with what will best serve the children. Sometimes change is uncomfortable. We need to adjust.  It will be a change for us as teachers, too, but we see the change as a positive step for the children, the community and our school. We will continue to reflect, tweak, study, observe and integrate all we continue to learn from others, the inspiration the spiritual world has to offer and look at what the children are asking from us. Annie Gross (WECAN board member) recently just visited our school and commended us on our ability to adjust, change, develop and remain open and flexible to what is being asked from us from the children, and we hope that you will join us in this endeavor to build the strongest, healthiest and vibrant early childhood program that will be ever moving and developing to meet the needs of the children and our changing society.

Please feel free to talk to an early childhood teacher if you have any questions regarding this programming change that will begin next fall. Pass on the word to friends, family and those you do not know yet.

Below is a list of all the early childhood programs available next fall at WIWS.

Blessings

Kim, Dyanne and William

Rosebud and Dewdrop Parent child classes

Schedule coming at a later date

Robin Song Extended Care For kindergarten aged children and "ready" nursery aged children.

 (To determine readiness for nursery extended care a conversation would take place between the nursery teacher and parents).

7:45am - 8:30am Morning Care (Four children need to be enrolled to make this viable)
12:30pm - 1:15pm Lunch Bunch (For siblings of first grade students)
12:30 - 3:00pm Extended Care
1:30pm - 3:00pm First Grade Extended Care

Butterfly Nursery 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 yr old's (must be potty trained)

 

For Children close to the age of 3 1/2 teachers will consider carefully the most appropriate placement.

Monday - Wednesday 8:30am - 12:30pm

Sunflower and Golden Forest Kindergartens 3 1/2 - 6 1/2 yr old's (some turn 7) (

 

For Children close to the age of 3 1/2 teachers will consider carefully the most appropriate placement. children near the age of 3 1/2, teachers will work to find the most appropriate placement)

8:30am - 12:30pm Monday - Thursday (4 days)

8:30am - 12:30pm Monday - Friday (5 days)

We ask that all children who are six or will turn six during the school year attend five days.
Once in a while an exception is made for the older child to attend less days because of the child's needs.
The teacher and parents work closely together to look at what is best for the child and typically a plan is

formulated which would include the child moving to five days after winter break if this better serves the child.