sun, giants, food, home dismissal, workshop

Hi Folks,

Here are a few quick and hopefully pleasant notes.

SUN -- What a pleasant time we had at the sunny meadow (the 10 acres we use for festival parking) today!  It is so much warmer there than on our playground, and it is warmer in the woods than in our playground.  During these colder months, Molly and I will try to start our Monday and Tuesday walks as soon as possible (9:30ish) to get warm.  When sunny, we will go to the sunny meadow or other place to warm up.  When rainy, we'll appreciate the shelter of Grandmother Rock or Fairy House Grove.  On a rare instance (like the WETTEST DAY WHIDBEY HAS EVER SEEN, now confirmed by people who have lived here longer than me), we will go inside and improvise.

GIANTS -- We walked the upper loop today (our usual Monday trek) and continued past Bumberdeen the Giant's playground to get to the sunny meadow.  This imaginative way of describing the ropes course came to me via Dyanne (who got it from Chris McFee years ago).  I live my life with the pleasant assumption that the creatures of the forest, including giants, are all there to help us, that a stream of well being is always flowing around us if we are just able to notice it.  My Bumberdeen is a super friendly guy that I have never seen.  He lets us walk through the playground.  Out of friendliness, we stay off his giant sized playground (this is the ropes course, which we would participate with trained facilitators).

That said, I also appreciate how children love to explore power and transformation through creating scary stories.  There were a few vivid stories told by children of a mean giant who eats many things, who fortunately lives in another country.  While endorsing the wonderful power of a story such as this, I always reflect back my full confidence in the friendliness of the creatures of the woods towards us.

FOOD  --  We are in pretty good shape with food.  Feel free to bring contributions for our soup by Wednesdays.  While chickens have slowed down, we almost have a dozen eggs for Thursday; if you have a few to spare, that will get us there.  I've switched to scrambled eggs for the winter time; it does not require as many eggs to satisfy the class.

Even though apples are no longer so plentiful on trees, if you can bring a few apples for snacks in the woods and apple sauce, that is wonderful.  Several children are doing incredible work and growth through cutting apples in conscientious and artistic ways.

DISMISSAL ON WEDNESDAYS AND THURSDAYS  -- Because it might alternate between being relatively nice at 12:20ish to being fairly wet and/or cold, I've decided to switch Wednesday and Thursday mid-day dismissal to in the hallway.  I will do my best to have children ready to trickle into the hallway beginning at 12:20 so that you can gather your child and her or his possessions before extended care children from the Sunflower Class move into the hallway.  Monday and Tuesday dismissals will remain the same.

CLOTHES BAGS HOME THIS THURSDAY OR FRIDAY  --  I think it will bring the most peace of mind to everyone if you bring your child's spare clothes bag and anything and everything from your child's cubby home on Thursday or Friday, leaving the space clear for the Holiday Workshop, and helping you to know with confidence where your child's gear is for next Monday.  The little ones who have already come to us will be heading to their own festival and will like to depart on Thursday.  Perhaps they'll meet up with little ones yet to manifest in our classroom and tell us stories of them.

With appreciation,

William

Real invitation

Friday, November 9

Lantern Walk

 The Lantern Walk is a festival that marks the threshold time of year between longer summer days and longer winter nights.

From Nature herself we can witness the in breath of the Earth as she pulls the plants back toward her.  The leaves begin to fall and cover the ground with a blanket of protection and quietude.  During this time, we humans also find ourselves pulling inward.  Yet, it is at this very inward-pulling time that we rekindle our connection to our own inner most self.  While all of Nature is falling asleep, we are called to "wake up" and take note of our own inner flame.  Festivals are a way of marking these poignant occasions in community with one another; and some would add, in collaboration with the Earth and the Heavens.  

The early childhood community of WIWS would like to celebrate and honor this time together with a Lantern Walk at Maxwelton Beach on Friday, November 9th, 4:30-5:30in the evening.  We have timed this event so that we can gather in the light, walk in the dusk and finish in the dark.  In this way, we can move together through this threshold, shining our little lights with one another in a community of love and good will.   And a large community we will be....Butterfly, Golden Forest and Sunflower classes, plus any interested Rosebud families.  We are making our lanterns at school for this occasion while singing lantern songs both familiar and unfamiliar.  Of course, the preparation is almost as important as the festival itself! (Below is a more detailed schedule of the hour)   

4:30---early bird arrivals:  play at the beach/playground for short time.  Warm cider available

4:50 Light lanterns and gather to commence our beach walk

4:55 Begin our walk together

5:20  Return to public beach area, Adults sing "Oh How Lovely Is the Evening" for the children

5:30 Say goodnight to one another with a shared experience of darkness and candle light

Remember!  We will be at a beach in November.  Please dress accordingly!!

The public park at Maxwelton Beach is called Dave Mackie Park.  Take Maxwelton Road (away from Langley) all the way until you come to the end.  There you will find Dave Mackie park.  There is parking on both sides of the big field.  Please ask a teacher or another parent if you need further instructions.

  

  

lantern walk invitation

Class Meeting, November 6

Sunflower and Golden Forest Class Meeting
Tuesday, November 6, 6:30-8pm

Singing:  "O How Lovely is the Evening" and Lantern Songs

Compassionate Response Meditation (from Kim Payne).  During Kim's recent visit, he helped William refine and augment the meditation, and William is eager to share with our parents.

Success Stories on "Dialing it Down" (from Kim Payne).  In his lecture at WICA, again and again Kim described how simplifying the home and school life can help children, whether they tend to exhibit or attract bullying behavior, and even if they don't.  One parent, inspired by Kim (she also noticed both her children were showing lots of signs of stress and distress), the next day cancelled a play date for her middle school son (his request), warmed a blanket in the dryer in the morning, and after dropping off her middle school son at school, snuggled with her 3rd grade daughter in the back of their car and read a book to her (rather than sending her off to play on the playground right away).  This felt really good to the mom and the children.  

Dyanne and William have both consciously simplified the rhythm of their mornings to minimize transitions, and both see what a gift this has been for their classes.

In our meeting, we are looking for any success stories of ways families have simplified and uncluttered their lives.  We are not going to try to "out-simplify" each other.  We encourage you to listen and find inspiration rather than expectation (if you take your child to school on the back of your motorcycle, for example, it probably won't be so soothing to cuddle on the back of the motorcycle with a warm blanket and a book on a rainy day).

Lantern Walk and Advent Season and Advent Spiral.  Dyanne will guide us through the festival seasons of our Lantern Walk and Advent Spiral.

Holiday Workshop and other Parental Sharing and Planning.

Conclusion:  Reprise of Singing.

pumpkins, reminders, appreciation

PUMPKINS

Please remember a pumpkin for your child this Monday. Please label. 7th graders will help us carve a pumpkin.

REMINDERS -- MEETING AND LANTERN WALK

On November 6 (a week from Tuesday), we will combine for a kindergarten class meeting. Time will be 6:30 to 8pm (note later start time). I will guide parents in a compassionate response meditation (work of Kim Payne), we will share success stories inspired by Kim Payne, Dyanne will talk about the lantern walk and Advent spiral (coming in December), and we will provide time for holiday workshop and other planning on the part of parents.

Our Lantern Walk will be at Maxwelton Beach (note location) on Friday, November 9, from 4:30-5:30pm. Expect a fuller description soon.

APPRECIATION -- birthdays and inside

We have started our inside days with birthday celebrations, including a double one. Often the additional tasks of the birthday can make the days feel stressful and hurried. While I have put great thought into simplifying and clarifying the rhythm of the day (inspired by Kim Payne and others), last Wednesday and Thursday had the potential to become chaotic--only because I had given me and Molly and the children more to accomplish than was reasonable to accomplish in the morning. It is with awe and appreciation that I observed the children remain calm, engaged, cooperative, imaginative, and playful. What a blessing to be in their presence.

hikes, inside, birthdays, Kim Payne, and other events

Dear Parents,

I'm really excited to be back with the children at school tomorrow.  Our Monday hikes and play in the wood have been so rich, so full of physical challenge and gorgeous social interaction, that my intention is to start our week tomorrow (Tuesday) as if it were Monday.  We'll take our long hike and end up for snack (almond rice cakes, tofu almond nori rolls, almond, veggies), an ample amount of play, and The Bremen Town musicians at Grandmother Rock.  On Wednesday, Molly and Kristin lead the children on another pleasant hike (serving hummus and crackers and veggies and fruit).

(It was thrilling to tell the Bremen Town Musicians last Monday.  Children were so engaged, a little tense when wondering what the robbers would do, and laughing with a hearty sense of relief when the robbers mistook the 4 animals for powerful opponents).

On Thursday we'll celebrate our first birthday of the year (Leon's) and have an extended time to play indoors for the whole class.  I am so pleased that we started with a lot of outdoor time; it is going to help us so much find delight, alignment, and just the right amount of challenge and contrast with our indoor work and play.  Thursday we'll eat soup with roasty toasties (egg donors can take a week off, or if you already have brought eggs, we will store them for a future week)--and of course little muffins that we will bake in class.

We'll celebrate 5 birthdays before the end of October.

Now that the weather is colder and wetter, on hike days (normally Monday and Tuesday), we will try to leave as soon as possible (9:30 or earlier).  The kindergarten playground is likely colder than your house, and it is certainly colder than where we hike and play in the woods.  If it is possible (only if it is possible) to provide your child an additional layer for the playground that we will shed before the hike, that would be ideal.

I will be finding what works well for our days of eating snack and playing and creating art and crafting inside (and slowly, with anticipation, meeting our little ones again and the like).  Rather than persisting with painting with small groups while others play outside, I plan now to keep us together as much as possible on the playground, and then come inside with plenty of time to snack, move and/or hear a story, play, craft, create, tidy up, and the like.  With the 5 birthdays and muffin baking, it is likely that it will take us a few weeks to settle to an indoor rhythm on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Many events are marching toward us, hopefully with guffaws of delight.

Tuesday, October 16          Kim John Payne at WICA.  This is an event not to be missed.  Kim John Payne is a gifted speaker with a great amount of experience and wisdom on many topics.  This talk will be on Raising Socially Resilient Children.  Please attend if at all possible.

 

Wednesday, October 17   William not at school.  I am part of the core Social Inclusion Group, and I will be meeting with Kim Payne all day.  I look forward to sharing the gifts of his wisdoms and insights with anyone interested.

Monday, October 29   PUMPKIN CARVING with the 7th grade.  Kim always had her daughter's classes come assist our kindergarten children.  Ms. Lindstrom is thrilled to be asked, and we thnk her students will love helping us.  Please bring a pumpkin with your child's name on the bottom to school on that Monday.  If it helps relieve anxiety, feel free to bring the pumpkin earlier.  Small and simple is wonderful.  Our intention is to foster community and have a great time--I am less worried about final products.

Tuesday, October 30                      Middle School Open House.  This is a wonderful opportunity to experience the gifts of the middle school curriculum in a Waldorf School; to see where the children eventually get to from here.

 

Wednesday, October 31                 Halloween…Of course.  Since Halloween is filled with all kinds of wily activity in the latter part of the day, we will do our best to keep a normal rhythm in the morning.  The children love to tell each other what they are going to dress up as.  Please leave all dress up clothes and Halloween paraphernalia at home so as not to create further distraction from healthy imaginative play.  (By the way, my sons convinced me to dress up this year as Superman, but I will resist wearing my new costume to school as well).

 

Thursday, November 1                  The day after Halloween.  Since children are up later than usual the night before, and they are often coming down from an extra surge of excitement and sugar, we encourage you to consider bringing your child late to school on this day.  Giving them some time to sleep in, take the morning routine a little more slowly, etc. can be very helpful in some cases.

 

Sunday, November 4                       Time Change.   Move the clocks back one hour

 

Tuesday, November 6.   KINDERGARTEN PARENT EVENING, 6 to 7:30pm.  Please send me any topics you'd like to see as part of the meeting.  I envision us giving the Holiday Workshop parents time to speak, solicit help, whatever is needed.  We will sing and prepare for the lantern walk.  We will preview December's advent spiral.  I think it likely Dyanne and I will share insights from Kim Payne particularly suited to early childhood, and I'd love to have a discussion about Kim's lecture and reports from any parents who have tried anything he suggests.

Thurs & Fri November 8 & 9       Parent teacher conferences.  Early dimissal for Grade School. 12:30 dismissal for all EC classes.  No Robin Song Extended Care.  Cordula will be offering fee based child care for the time that parents are in conferences with the teachers.  If interested, please see Cordula for more details regarding age span, fees, etc..  Cordula will also be using my room for care, and for this and other reasons, I will be offering my conferences during my Tuesday office hours (or another time if needed).  In EC we find a different rhythm works best for conferences.  Before Christmas, I would like to meet with the 3 families with children of age to rise to first grade next year.  I would like to have conferences for the ten younger children in January and February, during office hours (and probably other times to fit them all in).

 

Friday November 9             Lantern Walk Festival for kindergartens, nursery, and parent child families.  This year will be a new location(!) with new inspiration(!)  More information will be coming out soon.

 

Wednesday, November 21                        Beginning of Thanksgiving Break.

 

 

With appreciation,

William

Ease and Flow, Play, Extra Outside Time, Harvest

Ease and Flow

The children seem to be welcoming Molly with open arms, and we are having a sweet time together. The long walks on Mondays and Tuesday (which the children take up with joy and composure--with some grumblings of hunger and fatigue toward the end) blend into an outdoor snack time and really beautiful, sustained play in the woods. Children are choosing a variety of playmates. They are challenging themselves physically, communing with nature with fairy house building and berry picking, and enjoying an occasional mutually satisfying game of chase.

Our long playground days of Wednesday and Thursday have been satisfying as well. Last week I pruned some of the alder trees to promote their health, and children have been building and decorating forts and houses with the branches. A number of children help prepare the snack, have been sewing up their painting folders (and I've been sorting our first paintings from last week), and help care for the chickens.


Play

At Grandmother Rock, I found myself telling a small group of children, "And now we will do something we've never done before," and a child responded, "O, yes, I remember that!" Rather than just telling the story, children act out the story as I narrate. I had very simple costumes that we could transport to the woods. A child can always refuse to play a part. On this day, the children chosen seemed to find delight and satisfaction in portraying Sea-Girl, the 3rd Daughter of the Dragon King, a goose, a parrot, a pea-cock, and eagle, a farmer, and the water. I'll keep track and give a variety a chance to play a role.

This transformation of a story into a play was something my mentor did when I first taught Waldorf kindergarten, and master storyteller Nancy Mellon insisted that I use this technique (in a very polite and emphatic way), and that I should stay with a story in this way for a long time. She told me, for example, of the benefits of staying with The Wolf and the 7 Little Kids for 3 months between January and Easter, most of it as a play (this would likely be too intense for our current mix of children). It was true, the children loved rotating through all the roles of little goats, shopkeeper, miller, and baker. I was always the wolf. And we did stay with this story a long time. We'll plan on a couple of weeks with my current story and then see where we are.


Extra Outside Time

While we will have great opportunities for indoor work and play, current opportunities are keeping us outside a great deal. On Wednesdays, we play with the Sunflower children for an hour on the playground at 9am and then with the Butterfly nursery children at 11am. Somewhere in between we enjoy our snack. Mixing with both classes seems stimulating and brings out wonderful things in our children, and this seems really important to foster. I am moving the painting day to Thursday at present.

We will also likely be watching Michaelmas rehearsals, which may keep us outside more often this week (even on painting day).

Next week the 3rd grade is building a Sukkah, a traditional Jewish harvest shelter. I sense this will be a great activity for us to observe, perhaps even help with. Next Monday we will visit the work, and if it seems fruitful, we will likely join the 3rd graders often next week to help, watch, delight, and enliven.


HARVEST

On this Wednesday, we will have our early childhood harvest festival. Please bring, if possible, harvest items (flowers, squashes, bulbs, and the like) to the EC hallway. The kindergartens will work together to decorate a harvest altar. Our Golden Forest class will tend a fire in the clay oven, and we will bake an apple snack to share with the Sunflower and Butterfly classes toward the end of the day. The two kindergartens will join together for seasonal games to end the morning.

These decorations will find a 2nd life as part of the Golden Knight's decoration of the 10 acres to welcome families parking there for Friday's festival.


With appreciation for all your support,

William