Seasonal Journal VOL 10 ISSUE 2
CWALDORF.ORG
Page 1 - CWS Seasonal Journal, Winter 2019
WINTER 2019
The Charlottesville Waldorf School SEASONAL JOURNAL Volume 10 Issue 2 - Winter 2019 Amanda Polson, Editor / Graphic Designer Devynn Thomas, Copy Editor ADMINISTRATION Amanda Tipton, School Director Devynn Thomas, Office Manager Bethany Craig, Interim Faculty Chair Dawn Grzegorczyk, Business Manager Sarah Pevehouse, Admissions Director Amanda Polson, Marketing Coordinator Shane Pevehouse, Facilities Manager BOARD OF TRUSTEES Ted Jones, Chair Derek Mansfield Chris Russ Julia Craig Barbara Gehrung Emily Irvine
The Charlottesville Waldorf School admits students of any race, color, gender, sexual orientation, religion and national or ethnic origin. It does not discriminate on the basis of sex race, color, religion, disability, sexual orientation or national or ethnic origin in the administration of its hiring policies, educational policies, admission policies, financial aid programs, athletic and other school-administered programs.
Dear CWS Community, Throughout my career in Waldorf schools, I have managed the many hats we all wear - as administrators, teachers, volunteers and parents. It certainly makes for an interesting tightrope act and many times I have had to choose my leadership role over that of simply being a parent. But as I was pondering what to focus on in this bulletin as my introduction to the CWS community, I felt inspired to share the amazing weekend I just experienced as a parent to two Middle Schoolers. Now, first, let us all just appreciate that I had an amazing weekend as a parent of two Middle Schoolers. This phase of parenthood leaves behind the warm and fuzzies and challenges us as parents to embrace our children despite an inexcusable amount of eye rolling and general poor hygiene. And it’s exhausting. So I consider it a great success to have had an amazing weekend in the midst of all of that. Friday night was the 8th grade’s final performance of “The Princess Bride.” Parents were busy setting up concessions and children were milling about in anticipation of the performance. And everyone was in for a treat. When I first heard that the class had chosen “The Princess Bride” as their play, my first reaction was skepticism. It seemed like a very ambitious feat for a class of 10 students in our very basic pavilion performance area. The creativity of the set, the perfect casting, and impressive teamwork resulted in a wildly successful performance. Two friends of our family attended and raved at how genuinely entertaining the play was and how happy they were to have seen it. The cast enjoyed dinner together afterwards and it was wonderful to watch them bask in the glory of a job well done.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
The following day, the 6th grade had been invited to a family’s property in Kents Store for stargazing as part of their Astrology block. My plan had been to drop my daughter off and get home to do a few hours of weekend work, but once I arrived to a campfire, warm cider, and chilli with cornbread, I couldn’t make myself leave. We spent hours quietly gazing at the fire and then the stars, identifying constellations, and chatting while we watched the children play flashlight tag.
We l c o m e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Happenings on Campus...............4-5 The Turning of the Year.....................6 Advent Poems .....................................7 Recipe: Nursery Cake..........................7 Foreign Languages in Waldorf ....8-9 Verso de la Manana ..........................9 100 Years of Waldorf .................... 10-11 The Holiday Bazaar ............................ 11 To Wonder at Beauty.......................12
I was left with a deep feeling of gratitude for the school and for how the Waldorf curriculum provides a much needed balance to our hectic, screen-filled lives. To see the 8th graders participating in the courageous act of performance that requires so much interpersonal skill and self confidence gave me relief from my usual worry about too much screen time and not enough personal connection. And to come together with the 6th graders under the stars on a cold night and appreciate the warm fire and good conversation reminded me of the importance of being connected to the natural world and its rhythms. It is wonderful to have a school that can provide that relief and those reminders when modern day parenting has become so challenging. As we approach the Holidays, I hope we all can take a moment to list those things about CWS that we are thankful for; we are truly blessed to have dedicated teachers and so many families who help us hold this special haven for childhood. - Amanda Tipton, CWS School Director
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HAPPENINGS ON CAMPUS DIWALI - A GLOBAL HARVEST FESTIVAL! In October, visitors to the First Annual Diwali Celebration at CWS were treated to an incredible experience along with the students, faculty, and staff as the grade school shared wonderful songs and poems - including original compositions on the Gamelan from the Fifth Grade -, and the grade school orchestra performed a complex three-part Indian compilation. We were honored to have Mrs. Bajpai (Kindergarten assistant teacher and CWS parent) introduce the festival, and, along with Mrs. Jolly, she also created the lovely little lanterns that lit Sr. Rodriguez’ beautiful mandala drawn in chalk on the Pavilion floor. The students - and everyone else who had a chance to stop in and watch - were fascinated by (former CWS student and current CWS parent) Loren Oppenheimer’s Tabla workshops that followed the assembly. MIDDLE SCHOOL EXPLORATIONS In October, Middle School Explorations - our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Friday afternoon intensive - spent several sessions learning Scottish Folk Dancing, followed by a trip to a rock climbing gym in Richmond. The students are currently focused on Cyber Civics, a digital citizenship and literacy program. INTERNATIONAL NEIGHBORS COAT DRIVE CWS students participated in a cold-weather-clothing drive for International Neighbors, a local non-profit that equips refugee families with the network and skills needed to move from surviving to thriving. Students in the CWS After Care program, under the direction of Ms. Brinkley and company, worked on knitting projects and completed several fleece scarves to share with our new community members along with the coats and other warm weather donations. The students were featured in International Neighbors video promoting their Good Neighbor Gathering, where items were distributed. Page 4 - CWS Seasonal Journal, Winter 2019
HAPPENINGS ON CAMPUS THE STATE OF THE SCHOOL Parents, Faculty, and Board Members gathered in the Music and Arts Room on October 29 for the 2019 Fall State of the School Meeting. The school’s land sale options were discussed, with the goal of taking this opportunity to pull the campus and community closer together. Interim Faculty Chair Bethany Craig also gave an overview of the many activities, events, and projects currently underway in the classrooms! MARTINMAS LANTERN WALKS Student’s handmade lanterns shone brightly under a nearly full moon on the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of Martinmas. The 2nd Grade performed a pageant telling the story of St. Martin, and the teachers, students and families carried their bright lights through the darkness on our beautiful grounds, following the same paths as so many lantern walks of years gone by! THE ART OF STORYTELLING: ADULT ENRICHMENT EVENING WITH DEBRA SPITULNIK Waldorf teacher and speech and storytelling expert Debra Spitulnik came to CWS in November for a free Adult Enrichment Evening workshop. Members of the faculty, school community, and the general public attended, acting out stories and learning about the Waldorf approach to storytelling. EIGHTH GRADE PLAY - THE PRINCESS BRIDE The 8th Grade has just completed their play, an ambitious project with extensive sets, accents, sword fighting, and romance. The Princess Bride was a grand success!
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THE TURNING OF THE YEAR: MIDWINTER AND NEW BIRTH by Nancy Foster, Author and Waldorf Educator (reprinted)
For young children, the seasons and their festivals are experienced as events of nature; with all their senses, the children take in the changes in the world around them. The falling leaves, the frosty mornings, the darkness that falls even before dinner-time, the winter’s first snowfall… We can all, if we try, remember the deep responses these sensations awoke in us as children. Along with these perceptions come the children’s experiences of human activities through the seasons – now, in late autumn, for example, raking leaves, bringing the houseplants indoors for winter, gathering around the fireplace for a story, it is these perceptions and experiences, and our gratitude for them, that we try to strengthen as we celebrate the festivals together. As the year draws toward the darkest days of winter, we observe a season of anticipation and preparation for the turning of the year, observed since ancient times, when the sun at the Winter Solstice begins once again to bring longer days. For those who celebrate Christmas, this time is known as Advent. The sense of expectancy, however, can be shared by all, whatever their religious or family traditions, who are sensitive to the deep relationship between the human soul and the cycle of the year’s seasons. This time of preparation can be busy, full of hustle and bustle; yet we can also create times of inner calm as we await the coming of new light, and we experience the love and joy of celebration. Nancy Foster was a Waldorf kindergarten teacher for over 30 years, and is the author and editor of several works including “The Seasonal Festivals in Early Childhood”, part of the Gateways Series published by the Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN). Page 6 - CWS Seasonal Journal, Winter 2019
A POEM FOR THE ADVENT GARDEN by Nancy Foster
NURSERY BIRTHDAY CAKE from Lise Stoessel
Deep Mid-Winter drawing near, Darkness in our Garden here – – One small flame yet bravely burns To show a path which ever turns. Earth, please bear us as we go, Seeking Light to send a-glow: Branches green and moss and fern, Mark our path to trace each turn. Brother animals, teach us too To serve with patience as you do. We walk with candle toward the Light While Earth awaits with hope so bright: In the Light which finds new birth Love may spread o’er all the Earth. Deep Mid-Winter drawing near – – May Light arise in our Garden here.
1 + 2/3 C flour 1 tsp ground allspice 1 C firmly packed brown sugar 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 C water 1/2 C applesauce (unsweetened) 1/3 C vegetable oil 1 tsp white or apple cider vinegar Heat oven to 350°F. Measure all the dry ingredients (flour, brown sugar, baking soda, allspice, and salt) into the 8-inch UNGREASED square pan. Use a whisk to mix all the dry ingredients together.
VERSE FOR LIGHTING THE ADVENT WREATH CANDLES by Rudolf Steiner The first Light of Advent is the Light of stones: The Light that shines in seashells, in crystals, and in bones.
Pour the wet ingredients (water, applesauce, oil, and vinegar) into the flour mixture and stir until all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed together, but do not beat or over-mix. Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let it cool in the pan on a wire rack, then remove from pan. Serve plain or dust with powdered sugar and top with berries.
The second Light of Advent is the Light of plants: Plants that reach up to the sun and in the breezes dance. The third Light of Advent is the Light of beasts: The Light of hope that we see in greatest and in least. The fourth light of Advent is the Light of humankind: The Light of love, the Light of thought, to give and to understand.
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LANGUAGE IN THE WALDORF SCHOOL by Giovanni DiGiorgis, CWS Spanish Teacher
Within days of the opening of the first Waldorf School near Stuttgart in Germany, in far off September of 1919, Rudolph Steiner gave a series of practical lectures to the teachers entrusted with running the school. Lecture IX, dated August 30, 1919, delved into the teaching of foreign languages. One relevant element about this lecture is the implicit importance of introducing the students to a language, or in an ideal situation, to more than one language, that was different from their mother tongue. I cannot stop thinking about the time lapse between the moment the teachers attended these lectures and the start of the school year, only a few days; does anybody else believe it would be a pretty dramatic setting for a present day teacher? Forgive my digression here, back to Mr. Steiner. Since he was asked to help in the launching of the school, Steiner was aware of the importance of teaching foreign languages for reasons that went beyond the academic requirements, reasons that were ahead of the times and that incorporated social aspects of life. The teaching of foreign cultures propelled the students in reaching out of the national boundaries, in the hope of making them more understanding and
appreciative of the world and humankind. This openness toward the world would develop an intrinsic one too, a valuable tool for finding one’s own abilities and passions in life.
Such arguments are ever suitable in our times and that’s why we teach foreign languages in the Waldorf schools.
The introduction of foreign languages follows child development as does any other “Our highest endeavour must be to develop free subject, and the main principle human beings who aims to awaken the interest of are able of themselves the student from the inside. to impart purpose By surrounding the child with the sounds and images of the and direction to their language and culture, the teacher lives. The need for presents an environment in which imagination, a sense of the instruction is enlivened. The truth, and a feeling of language becomes a window in responsibility – these the culture’s soul and it reaches three forces are the very the child through his feelings. nerve of education.” This process hopefully dwells in the student and has a positive This Steiner quote contains effect on the imaginative many elements achieved by thinking and the development of learning another language: the the human being. strengthening of imagination; a flexible intelligence; an interest Forrer, Salusso and Silvestry in in new things, people, and their book Senderos explain that: cultures; a trust in one’s own “in Waldorf education the [our] capacities; a love for the world; objective is to offer the student and a willingness to help others. to live in the “genius” of the
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language. We want them to be able to create brief conversations, to read simple stories, and to write sentences and paragraphs, developing the capacity to think by letting the language penetrate their being. Also through daily rhythms, repetition, continuity of instruction, concentration, and follow up, the will of the student is developed. These activities help the individual transform the material to make it her or his own.” For Rudolph Steiner, a foreign language is acquired on the basis of human development. Children are crawling and walking, essentially moving, before they speak. Movement is strictly connected to speech and speaking requires numerous muscles to work.
complexity of the language in analyzing grammar and syntax, exercising themselves in writing sentences, and they become more aware of the differences with their own language. In the book Forming the Lessons of Grades One through Eight, the Pedagogical Section of the Rudolph Steiner College presents a summary of all these activities: “Through the inner flexibility of their speech organ, the children find their way to a flexibility of soul and an openness that has an effect on their entire later life and especially on their social abilities. The foreign language lesson is suited like practically no other lessons to encourage openness and awaken interest for what is foreign to oneself [...] and this is a pedagogical mission of first order.”
In the first three grades the language is always introduced with movements. The stories are told with gestures preceding the words, finger plays are often practiced, and songs and poems accompany movements. The instruction is oral in these three grades, and choral, especially in first and second grade. In fourth grade a transition period begins and extends to fifth grade, in which writing and reading make their official appearance. In the upper grades the student participates in the
Verso de la Mañana La luz de amor del sol Me aclara el nuevo dia; Espíritu en mi alma Da fuerza a los miembros. En el fulgor y luz del sol Venero yo, ¡oh Dios! La noble fuerza humana, Que lleno de bondad Sembraste Tu en mi ser, Para sue sea laborioso Y ansie aprender. De Ti proviene fuerza y luz, Asciende a Ti amor y gratitud. - Rudolf Steiner Dado el 26 de Septiembre de 1919
Sr. Rodriguez (left) and Sr. DiGiorgis are the Spanish language teachers at the Charlottesville Waldorf School.
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100 YEARS OF WALDORF Along with Waldorf schools around the world, CWS celebrated 100 years of Waldorf education on Thursday, September 19. Early Childhood classes began the celebration with deliveries of bread to the grades. The “kindergarten bread” prompted nostalgic conversations in several of the grade school classrooms as students recalled their own kindergarten days. The Grade School gathered after snack time to hear the story of the founding of the first Waldorf school 100 years ago, and the children sang together and then broke into mixed age groups for a stone painting project. Beekeeper Diego of Elysium Honey led honey tastings featuring 6 different types of honey from his hives on the East Coast of the United States and in Italy. After lunch and a honey-nut snack made by local baker - and CWS parent - Sidney Hall (Moon Maiden’s Delights), the entire grade school set off to Pen Park with gloves, bags, and pickers. After a trash clean up walk and enjoying the trails, the students, teachers, and staff returned, tired and hot, to school for dismissal. Page 10 - CWS Seasonal Journal, Winter 2019
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The Charlottesville Waldorf School will hold our 35th Annual Holiday Bazaar on Friday and Saturday, December 6 & 7, 2019. Our campus will fill with the faces of friends, both familiar and new, who are drawn to the Bazaar for the children’s activities, delicious foods and treats, and the wonderful vendors in the Shopping Pavilion.
( Saturday, December 7, 2019 * 10am-4pm ) Charlottesville Waldorf School 120 Waldorf School Rd Charlottesville, VA 22901 Free Admission ~ Open to All! Free Parking at Charlottesville Catholic School with Complimentary Shuttle Service
Shopping Pavilion FEATURING ARTISTS & SMALL BUSINESSES
Secret Garden GIFT SHOPPING OPPORTUNITY FOR CHILDREN
Gift-Making Activities for Children & Adults WREATHMAKING • COOKIE DECORATING LEATHER STAMPING • CANDLE DIPPING AND MORE!
Marionette Shows • Live Music Silent Auction • Cake Walk
< Preview Shopping Event > PROCEEDS BENEFIT THE CHARLOTTESVILLE WALDORF SCHOOL
Friday, December 6, 6-9pm with Complimentary Wine, Cheese, & Live Music - Free Admission
< ADULTS ONLY >
www.holidaybazaar.cwald f. g visit our website
for details & directions
Parent Committees are currently hard at work organizing the Activities, Vendors, Silent Auction, and other attractions, and Early Childhood families are busily creating items for the Secret Garden. The Early Childhood teachers have been practicing the annual Marionette puppet show (“The Empty Pot” - a Chinese folk tale, this year). The Holiday Bazaar is the school’s biggest annual event and the main time we open our campus to the public each year. The Bazaar is an important fundraising event, and equally important as an outreach tool and opportunity to show Charlottesville and the surrounding area who we are and what we do here!
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To wonder at beauty, Stand guard over truth Look up to the noble Resolve on the good. This leadeth man truly To purpose in living, To right in his doing, To peace in his feeling, To light in his thinking. And teaches him trust, In the working of God, In all that there is, In the width of the world, In the depth of the Soul. RUDOLF STEINER
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We want to hear from you! Share your school experiences, photos, and Waldorf related news - the Seasonal Journal will be published quarterly. Send requests, comments, photos, etc. to marketing@cwaldorf.org Page 12 - CWS Seasonal Journal, Winter 2019
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