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Dear Friends,
Once again, a research study has proven what Waldorf Education has staunchly
upheld for ninety years: school children require less work, more play.
A study of more than 10,000 children aged 8 and 9 found better
classroom behavior among those who had at least a 15-minute break
during the school day compared to those who did not, Dr. Romina Barros
and colleagues at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York
reported. The behavior assessments were general in nature and not made
at any particular time of the school day, their report said. The
growing trend of curbing free time at school may lead to unruly
classrooms and rob youngsters of needed exercise and an important
chance to socialize. "The available research suggests that recess may
play an important role in the learning, social development, and health
of children in elementary school," the research team said in a study
published in Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of
Pediatrics.
Sincerely,
Frances Kane Patrice Maynard Michael Soule Administration Development & Outreach Programs & Activities |
Creating a Rain Garden
Recently some parents and teachers at
the Water's Edge Waldorf School got together to write a grant
proposal requesting funding to turn a rain water problem into an
asset by planting and maintaining a rain garden.
Read more Why Waldorf Works.
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Waldorf School Celebrates 12th Annual
Civil Rights Brunch
On a recent cold, but sunny, Sunday more than 75 adults and students gathered in the Multi-Purpose Room of the Waldorf School of Baltimore for the 12th Annual Civil Rights Brunch. The blue tablecloths, set with compostable table settings, matched the blue gym flooring. Speaker Michelle Wright, author, teacher, and founder of Three Sistahs Press and The Duafe History Club, lit up the whole room with her warm enthusiasm, lilting voice, and bright smile. Michelle's talk, entitled "History as a Tool for Empowerment," summarized her belief that young people need to hear about positive role models of black people who achieved important things. In this way children will know that they too can do meaningful things with their own lives rather than be stuck in the problems in the past. Previous speakers at the Civil Rights Brunch include Frank Bond, a local TV news anchorman and a parent at the Waldorf School of Baltimore, who shared his memories of growing up black in Baltimore, and Pulitzer prize-winner Taylor Branch, author of America in the King Years.
Read more at Why Waldorf Works.
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Kimberton Waldorf Students
Experience Wilderness
Four Kimberton Waldorf School sophomores left recently for a sixth-month excursion that will include a 600-mile wilderness expedition by ski and canoe. They have elected to participate in Kroka Expeditions Semester Program to awaken their connection to nature, conscious living, and service through wilderness adventure, community living, farming, and the practice of traditional and indigenous skills. According to Laura Turner, Kimberton Waldorf School's coordinator for the exchange program and high school Spanish teacher, the program's objective is "to develop a very strong sense of a culture and to learn to adapt. The end product is flexibility of creative thinking. Students grow in every way you can imagine."
Read more Why Waldorf Works.
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February Events
AWSNA Great Lakes-Ontario Regional Conference
I Look Into the Worlds: Science from the Early years through the Grades, with Craig Holdredge
February 19-21
Oakland Steiner School in Rochester Hills, Michigan
AWSNA Hawaii Conference
Balancing
the Power of Education: An Exploration into Harmonizing the
Constitutional Polarities of the Incarnating Child through Education with Lynette McCrary
February 19-21
Haleakala Waldorf School in Kula, Hawaii
Seminar: The Colors of Money
Rudolf Steiner's Approach to Money with Christopher Houghton BuddFebruary 20-22CROPP, Organic Valley in LaFarge, WI
AWSNA Southeast Atlantic Conference
Sustainability with John Bloom,
Scott Williams and Nancy Foster
March 20-22: Shelburne, VT
Find out more at Why Waldorf Works.
You are welcome to send us Waldorf-related events
for posting on our web site.
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AWSNA provides leadership to schools by facilitating resources,
networks and research as they strive towards excellence and build
healthy school communities. The Association performs functions that
its member schools and institutes could not do alone, including:
- Outreach and advocacy
- Accreditation and school support
services
- Professional development
activities
- Research and publications
Please contact us if you have any questions about AWSNA or this newsletter.
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