News, Notes & Updates 

A u g u s t    2 0 1 3    V o l .  1

Imbue thyself

 40 Dodgingtown Road
Newtown, CT 06470
203-364-1113
In This Issue
Welcome New Students
First Week of School
Our Gratitude
Welcome New Staff
Newtown Arts Festival
Calendar
Parent Enrichment
School Yearbooks
Articles of Interest
Mission
  
Summer Camp

August
  
  
  
  
  
 
Kyan 
  
  
  
  
  
Peter 
  
  
  
  
  Oliver
  
  
  
  
 
2013 Camp 4   




2013 Camp 1   
  



Archery

Important Links
Housatonic Valley Waldorf School 
 
 
 
 Submissions to
 the 1st and the 15th of every month
 
 
Greetings! 

 

 

The countdown to the new school year has officially begun!  More and more faculty are on campus getting their rooms and supplies in order, to welcome their students back - or welcome some for the first time.

 

I am excited to report that virtually every class will receive new students for the 2013-14 school year.  Equally exciting is the number of new staff we will welcome, bringing new energy and ideas to a thoroughly experienced staff.

  

Please take note of the unusual start of the school year:   

-  Wednesday, September 4 is the first day of the Grade school and features the Rose Ceremony.  It is a half day; dismissal is at 12:35 pm.   

-  On Thursday, September 5, school is closed in observance of Rosh Hashanah.   

-  Friday, September 6 is a full day until 3 pm.

  

-  The first day of class for the Early Childhood students is Monday, September 9.   

-  The first days of Playgroup are Thursday and Friday, September 12 and 13.

  

Back-to-school meetings for staff are right around the corner, home visits are happening, and our campus is being spit-shined!

  

We look forward to welcoming all of you back.  Enjoy these last days of summer.

 

Kindly,

 

 

Therese Lederer 

Enrollment Director


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Playgroup  

 
Welcome New Students
 and their families 
  

These are ALL of the students that have enrolled in HVWS since opening day last September - 39 in total.   This list also includes 10 HVWS Early Childhood students who have enrolled in our grade school.  91% of HVWS's age-eligible students enrolled in First Grade.

 

Virtually every class has received new students this year!

 

Early Childhood

Klara Sobejko, Garrett Carnrick, Eloise Kupferberg, Jessup Burton, Audrey DellaCamera, Allegra Esposito, August Exley-Seidel, River Farrell, Oliver Exley-Seidel, Dylan Morgan, Alexander Alvord, Riley Fava, Alena Keating, Kyan Malone, Omisha Terway, Thalia Walcott

             

Grade 1             

Chloe Amdhauer, DillonBargagna, Jordan Carr, Carter Casbarro, Samuel Casbarro, Ava Cilento, Abigail Costa, Pierce Counter, Josephina Howard, Zinnia James, Caroline Nesto, Lilah Rose Poston, Robert Redpath, Finn Sobejko, James Washington

             

Grade 2             

Madeline Lederman

             

Grade 3             

Isabelle Redpath, Beckett Reynolds

             

Grade 4             

Cade Schoenemann, Steven Reese

             

Grade 5

Ruby Coleman, Lily Mikita

             

Grade 7             

Dempsey Reese

 

*****REMINDER*****

 

 

The Grade School begins on Wednesday, September 4th

with the beautiful Rose Ceremony 

for all students and First Grade parents

 

Wednesday dismissal is at 12:35pm

 

School is closed Thursday

in observance of Rosh Hashanah

 

Friday is a full day of school. 

 

 
Our Gratitude
  
Thank you to Yolie Moreno who was busy this summer gardening away and beautifying the front of the Lower Grades building; to Aliz Mihok for once again generously sewing crayon cases for the incoming First Grade class; to HVWS alumnus Bernardo Navarro for setting up the HEART website; and to all the class parents busy at work assisting their class teachers in readying their classrooms.
  
  
  

"Unselfish and noble actions are the most radiant pages in the biography of souls." 

~David Thomas

 
Congratulations
...to Edith Packard, former HVWS Grades Assistant, who married Levi Fay on August 17 in Hawaii!

Ediths Wedding 
 
Welcome New Staff
  

Beth Anesi, Playgroup teacher

Janelle Beardsley, Grade 6 teacher

Lark Bergwin-Anderson, Grade 3 teacher

Christina Dixcy, Communications and Outreach Director

Alex Exley, Bookkeeper

Deborah Lederman, Grade 1 teacher

Christi Pierce, Therapeutic Eurythmist

Emily Remensperger, Grade 4 teacher  

  
 

"Just want to say that I read all the articles you offered....and fell in love with Waldorf education all over again! "

 

Ingrid Boedecker

Guidance Counselor, Bethel High School

and parent of a former HVWS student

 

 
Newtown Arts Festival
Sept. 21 & 22
  
HVWS will again have a booth at this second annual celebration of the arts.
  
Volunteers are needed to staff the school table where student work will be displayed and items from the Rainbow Garden School Store will be for sale.
  
Faculty will offer a beeswax modeling workshop for children.  As soon as we get the details from the festival organizers we will pass them along to you.
  
In the meantime, come on out and celebrate art and support Newtown!
  
Please consider volunteering for a 2- (or more) hour shift.  Email Christina Dixcy at [email protected]
  
  
 
Calendar
  
  
September
Wednesday4First day of school for Grades 1-7 & Rose Ceremony.
Early dismissal, no aftercare
4Early Childhood Drop-In, 10:30-12 noon
Thursday5Rosh Hashanah, no school
Friday6Early Childhood Drop-In, 10:30-12 noon
Monday9First day of school for Early Childhood classes
Tuesday10Playgroup Parent Orientation Evening, 7-9 pm
10New Parent Orientation; 8:30am admin cottage
Wednesday11Early Childhood Parent Evening & Potluck, 6:30-8:30 pm
Thursday12Thursday Playgroup starts, 9-11 am
12New Parent Orientation; 8:30am admin cottage
12Douglas Gerwin Lecture; 7pm
Tango on a Tightrope: Adolescents Path to Freedom
Friday13Friday Playgroup starts, 9-11 am
Friday13PTA meeting, 8:30 am, all parents and teachers welcome
Monday16New Parent Orientation; 8:30am admin cottage
Sat/Sun21/22Newtown Arts Festival, town-wide event
Tuesday24New Parent Orientation; 8:30am admin cottage
Wednesday25Early Childhood Michaelmas; parents welcome at 11:45 am
25New Parent Orientation; 6:30pm admin cottage
Thursday26New Parent Orientation; 8:30am admin cottage
Friday27Michaelmas Festival; all HVWS families and friends welcome at 11:00 am.   
Early dismissal, no aftercare
  
  
Parent Lecture
  
Douglas Gerwin, PhD, Waldorf High School Teacher Trainer
September 12 at 7 pm in the HVWS Atrium

 

Tango on a Tightrope:

Adolescents on the Path to Freedom

 

Along their path of development, adolescents face two archetypal temptations: to grow up too fast or to remain young too long.

 

The first can be seen in physical or material guises, such as the earlier advent of puberty, teen pregnancy, adolescent consumerism and independence -- the "hurried child." The second appears, perhaps more subtly, through psychological or social disguises, such as slowed emotional maturity or deferment of life choices about career and family -- the eternal "Peter Pan."

 

These two temptations will frame a discussion of the Waldorf high school curriculum and how it addresses the needs and longings of youth today.

   

  
 2012-13 Yearbooks
 
 
 
A handful of our beautiful yearbooks are available for $20 each.  You can stop by the office during business hours to purchase one.  They will be available on a first-come, first-served basis until they are all sold. 

 

Articles of Interest

 

Here are the most recent articles posted on the HVWS Facebook page.  If you haven't already, Like us on Facebook 

...so you'll never have to wait to read the articles we post!

 

 

Children and the Importance of Play

Hamlet Hub

 

Why We Need To Value Students' Spacial Creativity

Mind/Shift

 

  
  
    The mission of the Housatonic Valley Waldorf School is to develop each child's unique capacity to engage meaningfully in the world.   
    Guided by the principles of Waldorf education, the faculty inspires in our students creative thinking, moral sensibility, and a passion for learning.  We offer a classical education that integrates experiential and artistic learning, in an environment emphasizing academic excellence, respect for diversity, and reverence for the natural world. 
    Our faculty, board of trustees and parents work together, with dedication and warmth, to support our school community.