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As parents, teachers, caregivers, and guides, we spend so much of our energy trying to understand the children in our lives. We study child development, learn new strategies, and strive to meet each child where they are. Yet one of the most powerful tools we have for understanding children is often overlooked: understanding ourselves. Biography Work is the practice of looking back at our own life journey with curiosity, compassion, and wonder. Through reflection, storytelling

Have you ever wanted to do something special for a festival and then thought, “No, I could never get all of the parents to keep their voices down/sit still/wear appropriate clothing/sing the same song”? See how Susan Siverio helps the parents at Spindlewood Waldorf Kindergarten and LifeWays Center, to prepare for their Advent Spiral in early December. She sets the scene, shares the adult symolism of the event, and asks that parents allow their children to have their own exp

So, I was a little dismayed when I returned to work 15 years later and found that despite an overwhelming proliferation of screen devices the discussion about TV didn’t seem to be happening anymore. It was 2008 and all the children in my care seemed to be TV and cell phone and iPad literate and some of the children were talking about TV shows and characters that I found, well frankly, a little shocking.

In early childhood, Valentine’s Day offers a quiet opportunity to turn our attention toward something essential: love as lived experience. Before hearts become decorations and cards are exchanged, love is first known by young children through relationship, through warmth, rhythm, presence, and care. In LifeWays-inspired homes and programs, Valentine’s Day can be approached not as a single event, but as a gentle seasonal gesture that honors connection within the family or comm

Singing games are one of those simple childhood experiences that carry extraordinary depth. A circle of children, a shared melody, a few gestures or steps and suddenly something ancient and nourishing comes alive. Long before screens and schedules, children learned about the world, one another, and themselves through song and movement. At their heart, singing games invite children into connection. When children sing together, they breathe together, listen together, and move t

By late February, we find ourselves standing at a quiet threshold. Winter is still very much present and the cold air, bare branches, and long nights remind us of that, and yet something subtle has begun to shift. The light lingers a little longer in the afternoon. The sun feels warmer on our faces. Beneath the frozen ground, life is stirring. For young children, this time of year is not about anticipation or explanation. It is about experience. They feel the change not in w

How can parents deepen their own intimate connection with nature, and pass this, heart to heart, to their children? In doing research for my book With Stars in Their Eye: Brain Science and Your Child’s Journey Toward the Self, I discovered a mountain of studies that shows the foundation of all childhood brain development is what I call “The Love Connection.” The sacred love between parent and child is crucial in many ways, as we know. A more subtle, yet profoundly necessary

Rudolf Steiner urged teachers to take into sleep the meditation of their students’ highest selves in order to connect with their spiritual companions for guidance. I have practiced this both with children in my care and with my own children, and it often serves as an antidote to my stress in difficult times. It is relieving to lay down the intellectual struggle before the “feet” of a higher being and invite them into partnership with me. And, it’s incredible how effective it

This is a story of a year of discovery with the first graders at The Marin Waldorf School, where we were nestled under a huge bay laurel tree among an oak grove in an acre wood on campus. There is no way to put into words the sheer magic of this time together. The best I can do is to offer a story of our year creating forest time and crafting in the Bay Tree Café with the first grade children. It’s called the Bay Tree Café because it is a circle of stumps where the children g

By Savannah Freier of Outside Kids The Role of Warmth in a Child’s Development As the winter months deepen, bringing some of the coldest days of the year, the importance of warmth is ever-present on our minds, and perhaps surprisingly, on our hearts as well. In Lifeways education, we believe warmth extends beyond physical comfort to play a central role in supporting the development of the whole child. Warmth fosters growth on physical, emotional, and spiritual levels, laying

I used to rebuild December every year. Now I just return to it. Not because it’s perfect, but because it’s anchored. The rhythm we’ve created, has turned into our traditions. Tradition is the opposite of overwhelm. When everyone knows the flow, the magic makes itself. That’s the secret. Ritual removes stress. Repetition creates ease. Ease creates the kind of memories they carry into adulthood. The things my kids can predict, name, and look forward to without needing a calenda

How do we celebrate seasonal holidays and avoid the mine-field of commercial culture that so easily invades our family life? Let the Holiday Happen at Home! Especially during the holiday crush, you’ll do best to keep all your normal life- rhythms steady: meal times, play times, house-keeping, book snuggles, nap and bedtimes. As we know, sharing food together, playing in a healthy way and sound sleep are the foundations of well-being. During the holiday rush, let’s create meal

I’ve been thinking about holiday gifts for my class. I have 8 students with my youngest at nearly three and my oldest who turned 6 at the beginning of August. I love autumn leaves and have wanted for several years to paint a whole wall of individual leaf portraits. Not there yet but someday… So on our nature walk the other day, I gave the directive that we could each gather a leaf for our lunch table. Well, as you might have guessed, we all came back with bouquets of leaves,

I go with my lantern. My lantern goes with me. Above the stars are shining, Below is shining me. So shine your light Through the darkest night. La bimba la bumba la boom So shine your light Through the darkest night La bimba la bumba la boom (A Playgarden Lantern Walk song) Each year, just as the days become noticeably shorter, and the stars appear a little earlier in the sky, friends and families of Playgarden gather together for our annual Lantern Walk; a tradition celebrat

Hello friends, I imagine many of you have heard or seen recent headlines about the drastic decline of adults and children who read for enjoyment. The numbers are disheartening and frightening. As a constant advocate for being present to and enjoying real life amid a bombarding background of screens and media– I’m not surprised. As an avid reader married to another avid reader, a vocal library advocate, and book club participant, however, I was surprised to find myself in suc

What a tall order for a time filled with anxiety and fear hanging like a damp fog over the entire world and requiring us to rise above it for the sake of our children (and ourselves) but demanding enormous self knowledge, and super human courage and determination! Wow! what an era to be alive when so much is asked and needed!

I’m not a neurologist and I’m not fluent on the science behind the necessity and benefits of sleep, especially for young children and...

Crafting and maintaining a rhythm is an art. It breathes with space and time, as a dynamic vessel for the activity of life. While each person has the same basic, irreducible needs to be met (meals, sleep & rest, play), how and when those needs are met will differ.

In LifeWays principles much focus is given to rhythm. Our twenty-first century lives have become so a-rhythmic, it is sometimes hard to understand why rhythm is considered foundational to every aspect of well-being.

Have you ever heard a conversation that changed your life? Recently, a passing comment by a stranger ignited a fire in me that will fuel...