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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...

All over the globe, a healthy Community procures our essential work towards supporting our physical and mental health, personally and with our work with young children. This ability to see the needs of one another is based and built upon genuine levels of trust and love. Collectively and with individual striving, intentions to deepen our knowledge in our work, for our colleagues and ourselves, is realized when we lead with open hearts.

I have found that the “typical kindergarten circle” learned in Waldorf early childhood training needs to be simplified and changed in...

Anyone who spends time with children soon comes to recognize that the child’s most basic needs take precedence over everything else in...

One of the tasks of the growing child and one of the functions of parenting is to bring the child into rhythm.  It may seem as if the...

Each child we receive into our care is really an amalgam of two beings. Each of us are born with these two beings, both of these aspects,...

As we move into the heart of June, nature in full bloom reminds us of the quiet strength, the steady presence, and the nurturing courage...

Little Shell-a story adapted from Little House by Leslie Wetzonis Woolverton Once on a sandy beach next to a tranquil and beautiful ocean...