More About Crayons

Dear Families,

Last Friday as we began work on our lanterns, I talked a bit about the crayons we were using. When I began as an assistant teacher in 1997, early childhood teachers in Waldorf Classrooms were beginning to take a hard look at the use of block crayons in early childhood--up to that point they seemed a natural gift for early childhood classrooms: they did not break; no paper to be removed; they seemed to encourage exploration and divergent artistic thinking rather than outlining and perhaps more convergent form making. Remedial teachers such as Ingun Schneider were asking kindergarten teachers to take a second look the the use of thick, block crayons. As Schneider points out in her article on supporting the development of the hand, our arms and shoulders become very tense when we hold a block crayon; they are noticeably less tense when holding a stick crayon and pencil. Remedial teachers began to wonder if the overuse of block crayons in kindergarten classes were interfering with a smooth and natural process of developing pencil grip and learning to write. I remember my lead teacher packing away all the block crayons and purchasing stick crayons to use exclusively.

Not long after this I was fortunate to take a week of classes with Ingun Schneider as part of my training to become a lead teacher, and for me the use of stick crayons for very young children (including toddlers) made a lot of sense. As with any educational system, there are different opinions and streams, and I respect colleagues who make more frequent use of block crayons; indeed, I thought they would be more appropriate for filling the page with color as in painting to make our lanterns. That being said, one preference I have for stick crayons (or even sturdy colored pencils) for young children is that they help dispel the illusion that in a Waldorf early childhood setting everything needs to be soft and fuzzy: there are places for lines and angles as in the crosses and scribbles young children make as they work with crayons; and there is space for lines and hard spaces and toddlers work through conflicts as we have read in recent articles on toddler conflicts.

Schneider's article provides helpful insights into how we can help our children develop; she begins with infancy and early toddlerhood. If we can allow our children opportunities to move, climb, roll, crawl, fall, and tumble, we allow them the chance to form the foundations for fine motor development in future years.

With warmth and light,

William Geoffrey Dolde

One more preview/bonus class this Thursday

Dear Current and Potential Families,

After our festive class last Thursday, we will have an additional extra class this Thursday from 9 to 11am. We will also have Rosebud class as usual this coming Friday morning (yes, you can come two days in a row if you wish). Thank you for bringing vegetables to enhance the soup.

With warmth and light,

William Geoffrey Dolde

Extra class Thursday, songs from the morning

Dear Families,

Here is a reminder: although school is closed on Friday, October 16, we will have an extra class open to current Rosebud and Dewdrop families and others on Thursday, October 15, from 9 to 11am. Please bring a vegetable for the soup if possible.

Here are lyrics to many of the songs I sing throughout the morning. I offer these not with the expectation that you have to sing these songs outside of class but so that you are able to offer them for your child as either of you feels inspired.

With warmth and light,

William Geoffrey Dolde

Bonus class next Thursday, October 15

Dear Families,

As you may know, the Whidbey Island Waldorf School will be closed on Friday, October 16. Because it seems a shame to interrupt our Rosebud class two weeks after the start of the session, next week we invite all current families to join us next Thursday from 9 to 11am for a mixed age parent & child class. This will be an extra class in addition to the regular session. Children birth to 3 and their caregivers who have not yet signed up for class are also welcome next Thursday as a chance to sample our program or reconnect with friends. As always, please bring a vegetable for soup if possible.

In our kindergarten and nursery classes, we have distributed an article about support toddlers in conflict. I have made copies for parent & child families (this article is not yet available on line) and will leave them outside the Butterfly Room. For people reading this blog from afar, you may find a similar article by the same author in this newsletter from Sophia's Hearth in Keene, NH.

With warmth and light,

William Geoffrey Dolde

Parent Talk, Wednesday, October 7, 5pm

Dear Dewdrop and Rosebud Families and Community Members,

On Wednesday, October 7, we invite all adults to a parenting lecture in the Butterfly Classroom from 5 to 6pm. Although the talk is part of our parent & child program, the topic may interest parents of children of all ages. Contact William Dolde with questions.

"Let's Try That Again"
Ostensibly Crazy Things to Say to Children that Really Work

(This talk was formerly known as Strunk and White speak to children)

Our children offer us many opportunities to express ourselves in challenging situations (what to say to a child licking the table, to a child who insists on picking up every piece of garbage in the street, to a child who says yuck to the dinner you spent 12 hours creating), and we can find ourselves overwhelmed with the plethora of how-to-parent books that offer us conflicting advice (whether choices are good for children or choices paralyze children and make them feel insecure; whether praise helps build self-esteem or global praise such as "good girl" or "you are so smart" make children less willing to exert effort and learn). With humor and humility, William Dolde will attempt to work through the advice from experts to distill principles of speaking to children that can be helpful in many situations.

Parents may wish to read a couple of pieces by William in advance: 1) "Speaking to a Toddler," and 2) "Beyond Personal."

William will strive to resist the temptation to create an orthodox list of proper and improper things to say. At the same time, in his examples, it remains possible that some of his examples may strike a nerve. He may possibly make fun of national lecturers who are much more successful than him. He will ask lecture participants to avoid venturing forth to correct spouses and colleagues. He will do his best to avoid insulting people (but his best might not be good enough).

Interested parents may also wish to read the following two articles on the inverse power of praise. This first offers a parent's perspective. This second article is by Professor Carol Dweck (the researcher quoted in the first article).

Reminder -- Festival this Friday / Tilth Saturday

Dear Families,

Please remember that our Autumn Festival for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, parents, grandparents, and friends takes place this Friday morning, September 25, from 9 to 10:30am around, in, and near the Butterfly Room at the Whidbey Island Waldorf School.

Here is an approximate schedule

9am Gather Outside -- butter making and play on the playground
9:15am Outdoor dance to the fiddle and continued butter making
9:20am Picnic of bread and butter and vegetable soup
9:40am Washing up and continued outdoor play
9:50am Puppet show inside the Butterfly Classroom
10am Walk to the teepee, during which we might find some pleasant surprises
10:20am Return to school, graceful departure with our harvest gifts

Elementary students will gather for recess shortly after our festival. While you need not rush, I recommend departing without too much delay.

For students/families unable to make Friday's festival, or interested in getting a sense of making more of a connection after our summer break, know that I will also be playing violin and fiddle at the Tilth Farmer's market from about 10am to 2pm on Saturday.

With Warmth and Light,

William Geoffrey Dolde

Invitation to the Autumn Festival and Fall Session

Dear Families,

Infants, Toddlers, Preschoolers, Parents, Grandparents, and Friends are invited to our Autumn Festival on Friday, September 25, from 9 to 10:30am.

As summer changes to fall, days shorten, and the frost and cold of winter approaches, we as humans need strength and courage to help us stand upright through the darkness of winter. Different cultures have received inspiration from the meteor showers (heavenly iron, shooting stars) they observed around late September; the iron from the stars of heaven gave people strength. In various cultures and religions, this comes forth as a tale of a hero--a knight like St. George or Archangel Michael conquering or taming a dragon. For Rudolf Steiner, this battle between a knight and a dragon goes on inside each one of us--the dragon is not some other out there to be excluded, but, rather, that part of ourselves that we need to confront, acknowledge, and tame so we are ready to be free individuals capable of serving humanity and the world.

Explanations of a psychic battle inside each of us or battles with dragons can be too much for children birth to 4, who, rather, find seasonal inspiration as days shorten and nights lengthen by looking in wonderment toward the stars. An early childhood teacher could simplify the celebration of Michaelmas toward an examination of stars--singing "Twinkle Twinkle" and cutting open an apple to reveal the star come to earth on the inside.

On Friday the 25th parents and children will gather outside to play and share a snack (Nursery children and I will have baked extra bread and made extra soup in class that week). We will also have a harvest dance to tune of the fiddle. Then we'll go inside for a puppet show. After that, we will walk to the woods to meet (as a surprise for the children) a knight from the stars and Mother Earth--they will both present us with gifts. After the walk, children and parents will depart with their gifts.

While this festival is open to the community, it also commences our school year for Dewdrop (Thursday) and Rosebud (Friday) classes. We will have class as usual from 9 to 11am beginning on October 1 and 2. Here is an electronic copy of our parent & child brochure; you may also procure one at school.

For families new to our program or are considering enrolling, this synopsis of the parent & child morning may help provide a sense of what your child and you will experience each week.

Here is additional information about our program:

Our classes take place in the Butterfly Room, the first room you come to when you go down the stairs in the main building.

Vegetables and Extra Clothes -- We will make vegetable soup and bread every week; children love to explore, play, and help when their parents and teacher join together in community work such as cooking. Please bring a vegetable if possible. Our classes try to make activities such as washing dishes inviting for children (and their parents). While I try to keep splashing to a reasonable level, your child may get very wet. Please bring a change of clothes.

Our 7 week session runs from October 1 to November 20. There will be no Rosebud class on Friday, October 16, and no Dewdrop class on Thursday, November 19. You will be invited to join the nursery for our lantern walk in the early evening on November 13.

At 5pm on Wednesday, October 7, adults are invited to a parenting talk in the Butterfly Room.

With warmth and light,

William Geoffrey Dolde