Post on 05-Jun-2020
No: 38 7 December 2018
THE Friday FLIER
KOTAHITANGA
Waikato Waldorf School, Kindergartens and Playcircle
Dear Waikato Waldorf Community
It was my absolute pleasure to participate in the ‘Green Gold Enviroschools Celebration Day’. We were joined
by a number of dignitaries from the Waikato District Council, the Local Council,
members of the National Enviroschools Team from Toimata Foundation, and
Regional Coordinator and Enviroschools Facilitators. We were also joined by
people closely connected with our Enviroschools Journey.
I was so proud of our students, teachers
and community. Our grounds and pro-
jects looked inspirational and a big thank
you must go out to everyone who helped
to tidy up, mow the grass and showcase
our school. It was wonderful to see so many people acknowledging the
amazing work the school has done. It has only taken the school 5 years
to move from Bronze to Green Gold status showing the firm foundations
we were built on and our Special Character. We are hoping that there
will also be an article next month in ‘Organic NZ’ focusing on our journey
to organic status.
Well, we have just one week to go and we still have some wonderful events to look forward to:
On Tuesday, weather permitting, Classes 1 – 3 will have their Water Play Afternoon.
On Wednesday we are looking forward to our “Leavers Celebration” at 11.10am in the hall, followed by a shared lunch for students in Classes 7 & 8.
On Thursday we have “Moving Day” when all the classes shift to their new classrooms for 2019.
On Friday some of us will be attending the “Rose Festival’ for the six year olds at kindergarten followed by our “End of Year Assembly” at 11.10am, where each class will contribute an item to show the rest of the school.
School will close to students at 2.00pm on Friday 14th December so please remember to come and pick
up an hour earlier than normal.
Ngā mihi Sue
The End of Year Reports will be handed out next week. Students in Class 7 and 8 will be handed
theirs on Tuesday 11th December as their last day of term is on Wednesday 12th December after the
“Leavers Celebration”. Reports for students in Classes 1 – 6 will be available for parents to collect
from the class teachers on Thursday 13th December.
UPCOMING EVENTS
12 December Leavers Celebration
13 December Class moving day
14 December End of Year Assembly 11.10am
14 December Final Day of School—finishes 2pm
TERM DATES 2019
Term 1 31 January 2019 (Cl. 2 - 9) to 12 April 2019
1 February 2019 (Class 1) to 12 April 2019
6 February 2019 Waitangi Day School closed
1 April 2019 Teacher Only Day School closed
Term 2 29 April 2019 to 4 July 2019
31 May 2019 Teacher Only Day School closed
3 June 2019 Queen's Birthday School closed
Term 3 22 July 2019 to 26 September 2019
Term 4 14 October 2019 to 13 December 2019
28 October 2019 Labour Day School closed
STATIONERY 2019
There are still items that need to be purchased through the school which are of a specialist nature and are required as
part of our special character. You will need to order these from the school as usual at the beginning of term (see top sec-
tion of stationery list). The rest of the stationery can be purchased through any stationery supplier or online before the
start of term.
www.myschool.co.nz/waikatowaldorf
A paper copy of the stationery list will be sent home with your child’s report and will also be emailed to you directly from
the class teachers. It is important that all the children come prepared for school on the first day of term with the items on
the general stationery list and a completed order for our special character items.
We will be putting in another order for t-shirts early next term if you missed the last ordering date.
LOST PROPERTY
We have accumulated lots of clothing again in our LOST PROPERTY bin. Please check in front of the disabled toilet
(beside Community Room) if there are any of your child’s belongings.
We will donate them to the charity at the end of this term.
PLEDGE FORM 2019
The Pledge Pack for next year has been posted out last week. Please return your Pledge Form to the office promptly. If
you have not received a pack please let Monika know. Thank you.
Class One Play: The Nativity
This year Class One performed The Nativity as their class play. They managed to learn the play in
just three weeks, and learnt many valuable life lessons in the process: They cooperated beautifully
with each other; they discovered what it meant to assist their class friends with memorising and re-
membering their lines; and helped each other to be ready for entrances and exits. The class took on
the challenge of learning Once in Royal David’s City on the recorder, which is quite complicated for
Class One. The children also learnt seven Christmas carols, and sang like angels in their lovely pure
voices. Class One gave two sterling performances on Tuesday this week, and I am really proud of
them. Well done, Class One!
Elizabeth Swanepoel
CLASSROOM CORNER
During Term 4 WWS had two teams participate in the Netball Summer League at Minogue Park. The Wal-
dorf Stars (Candela, Jorja, Lily, Kauri, George, Bo, Emily, Ella, Tahlia, Ella-Maria and Emily) played in the
Year 6 grade, while The Waldorf Shakers (Stella, Caoilinn, Valentine, Mackenzie, Mia, Emily, Selsia, Ziwen,
Milan, and Gabrielle) played in the Year 4/5 grade. There were some challenging games initially, but as the
weeks progressed, so did their skills and in the last couple of games the players showed their talent. There
is definite potential for our 2019 winter teams! A huge thank you to all the parents and students that were
involved in supporting our players. Particularly Sally, Char, Kat, Natalie and Rene – without whose coaching
and umpiring skills we wouldn’t have had any teams.
For the final Health corner for 2018 I came across this article by Sanya Pelini a mother and writer of the site Motherly
it has been adapted for our newsletter – Sanya is a wise woman!
I wish you all a Merry Christmas and Joyful New Year
Maree
1 | Childhood isn’t meant to be a race
Steiner once said “Where is the book in which the teacher can read about what teaching is? The children themselves
are this book. We should not learn to teach out of any book other than the one lying open before us and consisting of
the children themselves”.
Children do not all develop in the same way, nor do they develop at the same rhythm. Waldorf education teaches us
to be attentive to the needs of each individual child and to stop expecting our kids to be what they’re not.
2 | Become a storyteller
It is said that Einstein once said “If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to
be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” Waldorf education shares this view.
Rudolf Steiner believed that storytelling was a gift, and storytelling has remained a central feature of Waldorf educa-
tion. Stories help children to connect, they teach them new words, and they take them to places they’ve never been.
Waldorf education emphasizes the importance of telling stories rather than reading stories. Storytelling builds a child’s
imagination.
Making up stories can be difficult but it gets easier with time. You can also tell simple stories you remember from your
childhood. Going through the story before you tell it will make the storytelling experience more fulfilling for both you
and your child. Young children like to listen to the same story several times so they’ll be happy with the same story
repeated for a while.
3 | Connect with nature every day
Children thrive on physical activity. Playing outside also spurs their creativity. Connecting with nature means teaching
our children to be more attentive to the world around them. It means teaching them to take the time to smell the flow-
ers and observe the different things and people in their environment. Nature also has a calming effect on children.
Opportunities to connect with nature abound: smell flowers, pick flowers, collect pebbles, take pictures of insects, pick
leaves, paint or draw still life objects, play with sticks, build forts, dig, play with sand, scavenger hunts, etc.
4 | Teach your kids to play
Waldorf education is based on the principle that the simplest toys foster the greatest creativity. Steiner emphasized
the need for the most natural toys and argued that toys should provide children with sensory experiences. He believed
that when toys are simple and open-ended, they spark children’s creativity because children can then use their imagi-
nation to create other objects.
If you happen to come across a swarm of bees, we would be very happy to re-home them in our
Biodynamic (spray free) garden.
Call anytime for bee rescue
Steven 021 127 4804
Maree 021 150 9433
Waldorf education favours simple and eco-friendly toys to which everyone has access: pinecones, shells, acorns, yarn,
silk rags and handkerchiefs, sticks and branches, wooden blocks, acorns, stones, cardboard etc.
5 | Establish routines
In Waldorf education, each morning begins with “circle time”. Circle time is a special moment during which children come
together to sing, recite verses, do movement exercises, and do finger plays based on specific themes (for example sea-
sons).
There are many benefits to establishing routines. The authors of the book “Simplicity Parenting” (incidentally, one of the
authors is a Waldorf educator) are convinced that rituals and routines give children a sense of security and provide them
with roots. They believe that establishing routines can simplify parenting and make parenting a more fulfilling experience.
6 | Make room for art
Art is an important aspect of Waldorf education.
Making room for art means providing our children with unstructured moments in which they can practice creative play. It
is in these moments that they develop their creativity.
Steiner believed that fewer and simpler toys helped children develop greater creativity. He also believed that organized
spaces (toys arranged tidily in baskets or shelves rather than in piles) played an important role in child development. The
importance of organized spaces is an aspect shared by Montessori schools.
This quote by Rudolf Steiner pretty well sums up his philosophy: “Our highest endeavour must be to develop free human
beings who are able, of themselves, to impart purpose and direction to their lives. The need for imagination, a sense of
truth, and a feeling of responsibility – these three forces are the very nerve of education.”
Maree Smith RN
Anthroposophical RN 021 150 9433
85 Barrington Drive, Huntington, Hamilton Ph: 07 855 8710 email: office@waikatowaldorf.school.nz website: www.waikatowaldorf.school.nz www.facebook.com/WaikatoWaldorf School
These notices are published as a service to the school community. Publication is at the discretion of the Editor, and does not
necessarily reflect the opinion of the Faculty.
COMMUNITY NOTICES
Journey Through the Past ...
2009 Principal, Alan Wagstaff composes our beautiful
school song “Waikato People”
Skipathon on the newly sealed Netball Court - June 2010
Mud hut built by senior classes 2010-2012
Babysitter available: Year 11 RSH student (ex-WWS) available for babysitting children 3 years
and older. $ 15 per hour.
Please contact Rebecca Swanepoel on 021 084 75730.
LOST
Pearl bracelet– lost somewhere at school on Wednesday. Please hand in to office. Thank you.
Enjoy some relaxed creative days before Christmas.
2 day workshops
18th & 19th December - Junior Class
Printing and Christmas fun
20th & 21st December - Senior Class
Printing workshop
Print your own fabric bag and t-shirt (bring along a t-shirt, tea towel or
other fabric items. Fabric bag provided.
$45 per day 9am to 3pm
Held at Waikato Waldorf School, 85 Barrington Drive, Hamilton
Text Lisa Lye to register 021 0633 559
Peanut butter fudge CHEWY BROWN SUGAR FUDGE SPIKED WITH PEANUT CHUNKS
GLUTEN-FREE - VEGETARIAN MAKES 40-50 PIECES
COOKS IN 30 MINUTES PLUS COOLING
DIFFICULTY - NOT TOO TRICKY
Ingredients
110 g unsalted butter
150 g soft dark brown sugar
200 g soft light brown sugar
125 ml milk
150 g icing sugar
225 g quality crunchy peanut butter
Method
Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat, then stir in the soft dark brown sugar, soft light brown sugar and milk.
Carefully bring to a hard, rolling boil (the sugar will be scalding), then cook for 2 minutes. Take off the heat, stir in the crunchy peanut butter. Beat in the icing sugar until smooth,
adding extra milk if needed. Press into a lined 20cm x 20cm tin, leave to cool, then chill for 2 to 3 hours to set. Cut into 2–3cm squares to serve.
www.jamieoliver.com