Inspire, Experience, Grow, Create

Apr i l 2013 THE MESSENGER

I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

Summer Camp Filling Up 2

Students In Israel 2

Waldorf Cookbook 3

Children & Gardening 3

High School Highlights 4

The Juniper Tree 4

Book Review 4

Stargarden Baby Shower 5

FUNDRAISING IS IN THE AIR! JOIN US FOR AN ENCHANTED EVENING

Take a Sneak Peek At Some of

Our

AUCTION ITEMS:

Lakehouse Retreat

for 3 Nights

Family Portrait Session

Dave Matthews Band

Tickets &

Backstage Pass

Neurokinetic Therapy

Sessions

Austin Aquarium Family

Membership

Natural Gardener Gift

Certificates

Stanley’s Farmhouse

Pizza & Beer Basket

And much more

to come…..

Friday, May 9, 2014 at the Driskill Hotel, 604 Brazos Street

FEATURING: Reception and Silent Auction, 5:30pm Dinner and Live Auction, 7:00pm

Music by Radiostar

Cocktail Reception hosted by Hoisington Investment Management

SPONSORSHIP LEVELS: Limestone Sponsor: $500 – 2 Event Tickets, 1 Valet Parking Pass

Bluebonnet Sponsor: $1000 – 4 Event Tickets, 2 Valet Parking Passes

Table Host: $2000 – Table of 10, 5 Valet Parking Passes

VIP Table Host: $4000 – Table of 10, 5 Valet Parking Passes, &

Complimentary Room at the Driskill Hotel

VIP Cocktail Reception Host: $8000 – No Longer Available

Exclusive Presenting Sponsorship: $12,000—2 Premium Tables of 10,

10 Valet Parking Passes & Complimentary Stay in the Cattle Baron Suite

Please visit www.austinwaldorf.org/index.php/gala_2014/ to

purchase tickets, donate auction items and purchase sponsorships.

Win a One-Night Stay in the Driskill Hotel’s Heritage Suite! (night of the event)

Raffle Tickets: $10 each, on sale at Tea Garden every Friday.

Drawing will be held April 25th!

Page 2 Apr i l 2013 Back to Table of Contents

SUMMER CAMP: FILLING UP FAST!

attract families from all over

the state! Our program was

voted BEST EDUCATIONAL

CAMP in 2012 by the read-

ers of Austin Family Maga-

zine, and this year we were

crowned FAVORITE OVERALL

CAMP of 2013 by the

10,000 local families using

www.campsloop.com to

search for camps.

If you would like more

information about our sum-

mer offerings contact Alex

Abbott at 512-439-0139 or

alex@austinwaldorf.org

If you were planning

on summer camp, but

have not quite decid-

ed yet, please do not

delay! The “Don’t Try This

at Home” (7/7-7/11 ses-

sion) is now wait listing for

grades 1, 2, and 3.

There are several other

sessions that have only

three spots left. Our camps

Submitted by Alex Abbott

STUDENT SUMMER ADVENTURE IN ISRAEL

On this extraordinary trip,

led by parent, lifelong

educator and part-time

teacher at Waldorf School of

the Peninsula, Gail Evenari,

Waldorf students from the

U.S. have an unforgettable

opportunity to learn

filmmaking with other Israeli

teens and document their

experiences in Israel.

The adventure starts with

three days in Tel Aviv, where

the students learn filmmaking

and make a short video with

Israeli students at a media-

focused school for at-risk

youth. The following week will

be spent working on a service

project with young students at

Tamrat El Zeitoun, the first

flourishing Arab Waldorf

school in Israel. They will then

be staying at Kibbutz Harduf,

home of Israel’s pioneer

Waldorf school, where

evenings will be spent

working on a video and

getting to know members of

the Harduf community.

They will also visit

residents at Beit Uri, an

anthro-posophical community

for the developmentally

disabled. From there they will

enjoy days full of amazing

hikes, history, sites, food,

scenery, friendships and

unforgettable experiences.

The hope is that this will

become sustainable as an

annual opportunity to build

strong relationships between

American Waldorf schools

and the communities of

Tamrat El Zeitoun, Kibbutz

Harduf and Beit Uri.

“Not only are

Camp Roadrunner and Summergarden

safe and convenient

for AWS families, they are actually the cream of the crop

for camps in

Austin!”

Camp Roadrunner and Summergarden are now 80% full!!!!!

From WaldorfToday News: Service Project, Filmmaking, Sightseeing and More

Top to bottom: Harduf Waldorf School

and Kibbutz Harduf—Israel's pioneer

Waldorf School; Olive gathering;

Community living for disabled children

and adults.

Page 3 The Messenger Back to Table of Contents

THE EFFECTS OF SCHOOL GARDENING ON

CHILDREN’S PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

Interested in contributing to a

Waldorf Recipe book?

The aim is to get recipes from

Waldorf Schools all over the world,

and that each school will contribute

at least one recipe. This is a

wonderful opportunity to have a

selection of recipes from all your

classes. Recipes do not specifically

have to be from your region, but

could simply be a favorite.

You may forward your recipes by

May 31st, using the following

link https://docs.google.com/forms/

d/19_qs-SzaMGFA50phVd9ixl_fn13u

-QPY-NonVr_ZSRg/viewform .

Notes on submissions:

-All recipes must be in English

-Either metric or imperial measuring

can be used

-List of ingredients with volumes/

weights indicated

-Step-by-step instructions indicating

temperature where applicable

-Optional: a line drawing to suit the

recipe, or perhaps a short story to

accompany it

A selection of recipes will be

published and feature the name of

the school as well as the class/

person who contributed. Depending

on the number of recipes received, a

second recipe book may be

published at a later stage.

Questions? Contact:

Tanya Joubert

Administrative Assistant,

McGregor Waldorf School

wlec@intekom.co.za

Cornell University Research Briefs, as presented by Nancy M. Wells, Phd

MCGREGOR WALDORF SCHOOL CALL FOR RECIPES A Cookbook In The Making…….

What better way to

welcome Spring, than with a

reminder of what we as a

Waldorf community have

practiced for decades. Not

just gardening and

sustainability, but creating an

environment in which our

children can grow as

individuals, embraced in a

unique environment that

addresses the physical,

social, emotional,

intellectual, and spiritual

needs of each child, as we

tend them lovingly through

each developmental stage.

For a summary of the

complete findings, please

download the 2 RESEARCH

BRIEFS from: http://

wellslab.human.cornell.edu/

research/

In short, the findings indicate

that:

* Children at schools with

gardens report a reduction in

usual sedentary

behaviors. This finding

suggests that gardening may

contribute to a reduction in

"screen time" and other

sedentary behaviors.

* School gardens lead to

increased moderate physical

activity during the school

day. Although typically children

spent a very modest amount of

time in the garden each week,

there was an effect on PA.

* Children move more and sit

less during an outdoor garden

lesson versus an indoor,

classroom lesson. Suggesting

more integration of gardens

with curriculum can yield even

stronger effects.

For additional insights, you may

view the article in the Cornell

Chronicle: http://

www.news.cornell.edu/

stories/2014/03/school-

gardens-grow-kids-physical-

activity-levels

For more information about the

USDA's Healthy Gardens

Healthy Youth Extension -

Research project, visit: http://

peoplesgarden.wsu.edu/

Nancy M. Wells, PhD

Associate Professor

Department of Design &

Environmental Analysis

College of Human Ecology

Faculty Fellow, Atkinson Center for

a Sustainable Future

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

Ithaca NY 14853

nmw2@cornell.edu

Page 4 Apr i l 2013 Back to Table of Contents

HIGH SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS Submitted by Colleen Sauer, High School Registrar

Victor Franco, Class of

2015, was contracted to

paint a 10 x 12 wall mural at

Fader Fort, a private SXSW

music venue in East

Austin. Local artist and

Victor’s mentor, Chris

Holloway, joined forces to

create the mural. Using spray

paint, aerosol, enamel and

acrylic paints the image

echoes the early faces of rap

artists who appeared on the

cover of Fader Magazine.

Sponsors included Dell,

Converse, Fader Magazine

and Glass is Life.

A Second Classroom:

Parent-Teacher Relationships in a

Waldorf School

The doorway to a classroom

is a threshold where teacher

and student meet. There is

another kind of meeting at this

threshold— that between the

child’s parents and teacher.

This important relationship

receives thorough attention in

Torin Finser’s book, The Second

Classroom. “How adults work

together can be as important as

the curriculum on any given

day.” This is true at all levels of

work in a school consciously

and carefully cultivating

relationship. Community

building is hard work and this

book is a treasure trove of

practical advice, diverse

experiences, and a call for

action.

There are practical tips for

improving parent conferences

and class meetings, as well as

chapters on parent volunteers

and the value of effective

administration. Parents are

challenged to be “co-

responsible for the social

health” of the class and

encouraged to become part of

an active learning community.

The chapters alternate

between practical advice and

inner dimensions that

encourage self-reflection and

inner work. Together they form

an “outer path thread” and an

“inner path thread” weaving

together practical application

with philosophical foundations.

While much advice is offered, at

least as many questions are

raised and left for the reader to

consider.

The author is honest,

personal, and direct. He draws

on his own experiences as a

parent and teacher of over three

decades. He shares many

personal stories, humbly

revealing his own blind spots,

vulnerabilities, and mistakes.

He also incorporates related

work by Marshall Rosenberg,

Karl Konig, Martin Buber, Carl

Jung, Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot,

and others.

The book includes insights

from the work of professionals

and academics in

communication, parent/teacher

dynamics, and education. From

Marshall Rosenberg and

collaborator John Cunningham

there are the techniques of

nonviolent communication. The

author presents Rosenberg’s

method of how one can

participate more consciously in

a conversation, and then offers

examples of what that might

look like .

From Karl Konig there are

ideas about the impact of family

of origin on social behavior and

specifically birth order.

Becoming conscious of

“childhood tendencies,” can

help move us “from reactive

behavior to a more proactive,

enlightened approach.”

Many of the chapters in the

book challenge the reader to

become more conscious in the

encounter with the other. It is a

call to examine who is really

there to be met and offers

examples of different points of

view, the obstacles that can be

in the way, and tools for working

with them.

While the book is written

especially for Waldorf parents

and teachers, it is relevant for

anyone interested in education.

As a teacher who recently

graduated an 8th grade and a

Waldorf parent of many years, I

know firsthand the critical role

that parent/teacher

relationships play in the success

of a class. This book will give

you much to consider and it is

highly recommended.

BOOK REVIEW: A SECOND CLASSROOM Submitted by Kathy McElveen

THE JUNIPER STORE:

SUNNY DAYS AHEAD!!

The Juniper Tree has all of the sun hats, sunscreen

and bug spray your family will need for the last couple of

months of school. While you are in, check out our amaz-

ing Easter gift selection and soon after, our Mother’s Day

and Graduation items!

We also have a beautiful assortment of playsilks,

wands, hand-knitted animals and wooden toys. Come

see us!

We are open for your convenience:

Tuesday—Friday 8:30 until 4:00

Saturdays—11:00 until 3:00

Our Mission: “Our highest endeavor must be to develop free human beings who, of themselves, are able to give purpose and direction to their lives.” ~Rudolf Steiner

By creating a school environment that balances academic, artistic and practical disciplines, the Austin Waldorf School cultivates a love of learning, creative thinking, a sympathetic interest in the world, self-confidence and an abiding moral purpose.

Celebrating 34 years of educational excellence in Austin.

Page 5 Back to Table of Contents The Messenger

Austin Waldorf School 8700 South View Road

Austin, TX 78737

Main Office: 512-288-5942

Fax: 512-301-8997

High School: 512-301-9550

Fax: 512-439-0143

Kindergarten: 512-288-5120

Aftercare Emergency: 512-767-5707

www.austinwaldorf.org

Questions or comments? Click here.

E-mail:

awsannounce

@austinwaldorf.org

The Austin Waldorf School is a non-profit educational institution, 501(c)3, that welcomes individuals of any religion, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Three Little Stars...

We would like to share the pictures below

that were taken at the “Stargarden Class Baby Shower “ held in March for moms,

Sarah Jones, Carmina Wagner, and Ms. Dana, all due in April.

The children sent sweet, loving wishes on a card to the new babies, such as:

“I love you”, “Hearts and Roses”, “Angels and Faires”,

“Hear a Robin Sing”, and many more. It was a lovely day filled with

smiles and lots of wishing stars.