monthly newsletter february 2013 mark your calendar general news

WSP February 2013 Newsletter –

Monthly�Newsletter�� February�2013�

“The prosperity of a community of human beings working together is the greater the less the single person claims for himself the proceeds of his labor – that is, the more of these proceeds he makes over to his fellow workers and the more his own requirements are met not out of his own work but out of the work done by the others.” A Community - Rudolf Steiner

The complete newsletter can also be viewed at www.waldorfpittsburgh.org

Mark Your Calendar ��

Fri 2/8 • No Early Childhood Classes - WECAN Conference (Little Friends Open) • PA Chili Hot Lunch Order Forms Due

• Summer Camp Registration Begins Tue 2/12 • Building and Grounds Committee Meeting, 6-7pm, Library Wed 2/13 • Enrollment Committee Meeting, 6:30-8:30pm, Library Thu 2/14 • Kindergarten Valentines Day Tea, 10:30am-12pm, Kindergarten Classrooms • Morning Garden Valentines Day Tea, 11am-12pm, Morning Garden Classroom Fri 2/15 • Grades Ice Skating Field Trip, 10am-12pm, Schenley Park Ice Rink Mon 2/18 - Fri 2/22 • Mid-Winter Break, No School (Little Friends Open) Tue 2/19 • Finance Committee Meeting, 6:30-8:30pm, Library Mon 2/25 • Board Meeting, 6:30-8:30pm, Library Wed 2/27 • First Grade Parent Evening, 6:30-8pm, First Grade Classroom

• Kindergarten Parent Evening, 7-8pm, Kindergarten Classrooms The WSP March Newsletter will be sent out on Friday, March 8, 2013. Until then, please continue to read weekly announcements from the Front Office for important updates about our school.

General News Sustainability and Expansion at WSP

The following article discusses topics that were introduced during the All Community Meeting held last Friday, February 1st. The meeting explored the ways that the school is working on its expansion efforts in ways that are sustainable both ecologically and socially. With the help of Christine Mondor and Steve Hockley from EvolveEA, meeting attendees practiced thinking about sustainability efforts in the school by imagining our goals for the school in the next year, 3 years, 10 years, and 3,000years. Mondor asked us to meditate on what efforts are needed to make the school sustainable for its people (both the children and greater community), its place (the buildings and grounds), and its

processes (to fulfill our goals and lead a good example to others). Continue reading for information on how we’ve begun answering these questions.

“As modern human beings we have an opportunity – maybe even a responsibility – to find sustainable ways to exist in and be in relationship with our environment. This is just as true in the social realm as it is in relationship to our physical environment, and we need to invent, discover and utilize socially responsible forms. In fact, creating new effective forms of leadership and management that honor the relationship of the human beings and that also respect the living nature of an organization could possibly provide a model for social health in all organizations and in society in general.” Rea Taylor Gill


The philosophy of Waldorf education is rooted in sustainability and this quote captures our striving as a school at this time. In 2009, the school formed an Expansion Committee charged with completing a feasibility study to determine if the school could support the expansion of growing to eighth grade. By 2010, this committee demonstrated to the community that the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh was indeed ready and able to accommodate this growth. Beginning in 2011, a newly formed Expansion Committee began the work of understanding a more comprehensive picture of the requirements necessary for supporting an upper grades curriculum. This work involved a deeper investigation into our resources and programming needs. Out of this work, came the acknowledgement that creating sustainable systems and relationships would be a key to our success moving forward as a school. Next year, we will have our first eighth grade. What an exciting time this is for the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh! Not only are we moving toward eighth grade, we will celebrate our twentieth anniversary as a school next year. We are at a place in our development that takes us out of adolescence, a time when one is more inwardly focused, and into the early stages of adulthood, where we are able to lift our gaze to a broader vision for ourselves and our future as a school. We have a number of meaningful projects we have embarked upon with partners who are inspiring us to create new forms of working together. Each day, we grow in our understanding of sustainability as an organization. This work requires faculty, administration, board, parents and children to be open to working together in new ways.

Expansion Committee Last year, the Expansion Committee continued the visioning work started in 2009 for reaching 8th grade. Plans of the committee came to fruition through the help of many with the addition of: sinks in all early childhood classrooms, the renovation of the second floor

bathroom in the south wing, and the expansion of our school library (this effort continues, so look for more opportunities in this newsletter), the conversion of the school store and walk through kitchen into a second nursery classroom and the transformation of the chapel into the seventh grade classroom. Over the summer, the faculty participated in a curriculum development workshop led by Laura Birdsall, Middle School Coordinator at River Valley Waldorf School. Currently, our Expansion Committee meets weekly and in connection with the other initiatives mentioned in this article, we are now planning for the expansion of eighth grade next year. Current projects include: meeting with our contractor to walk through potential summer projects and provide us with cost estimates, approving a proposal for installation of lighting in the seventh grade classroom, creating a document that details the eighth grade curriculum and budget, reviewing enrollment projections that inform the need to expand classrooms next year, and keeping in mind the Faculty’s vision for Little Friends program to one day become a Family Center. We are grateful to the many parent volunteers who have helped us accomplish our goals thus far by providing contacts, expertise and hours of volunteer time.

Green Schools Academy At the start of this school year, WSP was invited to become a founding member of the Green Schools Academy (an initiative through the Green Building Alliance). This opportunity has engaged us in working with eight other schools as well as our broader community. Our Green Team members include Julia Sawyer (Development Coordinator), Brendan Froeschl (Facilities), Robyn Thomas (Second Grade Teacher), Kirsten Christopherson-Clark (Administrator), and Molly Mehling (Parent and Professor of Ecology). Indigo Raffel of CCI (Conservation Consultants, INC) and Janice Donatelli, former owner the store Artemis and local entrepreneur, serve as our advisers. We


began our work in September and will continue to meet through July. We are learning the value of systems thinking in our daily and long-term planning work, thereby creating a framework for work guided by a purpose but connected to a larger vision. One goal our team has committed to is to inventory our science curriculum in a way that demonstrates our environmentally conscious curriculum. This material will be used by enrollment and will be useful for our eventual accreditation. Additionally, Molly Mehling, WSP parent and Asst. Professor of Ecology and Sustainability at Chatham University, will work alongside one of her students who will use our school as a case study to examine how/if remediation and regeneration of the soil on our site can be applied. Lastly, we were introduced to Springboard Kitchens through our work with the Green Schools Academy. Thanks to efforts of the PA, our school will collaborate with Springboard Kitchens beginning this month by offering hot lunch twice a week. While not yet able to compost all of the waste on-site, we have committed to organizing a new and improved recycling/composting program which will be kicked off this spring.

EvolvEA Supported by the Heinz Endowments, EvolvEA, a multidisciplinary design and consulting firm, is currently facilitating a sustainability planning project for the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh which informs and inspires our strategic thinking. Led by Christine Mondor and Steve Hockley of EvolvEA, our team is further comprised of faculty, administration and board members with sessions involving our broader community throughout the coming months. Often, the first thing one thinks about with regard to sustainability is the building. That is just part of our work! We are in the process of examining the sustainability awareness in our school and its relationship to our school structure. We hope to build community in this effort, in thinking strategically and identifying how sustainability can be integrated into the operations of WSP.

This Tuesday, with help from students, we completed an inventory of garbage compiled over one week’s time at school.

Finally, we will complete a facility review of energy and water use, examine existing plans, complete an energy audit, identify opportunities relating to sustainability, and prepare a plan that would inform the organizational strategic plan.

AdminService AdminService is a company familiar with Waldorf Schools as well as AWSNA who provides a variety of business functions that support and strengthen administrative staffs. They have provided valuable resources to us already by managing our business office during Laura Baker’s maternity leave. In addition, they have expanded our connection to other Waldorf schools and offered support in our school’s team building efforts. In the next month, AdminService will engage with our board members through consultation and workshops to guide us through board capacity building and training. Finally, we have requested their expertise in conducting a systems audit with support for implementation as we expand and strive to work toward sustainable practices throughout our school. AWSNA (The Association of Waldorf Schools

of North America) AWSNA was founded in 1968 to assist Waldorf schools in working together to nurture Waldorf education. Today there are more than 900 Waldorf schools in 83 countries. As previously mentioned, Waldorf philosophy is rooted in


sustainability. In Waldorf education, we teach about the importance of compassion and what it means to feel the thoughts, feelings, joys and sufferings of others, and of the things of the world as if they were our own. Compassion is extended beyond a relationship with other human beings and includes the animal world, the plant world, and even the physical world. Each year, we receive a visit from an AWSNA representative. This year, Catherine Daugherty, Development Director of the Toronto Waldorf School, served as our AWSNA representative, visiting in October, 2012. We have just received our draft School Mentoring Visit Report with commendations and recommendations that we will be examining over the course of the rest of the year. As a developing Waldorf school, we will submit our 5 Year Strategic Plan in June, 2013 for review. This strategic plan will be informed by all of the aforementioned work!

We see our children as unfolding human beings, so too is our school unfolding as a growing and dynamic community of learning for us all. Author: Kirsten Christopherson-Clark, Administrator

Camp Waldorf 2013 Although the ice and snow is still on the ground, now is the time to think about summer camps. Camp Waldorf 2013 offers seven weeks of engaging and exciting programming to all who participate. Some new offerings include an off-site week in nature right in Sharpsburg over the Highland Park Bridge. We also have a special week of Guitar Camp for older students going into grades four through eight. We also have a new aspect of camp especially Invite them to be part of our Alumni CREW to connect with other Waldorf graduates and learn important leadership skills.

Many of our favorite guest specialty instructors are returning including Ringling Brothers-trained Mr. Mike and woodworker-extraordinaire Mr. Dominic. We will welcome back Ms. Julie Stunden (currently our Woodworking teacher)

for Artist’s Cove week and Mr. Jesse (currently our Music and Extended Care teacher) as lead grades camp counselor. New to our staff this year will Miss Ang Illar (current Games teacher) as our Camp Director, and Miss Eva (current Kindergarten assistant) as lead early childhood camp counselor. We are excited that many new specialty instructors will be with us this summer as well.

We will continue Waldorf traditions in our camps and learn new ways that we can grow together. Safety will be the first focus of each camp, mixed with fun and learning to create a welcoming and stimulating environment for Waldorf students and friends from the community. Camps filled early last year with wait-lists – registration is open now! You can find registration forms at http://bit.ly/11Vfnwu or inside of camp packets on the table outside of the library. For more information, visit waldorfpittsburgh.org/summer-program-page/

Extended Care for Mid-Winter Break

There will be no school during our Mid-Winter Break from Monday February 18th - Friday February 22nd. We are offering Full Day Care to registered Extended Care and After - School families for these days from 8am-4pm pm (pick up is at 4pm promptly and there is no bus service offered for these days). Please read the information below, and contact the Extended Care Coordinator via phone or e-mail (e-mail preferred) to enroll your child for Full or Half Day by no later than Wednesday, February 13th. You must reserve a spot for your child (no drop-ins or day of registrations), and receive confirmation via phone or e-mail from the Extended Care Coordinator for your child to attend. There are limited spots available, and registration will be given on a first-come, first-serve basis until all available spots have been filled. When: Monday 2/18 – Friday 2/22 Half Day: 8am-12pm / Full Day: 8am-4pm Cost: Half Day: $25.00 / Full Day: $45.00 (you will receive a bill from our Business Office) Contact: [email protected] 412-441-5792 Ext.: 230


Improvements in the Waldorf Library We would like to share with you some of the many changes that have taken place over the past year in the WSP Library. Thank you to all of those who have donated new or gently-used books. With your help we have made a concerted effort to increase the library by several thousand books. We have also reorganized the library, purchased new bookshelves to give us room for increasing the number of books, and assessed the collection. New signage directs users to convenient baskets for book return . Many of our new changes are part of an effort to make the library more user-friendly. Fiction and Non-fiction books have been better organized, and our large collections of picture books and easy readers have their own special corner. Books published in a numbered series like the “Magic Tree House” are now on shelves at the end of the fiction books. You also may have noticed the recently added tall display case featuring new and interesting books to borrow in the corner by the windows. To make returning all of our newly organized books more convenient, we’ve introduced a box for borrowed book cards with a separate return basket nearby. More updates are planned. Our library improvements aren’t just limited to the library itself. A library annex is now located in the Seventh Grade chapel area featuring fiction and non-fiction particularly useful to the

upper grades. Lower grades are still welcome to borrow biographies, poetry, and other categories located there. Along with our new changes come new needs. We have collected hundreds of books that still must be prepared for circulation, and we are continuing our efforts to expand and improve the library. Please watch in future Friday announcements and monthly newsletters for volunteer opportunities to help with these endeavors, including a Saturday working “party” and evening work nights. Honor Someone with a Book Donation

Donate a book to honor a person or event and a bookplate on the cover page will commemorate the donation. Consider donating a book to honor a child’s birthday, to recognize special efforts by a student or teacher, or in memory of someone. Contact your child’s teacher for book ideas.

Shoe and Boot Exchange The Shoe and Boot Exchange is overflowing with great footwear. It is located in the two tan cabinets in the hallway behind the Main Stair. Each pair of shoes is $1.00, and payment can be left in the small wooden box inside the cabinet. There are shoes and boots of all sizes. Please come and take a look or make a donation. Proceeds benefit the Parent Association.


Early Childhood News

Lavender Nursery Free Play

Free play is an important part of the daily rhythm in the Lavender Nursery classroom. Each day the children use this time to develop their creativity and socialize with one another in new and dynamic ways while nurturing their imaginations along the way. The picture to the left is of one day when the students made a drawbridge from wooden pieces. The gate keepers would ask each child crossing the bridge for the password (it’s “button,” in case you ever need it) before letting them walk across a narrow piece of wood, under the blockades, and over the bridge. Free play, when children create their own scenarios to act out, helps them to experience many aspects of life more deeply. The following resources can tell you more about the importance and benefits of free play in early childhood:

• “The Vital Role of Play in Early Childhood” by Joan Almon (PDF) at http://bit.ly/s4syXF

• “The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds” by the American Academy of Pediatrics at http://bit.ly/9VsHa .


Grades News

Black History Month Assembly On the morning of February 8 there was a special grades assembly celebrating Black History Month. Grades One through Seven joined together to learn the purpose of Black History Month. After learning that the Black Church was often a haven for African Americans to escape oppression and freely congregate, parent Jen Saffron and Reverend Deryck Tines sang and played the piano to spirituals such as “We are Climbing Jacob’s Ladder” and “Amazing Grace.” Reverend Deryck explained the way that gospels are often as much about the method of singing and projecting forward as much as they are about the lyrics.

Many children joined together on the stage to finish the assembly and practice the method of singing forward to “America the Beautiful.”

Arithmetic in the Second Grade What an exciting time it is for the Grade Two class! Not only have they been hearing a variety of stories about strong men and women, but they've also been writing about them and doing so much arithmetic that many children are probably counting in their sleep (by 7's and 8's no doubt.) For the past few weeks, the students have been working with addition problems up into the thousands that require carrying. Prior to doing all of this work, they were introduced to a gnome who collected gems deep underground, yet could only count them up to ten at a time, for he only had 10 fingers. This gnome, though, was so smart he built a shelf in his home that had a spot for single gems and when he got 10, he put them in a basket and moved them to a spot for the 'tens.' Once he collected 10 baskets of gems, he needed more space, so he bundled them into a sack which were moved to a spot on the shelf for 'hundreds', and thus the story went up to ten-thousand. As you may imagine, it was great fun to actually place gems into baskets and bags, moving them around our own Gnome Shelf. This work of re-grouping items when adding, was helpful when introducing the concept of re-grouping (or “borrowing” as many of us were taught) when subtracting. In coming weeks they will continue working on these two processes, as well as becoming acquainted with basic multiplication tables.

Third Grade Muffin Sales

Every Friday during snack the Third Grade is selling delicious homemade muffins for $1.00 each to benefit their spring farm fieldtrip. Each week is a different healthy and delicious flavor, and gluten free options are usually available. All children in the school are welcome to buy a muffin for their snack.


Insights to Seventh Grade Chemistry When parents and teachers are asked to think back to the most difficult year of school often they sight 7th Grade. Social issues, uncaring teachers and parents, and the quest to be authentic to oneself while "fitting in" to a group are all valid, difficult experiences of this age. How does Waldorf Education strive to meet this often unfriendly territory? With open heart, great courage, and an appreciation for all the good qualities that come with it as well. The seventh grade year in our school is very full and rich. As 12 and 13 year olds, the students have crossed a threshold of sorts, entering into a new phase of development. They are filled with paradoxes and contradictions - inflated egos and self righteousness is balanced with great doubt and insecurities. They are, in one minute, laughing hysterically at a private joke, and the next moment they are struck silent and sullen by a thought or word. The students have a growing consciousness for social issues and require balance of sympathy and antipathy from adults to stay the course. The seventh grade chemistry studies focused on three major areas: combustion, relationship of acids and bases, and salts. As this was the first explicit study of chemistry, some time was spent reviewing the three states of matter (solid, liquid, gas) and finding differences between chemical and physical changes. The combustion studies included understanding how different substances burn, kindling temperatures, and the relationship of fire to oxygen and fuel. With our study of salts, this combined chemistry and physics as we investigated salt's relationship to water and understanding the act of dissolving, saturation, and crystallization. We also used various salts and found that the mineral content in them produced different colored flames. Finally, our studies of acids and bases gave the students a deeper understanding of household

items and their relationship to acidity and basic. Using a cabbage juice indicator, we discovered a rainbow of colors indicating the pH levels in lemon juice, grape juice, vinegar, Drain-o, laundry detergent, and baking soda. Understanding that an acid and a base makes a neutral and a salt (and gives off carbon dioxide) was an experience all students ended the block understanding. This study truly reflects the inner life of the seventh grader. Instantly combustible at times, the students are often flamed into fiery responses to adults. The students have strong options and often are unwavering with their view of the world - and when they interact with those with opposing views it can be like the reaction of an acid and a base. Through all of this the students are striving to see the world clearly, forming their sense of self and the universe, much like the salt crystallizing in a pan of cooling water.

Chess Club Students in Grades Two through Seven came together this past week for the first meeting of Chess Club lead by parent, author, and chess guru William Lychack. Students that were new to the game learned together, while more experienced chess players focused on improving their skills together.


Parent Association News

Chili Hot Lunch February 15th The Parent Association will be sponsoring a chili hot lunch on February 15th. Children will be able to choose from vegetarian chili or chili con carne served with cornbread (gluten free available). Order forms were sent home with children on Tuesday and were to be turned in to class teachers with payment by February 8th. Lunches are $4 per child. Please remember to send your child to school with a plate or bowl, spoon, and a napkin. Hot lunches are open to any child staying at the school for lunch.

Student Artwork Collection It's time to start sifting through your child's portfolio- or to create some new artwork! Next week the Parent Association will be collecting student artwork to send to SilverGraphics, where it will be reproduced into a 4" x 5" print. In March, families will have the opportunity to order a variety of keepsake and gift items such as mugs, magnets, notecards, grocery totes and more. Orders will arrive at the beginning of May. Art will be collected in the foyer at school the week of February 11th - 15th during drop-off and pick-up times. Please see the flyer that was sent home with children for more information, including the artwork guidelines. Feel free to contact Kathleen at [email protected] with questions.

Volunteer Opportunities

Library Volunteer Day There is another great opportunity to parents to fulfill their volunteer hours. On Thursday, February 27th from 9am-2:30pm we will prepare books that were donated to the Waldorf Library so that they can be placed in circulation.. No specific skills are needed for the work; just a willingness to help improve the library! Children are welcome. You need not stay the entire session. Look for more information in the announcements next Friday. Please contact Carol Kowall at [email protected] or 412-681-8297 if you can help or if you have any questions. If you are unable to attend but would still like to help out in the library, please contact Carol or keep an eye on the volunteer section of future newsletters!

Volunteer with the PA

• Student Artwork Collection- Volunteers are needed to help collect artwork at drop-off and pick-up times, including noon pick-up for Early Childhood. Please contact

Kathleen at [email protected] if you are interested in volunteering.

• Hot Lunch - Now that hot lunch is being offered twice a week, more volunteers are needed to help serve lunches on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please contact Kathleen at [email protected] if you are able to help.

• Help make a video about WSP - If you are in interested in helping make a short video about our school please contact Hernan Maldonado at: [email protected]

• Record songs from our school - If you are in interested in helping make a recording of our students singing Waldorf songs please contact Anne Clair at [email protected]

• May Fair chairs needed - If you are interested in being a chair for May Fair or if you have a nomination, please contact Wendy King at [email protected].

All newsletter articles are available online at: http://waldorfpittsburgh.org/tag/newsletter020813

monthly newsletter february 2013 mark your calendar general news

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