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Shari talked about how we work to strengthen resilience in our Early Childhood program, and how parents can help their children develop this capacity. Thank you to everyone who joined in our conversation, and Shari welcomes any further conversation and questions! You can email her at scarlton@lakechamplainwaldorfschool.org.

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We are all a bit sad not to be able to host our parents for the lantern walk this year, but we will make the event a cheery one for the children. They’ve all had a chance to make their lanterns and we started using them during our circle time on Thursday and Friday.

Our circle begins with a song about the milkweed seeds that are tucked inside their cradle until the wind comes along and blows them away. The children have been enjoying having turns being both the seeds and the wind, and running around the circle as fast as they can. It’s a dear song and the children really enjoy this one! Our circle then progresses to songs and verses about the gnomes going out into the world on behalf of the gnome king, and gathering little seeds to bring back to the king to help shelter them underground for the winter. The gnomes carry their lanterns to help guide them on this quest. We will continue with this through the week and we will have our own lantern walk through the forest as well.

The group has settled so nicely into a rhythm and everyone seems to be finding friends to play with. The older children are helping the younger ones with mittens and zippers now, and we are all learning patience when we go into the building and peel off layers and layers before using the bathroom.

Perhaps you’ve heard some of these songs at home?

In a milkweed cradle all snug and warm
Baby seeds are hiding safe and warm
Open up the cradle and hold it high
Come Mr. Wind, help them fly
Come Mr. Wind, help them fly!

Glimmer lantern glimmer, little stars a’shimmer
Over meadow moor and dale, flitter flutter elfin veil
Peewit peewit ric a tic a tic roo coo, roo coo

Glimmer lantern glimmer, little stars a’shimmer
Over rock and stock and stone, wander tripping little gnome
Peewit peewit ric a tic a tic roo coo, roo coo

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National School Choice Week: Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Capital Plaza – 100 State Street, Montpelier, VT

For the fourth-consecutive year, National School Choice Week will present cash prize Education Innovator Awards. This is an opportunity to showcase what is great about your school, educator, student, or parent. Attendance at NSCW is not predicated on having an entry.聽Deadline: 8:00 pm on January 27, 2020.

Spots are limited.聽Anyone who is planning on attending or submitting to the competition should contact聽Betsy Hoza.

Here are the 4 categories for the competition:

1. Innovative School: We want Vermont Schools to show us how they are unique and why students want to choose them. This can be done by submitting a short essay, poem, song, video, or work of art. In each case, the submission should not take more than 5 minutes to present and the artwork should fit within a 2ft by 2ft cube and be easily transportable. Art should be photographed for the competition and then, ideally, be placed on display at the National School Choice event on Jan. 29th in Capital Plaza. We would ask participants to bring it with them and then take it when they leave unless prior arrangements are made. Grand Prize: $1500 Second: $750 Third: $250

2. Innovative Educator: Celebrate the extraordinary efforts of an educator. This can be a teacher, administrator, principal, or coach. Please describe in 500 words or less why they are someone that only your school has and how they uniquely approach education and have gone above and beyond to deliver an exceptional educational experience. Grand Prize: $1500 Second: $750 Third: $250聽

3. Innovative Student: In a personal narrative, express what school choice means to you. Tell us your story. If you changed schools, how did this positively affect you? How has your school impacted your education? Can you articulate what is different or special about it? As an individual student, please write a 2-3-minute piece (not more than 500 words) about your learning experience and how it is changed you. If possible, briefly include innovations you would like to see in future education. Grand Prize: $1500 Second: $750 Third: $250

4. Innovative Parent/s: This award can go to one or both parents. We are looking for parents who have been outstanding participants in their children鈥檚 educational process and strongly advocated for their children鈥檚 personalized educational needs. Tell us what school choice and personalizing education for your child means to you. Only parents or guardians with current K-12 aged kids are eligible. Parents can submit together or individually. Send us an essay or video that is 2-3 minutes long. Grand Prize: $1500 Second: $750 Third: $250

Each cash prize is awarded to the school or person chosen from each category.

Some additional rules and guidelines:

1. Imagination and creativity are key.

2. We encourage participants to reflect on the promise of educational freedom in America and the role of the family in choosing a school in pursuit of personalized learning and advocating for a student鈥檚 educational specific needs.

3. Awards and winners will be announced in Montpelier on January 29, 2020 at the Nation School Choice Week event. Schools, Educators, Students, and Parents must be present or have representatives attending the awards ceremony in order to be considered for the prize money. (Exceptions may be made with prior approval.)

4. Schools must secure or wave any confidentiality/photography requirements per your school policy.聽

5. Schools recognize events will be shared digitally with selected audiences to show how great Vermont independent schools are. Videos become shared property of National School Choice Week committee representatives and submitting schools.聽

6. Judges have final say over awards and results.聽

7. Videos should be submitted via YouTube or Vimeo with a link sent to either Brad Ferland聽 [bferland@together.net ] or Asher Crispe [ ashercrispe@gmail.com ]. If you want to send the video another way, exceptions can be made with prior approval.

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The Robin鈥檚 Nest children enjoyed their time in the forest last week making welcoming snow people along our paths. They also worked hard with their strong arms and legs to roll snow boulders which they then carved into chairs to sit on and stairs to climb.

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Legend has it, on a cold wintry night, a Roman horse soldier came across a beggar. The beggar’s shadow was dim as he shivered in the bitter darkness with no food and no shelter. The soldier got down off his horse, tore his cloak in half and offered it to the beggar. The beggar accepted the cloak, thanking the soldier for the warmth it would bring. But, it was not the warmth of the cloak to which the beggar referred. No, it was the warmth in their hearts from the kindness the soldier had shown. That soldier would go on to become Saint Martin, patron saint of beggars, the poor, and tailors.

Waldorf schools across the globe celebrate Martinmas to remind us to kindle the light in our hearts at a time when looming days of winter lie ahead.

In the early grades, children gather around tables with empty mason jars. The tissue paper is cut into ribbons, creating beautiful patterns brushed together with glue. A tealight is placed in each lantern, a wire looped to form a handle for a small hand to hold.

The children stand around a campfire in the twilight, shivering and shifting from foot to foot as they wait for more to arrive. Their teachers begin to hum a song as family members urge the children to warm their hands by the fire. Their lanterns sit at their feet, dark and waiting for the celebration to begin.

The glow of the firelight plays off smiles as children hold fire at the end of a stick. The fire is passed from lantern to lantern as the teachers’ hum turns into words softly sung until others join in. Once all lanterns are lit, the voices rise up and it’s time to begin the long walk.

Children embark on a journey through the woods with their teachers and families. Their lanterns shine against the night as they’re carried through the trees. Small voices fill the leaves with the song. Others focus on their footsteps in quiet contemplation, watching the lanterns of those leading the way. Some laugh and join hands, helping each other over fallen branches as they continue ever forward.

At the High School, lights are carried to tables where students share a meal together. Voices echo off walls as students share stories and bread. Everyone is talking, everyone is laughing. The lantern light dances on the table. The chef serves soup as a teacher stands, telling the story of Martinmas. Students listen, playing cat’s cradle with string or buttering bread as they hear the tale. The dishes find their way to the kitchen and each light is put out on each table. But they’re not needed anymore, for every student walks out looking a little bit brighter.

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Parent & Child Classes

The parents and children of our Star Garden class enjoyed the last fall days. They filled their baskets with treasures from nature and collected apples from the tree.

Back in the Parent & Child classroom, the children help with chores. They enjoy taking part in the meaningful work of the day and roll up their sleeves to wash dishes from a shared snack.

We have just opened registration for our winter Parent & Child classes with 10-class sessions beginning the week of December 2. Register here to join us and stay connected to our community of parents during our long Vermont winter!

Preschool & Kindergarten

Children collect pinecones, leaves, and acorns.

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Various school mergers and a desire for a more holistic education have spurred some parents to seek alternatives.聽 Jen Zahorchak has two children in the LCWS grade school and one in the high school.聽 She said that the ferry is just like taking a school bus but the daily experience is 鈥渕ore beautiful鈥�.聽 鈥淲e find ourselves leaving the house about the same time we have when we attended closer (local NY) schools.聽 Getting home after school takes a bit longer, but it is a tiny sacrifice compared to the overall experience.鈥�

It may seem like quite an excursion to manage the ferry schedule just to go to school but many parents believe it is worth it.

Another Waldorf parent, Kenneth Hughes, says they have been commuting by ferry to school for almost seven years.聽 鈥淲e want the best education for our kids.聽 We only have one shot to provide them with the best education we deem possible and we have chosen LCWS as that place鈥�.聽 One 10^th grader, Ruby F., says she 鈥渟urvived鈥� her experience at the local school in Essex just fine but feels she is 鈥渢hriving鈥� now.

Hughes says that they鈥檝e known many of their fellow commuters for years.聽 If they are ever forced to drive around, they take the Champlain Bridge in Addison and that takes a minimum 90-minute drive.聽 LCWS parent Steve Feinbloom parent says: 鈥渢he commute has its drawbacks.聽 Sometimes the ferry is closed due to weather or other factors and it is an added expense as well.聽 Thankfully there is an active carpool (for rides back to the dock).聽 The commute would be very much more taxing without sharing these responsibilities.鈥�

Zohorchak:聽 鈥淲e are very fortunate to have friends and neighbors who also commute across the lake who are very helpful with logistics and shared understanding.聽 The Waldorf school’s parent community in Vermont is understanding and accommodating as well.鈥澛� Sometimes circumstances arise that require a student from New York to spend the night at a classmate鈥檚 house in Vermont.聽 Those experiences often strengthen classmates鈥� camaraderie.

Zahorchak explained that The Lakeside Waldorf School in Essex, NY, ages out at third grade.聽 The transition to the Waldorf School in Vermont was a natural progression.聽 鈥淭he challenges (which are absolutely worth it for us) are that we have limited resources, so investing our time and money in LCWS limits what we have available for other things.聽 Our kids will only be this age once, and Waldorf celebrates that in every way.聽 I would 100% encourage everyone to explore this option.聽 We whole-heartedly believe that this investment will pay dividends in the future for our family, the kids鈥� future, our community and beyond.鈥�

Sue, the Charlotte dock master, says that over the years there have been many Waldorf school kids who have ridden the ferry.聽 She said that frequent commuters are offered ticket packets for a 30% discount off the regular rate.

Some parents feel the ferry trip breeds independence and resourcefulness.聽 Some of the high schoolers say that they have often used the time to start their homework early.聽 Other children have practiced their musical instruments to pass the time on their 陆-hour commute.聽 Ferry staff are always ready with a friendly wave and have been known to watch over students鈥� lost items.

Noted adventures include a sudden change in weather, watching the birds and observing the beaver family at their lodge near the Charlotte dock.

There are plenty of other children seeking the educational experience found at LCWS and they commute as far away as Montpelier, Cabot and Swanton daily.聽 Students commuting over the mountains during the winter likely experience their own special adventures.聽 For now,聽 just a small percentage of students take the ferry.聽 The educational philosophy and the uncommon transportation make attending the 麻豆原创 a unique experience all around.

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