Week one i'd like to call an unbridled success. The theme of the week was ladybugs as will be the theme next week. Our little magic 1970s magic orange crockpot cooked delicious meals for us all week which we ate up upon return from the woods. I am still fine tuning the ingredients measures, but all in all, they worked out very well. The favorite meal of the week was Friday's steel cut oatmeal...cooked with some milk and agave and a fair bit of butter. Yum yum.
Everyday we visited the bridge in the woods and by week's end we had navigated our way farther west walking along the stream bed. The little ones grow so strong amd sturdy on their feet navigating the rocky bed and enjoying the cool water on their toes. There are still some cries of .. "i don't want to get my feet wet" or " i don't want to get my shoes dirty." There is also the old standy-by of "i can't do it". But these cries lessened as the week went on. The children truly enjoyed the time out in the "wilds" and the time passed very quickly.
Little creatures we found in the woods included Sally Salamander, two noisy little frogs, many dancing butterflies..even small purple ones. Robin red breast, cardinals, woodpeckers and the spotted yellow warbler were among feathered friends who came to visit.
Favorite stories told while lounging on the bridge or balancing on a felled log include Teezle and Tweed, The Crystal Cave, The magical cooking Pot, and of course my version of Robin Hood.
Our puppet story this past week and this upcoming week comes from Suzanne Downs and is the story of an orange flower that mysteriously has a red center with black polka dots..as opposed to its friends with white centers. Can you imagine who had been visiting that flower?
Inside play allowed children new to my place to discover the pram full of babies, the children's kitchen, train tracks and the magic marble run. My Curtis built a lovely home from couches, cushions and blankets that graced the living room for many days. Lots of negotiating amongst themselves was practiced in that cushiony house...doorways needed to be modified for those that needed a more accessible way in, extra rooms were made to accomodate guests and a backyard garden gate was added for those that "were getting a little nervous."
It was fascinating to watch Curt learn to adapt his play to his new playmates. He wanted to start right in with them on games from Daisy Kindergarten which he played happily with the older boys. I suggested that perhaps the three year old might not want to play swords and Star Wars, and that she might like faeires and babies. My heart just melted as he adapted to her and built her a lovely house for faeries complete with ladders and swings which they played happily with together.
Rest time is always the most challenging part of our day..but so needed by the littles after all their adventures. We started at 130 each day with bathroom time and a story. This was read from a book. Books this week included The Nutcracker: A Ballet, Something from Nothing, The Lost Kitten, and the one that I always have to choke back tears when I read it...Guess How Much I Love You? Once in our cozy beds I hum a lullaby for a while and most days even the 5 year old had a snooze.
Tea time is promptly at 345 and it is so nice to enjoy a cup of tea, Rooibos or lavendar, and a croissant with the little ones. This is served on my favorite faery tray complete with lots of sweet faeries with wings and lovely clothes.
Then we were out to the garden in the backyard. Things are coming along out there. The sandbox was heavily used as was alot of water..quite a heat wave this past week with temperatures rising to 100F! The pool was brought out as were the sprinklers. The lettuces are doing well....the sugar snap peas are finished..way too hot for them. We planted some tomato seeds, brussel sprout seeds and zinia seeds. It also seems that in the Children's garden, the rotting pumpkins from november have sprouted vines...maybe there will be at least one pumpkin in the autumn!
Lastly, Friday's craft project was a success! We wet felted lovely balls with lots and lots of Dr. bronners Sal Suds soapy soapy water. Two turned out as ladybug balls and two turned out to be favorite color balls. I had hoped to put a jingle bell in the middle of each...but couldn't locate them. We'll do this craft again this upcoming Friday..maybe i'll find the bells by then. If i still have your child's ball it is because they had not dried yet and I have to pass the felting needle over them to push in any stray ends. They are lovely though. As soon as the proper cord for my cellphone arrives in the mail, i'll add pictures to this posting.
I look forward to this week.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Outline for My Summer Program...Letter to Parents
Hi all, as the last days of school nursery came to a close and over this
past weekend, i have been working feverishly to orgamize the program
for this season.
My 5 year old is my "co-director.". We have been working out
a few minor kinks but all in all year three of this program has gone
quite smoothly thus far.
RHYTHM
8 am to 9 ish am. Arrival
930 am. Puppet play
945 bathroom
10 00 in the car and soon at carpenters woods
10 15 picnic snack in the woods...story telling and exploring..on
Fridays we stay home and do an art project in the back yard or
courtyard
12 15 pack up
12 30 back home for lunch that has been cooking slowing in the
crockpot..this is the "magic pot"
100 under threes to rest
200 over threes to rest
3 to 330 wake up
400 tea time..tea and croissants..on Fridays we head to the trolley
car for ice cream.
430 out in the backyard garden
500 pm pickup
We transition smoothly from step to step...so it is not as rigid a
schedule as it seems.
FEEDING RHYTHM
Snack i hike in with an assortment of crackers, fruits, granola and
sometimes cheeses...and their water bottles. I spread out a blanket
and we enjoy our snack upon reaching base camp.
Lunch: the magic crockpot makes foods according to Steiner's grains of the week:
Monday: Moon: Rice
Tuesday: Mars: Barley Soup
Wednesday: Millet: Cream of wheat with toasted Millet( toasted in
delicious butter)
Thursday: Jupiter: crockpot Apricot Bread...yes you can make bread in
a crockpot!
Friday:Venus: Oats: steel cut oatmeal with soymilk and lots of butter
WEEKLY THEME
The camp runs for 11weeks every two weeks the theme changes
Week one and two: Ladybugs
Week three and four: Fireflies
Week five and six: Rainbows
Week seven and eight Merfolk...you know mermaids and such
Week nine and ten: Bees
Week eleven: Frogs and Toads
PUPPET PLAY
The puppet play each day reflects the theme and i also try to have the
art project for the week incorporate the theme.
ART PROJECTS
These happen once a week on Fridays ..preferably outside in the
courtyard or backyard in lieu of going to the woods. I haven't placed
these on any particular weeks yet, but will keep you posted.
Wet felting balls
Dyeing silks
Making playdough
Making stamps
Gluing a Rainbow pasta suncatcher
Creating God's eyes...you know with the branches and the yarn.
PLEASE BRING
Sun hat
Water bottle
Sturdy shoes or sandals that can get wet..we walk in a small stream
in the woods..up to Ronia's ankles. Sneakers will get soggy..i also
let them go barefoot at our location if they like.
Bathing suit
A bag that you can leave with me that has a change or two of clothes in it.
Girls can of course wear their pretty dresses, but they will get wet
and dirty in the woods..make sure dresses are short for mobility in
climbing trees.
If it's rainy..bring the raingear for that day..by all means.
LUNCH
I provide lunch. This might throw some of you..but it is a good
thing. I have found in the past two years that whatever i have in the
pot for curt and i to eat the other children want to eat anyway.
Also it is nice to maintain group cohesiveness by having the main meal
all one all together. And, won't you just love not having to pack
lunch for your children!
WOODS
I put deet free buzz away on the children just as we enter the woods.
If it is extremely sunny at our location in the woods i put on Badger
balm sumscreen on their arms,ankles noses etc. I still want them to
get their daily dose of vitamin D but without the burn.
I will send a scan of the woods map. We take the green
trail in and walk down to the little bridge. That is where i set up
base camp and have picnic snack. It is a great location and I
encourage you to visit with your little ones and they can show you all
their discoveries.
Some of you die hard hikers might scoff at the smallness of these
woods. :) but for the little ones it is a huge forest. When I tell
forest tales i have to remind them that our woods is just a woods and
that there is nothing living there larger than a bunny rabbit..except
for the dogs that walk througn with their owners.
When we sit on the bridge if they ask for a tale..some I tell are from
A Donsy of Gnomes...about various gnomes that live in a woods similar
to ours named Limindor Woods
Robin Hood ... This is a little old for the under 5 but Curt is into
it. And I edit heavily
Thwacky Bear..a camping story told at a Coffee House
about a Bear and an Avocado
And many other stories from my Golden Book Collection that I have
somewhat committed to memory.
I do try to keep the faery tales to a minimum as they will receive
them in such breadth and depth in the grades but they seem to be
sneaking into children's repertoire earlier and earlier .. If requested
I do provide.
POISON IVY: I look out for it in the woods. Also upon return to my
place..we promplty march directly to the bathroom where I wash down
their arms hands, legs and feet with anti poison ivy soap....This is
castile soap with jewelweed. The jewelweed can bind the resin.
You can check this out online. There is approximately a four hour
window..well some sites say it is anywhere from 15 min to 4 hours
after exposure in which the resin can be washed off with no rash
appearing. I also have ivy block...Here is the web site:
http://www.ivyblock.com/faq.php..if you would like me to apply that to
your child before entering the woods, I will but as it is not a
natural product and more like a medication, I need your approval.
CONTACT
I have my cellphone on me at all times. I have all your
phone numbers in my cell. My cell works just fine in the wooded
location where we play...call or preferably text anytime with your
concerns, questions.
PICKUP
Since this is a laid back sort of summer care program..there is no
real rigid pick up time. You have the Rhythm..so you know
approximately what we are doing and when. If your child needs to be
collected earlier than 330 pm let me know before then so that i can
have them awake and happy for you and maybe even get a snack into
them.
My son, age 5 2/3 dislikes goodbyes it seems. So i would ask
that your pickup be as short as possible and with as little
interaction with me as possible. I know that sounds like a really
anti-social request...and I have to stop my self from chatting with
you because I just love chatting with you all, but Curt gets a bit
rascally at the children's transitioning out of the group and I need
to stick close to him. Of course if you are picking up before
5...there are other children beside my own that are still in my care
whom I need to attend and that's yet another reason we can't have long
goodbyes.
UPDATES
Well if we can't chat at pick up, how will I kmow how my child is doing?
My goal is to send weekly email updates and maybe even some photos
detailing our adventures and play. And of course text or call anytime
after 5 or even during the day..I can sneak in a text or two.
CONCLUSION
Sorry for the long email, but I just like to be thorough. I have everyone's dates
in my calendar, if you need to change something..just let me know
whenever you can...last minute texts are fine as well. i'm pretty
flexible.
With much love and gratitude,
Ms.RockSand
past weekend, i have been working feverishly to orgamize the program
for this season.
My 5 year old is my "co-director.". We have been working out
a few minor kinks but all in all year three of this program has gone
quite smoothly thus far.
RHYTHM
8 am to 9 ish am. Arrival
930 am. Puppet play
945 bathroom
10 00 in the car and soon at carpenters woods
10 15 picnic snack in the woods...story telling and exploring..on
Fridays we stay home and do an art project in the back yard or
courtyard
12 15 pack up
12 30 back home for lunch that has been cooking slowing in the
crockpot..this is the "magic pot"
100 under threes to rest
200 over threes to rest
3 to 330 wake up
400 tea time..tea and croissants..on Fridays we head to the trolley
car for ice cream.
430 out in the backyard garden
500 pm pickup
We transition smoothly from step to step...so it is not as rigid a
schedule as it seems.
FEEDING RHYTHM
Snack i hike in with an assortment of crackers, fruits, granola and
sometimes cheeses...and their water bottles. I spread out a blanket
and we enjoy our snack upon reaching base camp.
Lunch: the magic crockpot makes foods according to Steiner's grains of the week:
Monday: Moon: Rice
Tuesday: Mars: Barley Soup
Wednesday: Millet: Cream of wheat with toasted Millet( toasted in
delicious butter)
Thursday: Jupiter: crockpot Apricot Bread...yes you can make bread in
a crockpot!
Friday:Venus: Oats: steel cut oatmeal with soymilk and lots of butter
WEEKLY THEME
The camp runs for 11weeks every two weeks the theme changes
Week one and two: Ladybugs
Week three and four: Fireflies
Week five and six: Rainbows
Week seven and eight Merfolk...you know mermaids and such
Week nine and ten: Bees
Week eleven: Frogs and Toads
PUPPET PLAY
The puppet play each day reflects the theme and i also try to have the
art project for the week incorporate the theme.
ART PROJECTS
These happen once a week on Fridays ..preferably outside in the
courtyard or backyard in lieu of going to the woods. I haven't placed
these on any particular weeks yet, but will keep you posted.
Wet felting balls
Dyeing silks
Making playdough
Making stamps
Gluing a Rainbow pasta suncatcher
Creating God's eyes...you know with the branches and the yarn.
PLEASE BRING
Sun hat
Water bottle
Sturdy shoes or sandals that can get wet..we walk in a small stream
in the woods..up to Ronia's ankles. Sneakers will get soggy..i also
let them go barefoot at our location if they like.
Bathing suit
A bag that you can leave with me that has a change or two of clothes in it.
Girls can of course wear their pretty dresses, but they will get wet
and dirty in the woods..make sure dresses are short for mobility in
climbing trees.
If it's rainy..bring the raingear for that day..by all means.
LUNCH
I provide lunch. This might throw some of you..but it is a good
thing. I have found in the past two years that whatever i have in the
pot for curt and i to eat the other children want to eat anyway.
Also it is nice to maintain group cohesiveness by having the main meal
all one all together. And, won't you just love not having to pack
lunch for your children!
WOODS
I put deet free buzz away on the children just as we enter the woods.
If it is extremely sunny at our location in the woods i put on Badger
balm sumscreen on their arms,ankles noses etc. I still want them to
get their daily dose of vitamin D but without the burn.
I will send a scan of the woods map. We take the green
trail in and walk down to the little bridge. That is where i set up
base camp and have picnic snack. It is a great location and I
encourage you to visit with your little ones and they can show you all
their discoveries.
Some of you die hard hikers might scoff at the smallness of these
woods. :) but for the little ones it is a huge forest. When I tell
forest tales i have to remind them that our woods is just a woods and
that there is nothing living there larger than a bunny rabbit..except
for the dogs that walk througn with their owners.
When we sit on the bridge if they ask for a tale..some I tell are from
A Donsy of Gnomes...about various gnomes that live in a woods similar
to ours named Limindor Woods
Robin Hood ... This is a little old for the under 5 but Curt is into
it. And I edit heavily
Thwacky Bear..a camping story told at a Coffee House
about a Bear and an Avocado
And many other stories from my Golden Book Collection that I have
somewhat committed to memory.
I do try to keep the faery tales to a minimum as they will receive
them in such breadth and depth in the grades but they seem to be
sneaking into children's repertoire earlier and earlier .. If requested
I do provide.
POISON IVY: I look out for it in the woods. Also upon return to my
place..we promplty march directly to the bathroom where I wash down
their arms hands, legs and feet with anti poison ivy soap....This is
castile soap with jewelweed. The jewelweed can bind the resin.
You can check this out online. There is approximately a four hour
window..well some sites say it is anywhere from 15 min to 4 hours
after exposure in which the resin can be washed off with no rash
appearing. I also have ivy block...Here is the web site:
http://www.ivyblock.com/faq.php..if you would like me to apply that to
your child before entering the woods, I will but as it is not a
natural product and more like a medication, I need your approval.
CONTACT
I have my cellphone on me at all times. I have all your
phone numbers in my cell. My cell works just fine in the wooded
location where we play...call or preferably text anytime with your
concerns, questions.
PICKUP
Since this is a laid back sort of summer care program..there is no
real rigid pick up time. You have the Rhythm..so you know
approximately what we are doing and when. If your child needs to be
collected earlier than 330 pm let me know before then so that i can
have them awake and happy for you and maybe even get a snack into
them.
My son, age 5 2/3 dislikes goodbyes it seems. So i would ask
that your pickup be as short as possible and with as little
interaction with me as possible. I know that sounds like a really
anti-social request...and I have to stop my self from chatting with
you because I just love chatting with you all, but Curt gets a bit
rascally at the children's transitioning out of the group and I need
to stick close to him. Of course if you are picking up before
5...there are other children beside my own that are still in my care
whom I need to attend and that's yet another reason we can't have long
goodbyes.
UPDATES
Well if we can't chat at pick up, how will I kmow how my child is doing?
My goal is to send weekly email updates and maybe even some photos
detailing our adventures and play. And of course text or call anytime
after 5 or even during the day..I can sneak in a text or two.
CONCLUSION
Sorry for the long email, but I just like to be thorough. I have everyone's dates
in my calendar, if you need to change something..just let me know
whenever you can...last minute texts are fine as well. i'm pretty
flexible.
With much love and gratitude,
Ms.RockSand
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Fostering Healthy Social Dynamics Among the Adults in the Waldorf Early Childhood Classroom
Well, I haven't posted in a long while...but for a really good reason. I have been working ever so dilligently on my reasearch work for the training course at Sophia's Hearth. Funny as a working parent there is only so much time left to fit a project like this in. So with my young son "working" in his father's bicycle store on Saturdays I have been working on this in chunks of time. And reading when I could fit it in. Anyway....here is thefinal result. Please let me know what you think!
Fostering Healthy Social Dynamics among the Adults in the Waldorf Early Childhood Classroom
The quality of the play and social interaction of the children in the early childhood room is of great importance. Equally or perhaps even more important is the social dynamic of the adults, specifically the lead teacher and assistant(s), who care for these children. If there is tension or lack of respect among the adults, the children absorb this into their beings like the little sponges they are and, consequently, their play and social interactions are detrimentally affected. One of the spiritual exercises recommended for the early childhood teacher is to shed her troubles at the threshold to the classroom, entering there with a blank canvas, to be painted with warmth and joy. This is a worthy exercise indeed, but what if the teacher and assistant(s) have shed their home life issues but harbor resentment among them, some mistrust, some miscommunication? Then the smiles on their faces are merely superficial, there is really not joy, but dread at being stuck in the room with these individuals for the next 6 hours. All the bedtime meditations about the class children, all the morning verses in the world cannot cancel the negative energy generated by unresolved feelings amongst the caregivers.
If those working together in the classroom are together committed to the study of anthroposophy, that is a great beginning to clearing the air of unnecessary emotional burdens. Studying anthroposophy seems to attract individuals on a path of continuous self-learning. The caregivers, for the good of the children, can find a will to work together, and take intentional steps toward strengthening their relationship and creating a healthy social dynamic amongst them for the children to feel and imitate. While this paper will in no way be prescriptive, it hopefully will provide some new ideas on this topic.
It starts with a word: assistant, aide, lead teacher, co-teacher, paraeducator; and then the question: who are these people? Helle Heckmann is the founder of a Danish children's program called Nokken. Her recently released documentary video, Das Smal (The Little Ones), depicting the smallest children at Nokken, includes a spellbinding segment on the social dynamics of the adult caregivers. Heckmann cares for the children with two other adults and refers to all three of them as teachers. The two younger teachers, though having their Steiner Early Childhood certification, may have much less experience than Heckmann, yet all three are called teachers. All schools or programs are different, of course, in their use of delineating nomenclature, but there is a subtle change in consciousness depending on the titles given to individuals in a group setting. "The term paraeducator was coined by Anna Lou Pickett, director of the National Resource Center for Paraprofessionals in New York, and it mirrors titles such as paralegal and paramedic to designate someone who works alongside (para) a professional in the legal, medical or ...educational field"(Morgan and Ashbaker 2). An interesting question arises: would an individual have as much deference for the medical opinion of a paramedic if they were called doctor's aides or emergency room assistants? There is definitely a change in consciousness there. For the sake of clarity, this paper will employ the terms lead teacher and assistant as these terms seem to be generally used in the Steiner School communities.
For the most part, human beings feel more comfortable in a group situation when they know what is expected of them. Morgan and Ashbaker (14-16) suggest that if an assistant in the classroom does not have a formal job description, that one be written. The authors go on to say that perhaps the lead teacher and assistant in one classroom could compose one together and then present it to the administration for school-wide circulation. That seems reasonable and efficient in a public school setting where standardization for various reasons is the norm. But herein lies the difference and the beauty of the Steiner School: each classroom (early childhood or grades) is independent in that the teachers' creativity is sustained through academic freedom. (Steiner, Towards Social Renewal) Each teacher uniquely brings the fundamentals of Waldorf Early Childhood Education : gestures worthy of imitation, activity, order, beauty, rhythm, warmth, reverence, imaginative play, into the classroom. Those individuals charged to assist her, must metamorphose to help her meet her goals. This is a very fluid, self-less social dynamic indeed. It can be said to transcend the realms of the printed word or hierarchical titles. Nonetheless a job description is a good launching point.
To illustrate the fluidity of the lead and assistant roles in Early Childhood settings are the many articles published in the Waldorf Kindergarten Newsletter (1988) on the theme of "The Kindergarten Teacher-Working Alone or With an Assistant." Four authors, Freya Jaffke, Janet Kellman, Patty Keats -Osburn, and Joan Almon describe the trials and tribulations of working with an assistant and the pros and cons of working alone with the children.
Jaffke was from Reutlingen, Germany and describes the training program of the Early Childhood teacher which at the time was prevalent throughout Germany. She says that, "In Germany, the kindergarten trainee spends one year as an assistant, two years in kindergarten seminar [formal course work], and a final year again as an assistant." These assistants were referred to as student teachers. Built into their days and weeks together was a structured requirement of meetings. The student teacher was required to be present at faculty meetings, the lead teacher and student teacher met every afternoon for two weeks and then at the student's request or in preparation for a festival. During the meetings and during class time the student teacher was corrected when needed to supplement her learning. The daily work of classroom and children's care was shared between them with all activities having equal value.
Kellman was from the Live Oak Waldorf School in Auburn, California. This school kept only two kindergartens and maintained 10 to 15 students in each room. The teachers worked without assistants. The school had made a commitment to keep these classes small and consequently did not make a profit on these classes. The teachers were willing to take a smaller salary and to work without assistants to stay within budgetary constraints. They were obviously not required to follow a mandate of adult to children ratio in the classroom at the time this article was written. Kellman found she developed a very intimate social contact with the children and that she could effectively hold her consciousness over the individuals and the group. She also notes that being the lone adult in the classroom was more physical work and that organization and simplification were key factors.
Keats-Osburn taught at the Calgary Waldorf School in Canada. She states that her formal training in Early Childhood Service and Education taught the method of the teacher having an authoritative role over the assistant. Government regulations required that a certain child/teacher ratio be maintained which forced her to keep an assistant three days out of the week. It seemed she would have rather done without her but was required according to the law. Keats-Osburn described many weekly meetings where she and the assistant struggled to work out the assistant role. The final outcome was this: "She assists me with maintenance - cleaning paint jars, mopping floors, cleaning walls, etc., but she works silently and directs the children to me in the case of conflicts, injury, questions, etc. She assists me in drawing my attention to areas of the classroom which I may not see (as I have 21 children on her working days), and sometimes she sees or hears things children say or do which are helpful to me in my understanding of the child's needs or desires. All information we discuss about the children is strictly confidential. My assistant does not speak with parents about their children, but directs them to me. In this way I have total responsibility for the class. "
Almon taught at the Acorn Hill Children's Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA. She had varied experience as lead teacher, co-teacher, assistant, and head teacher without an assistant. She mentioned how being the sole adult in the room can lead to an intimate harmonious setting and likened this to the loss of the power struggle once parents divorced and were parenting solo. "Yet the archetypal home is one where the loving relationship between mother and father serves to protect and strengthen the child." She also mentions how Steiner often said that the child brings an untarnished sense of goodness with them from the spiritual world, their pre-earthly existence. It is this dream-state of the child that the teacher seeks to protect. Goodness and beauty allow the child to keep this spiritual bridge intact and "...a good man is one who is able to enter with his own soul into the soul of another." (Steiner, "Truth, Beauty and Goodness"). Almon adds that "...as we strive to bring goodness into our kindergartens through the daily relationship of teacher and assistant, we are offering the children a gift much needed for their own development."
One would be hard-pressed to wrangle a job description for an assistant from the scenarios described above, let alone a set of guidelines for the lead teacher and assistant(s) in the early childhood classroom. There is one underlying theme, however, and it is communication and respect. While communication and respect seem obvious as necessities for a healthy social dynamic, so too seem many of Rudolph Steiner's indications. But what is it that makes follow-through so difficult? Perhaps it is this human sheath, constantly influenced by Ahrimanic and Luciferic forces.
At Nokken social dynamics amongst teachers seems to find a balance. The three teachers meet one hour before the arrival of the children. They greet each other with a handshake looking into each others eyes. They read a Steiner verse together, take up an anthroposophical reading, and discuss what is going on at Nokken that day: is there a birthday, is there a new child, was there a parent's phone call the previous evening? The three also look to the physical preparations of the gardens and napping beds. Now that their spiritual, emotional, intellectual and physical preparations together have been made, the three as a cohesive unit may now greet the children freely upon their arrival. Heckmann emphasizes repeatedly that the relationship amongst the three must have mutual respect; no voice goes unheard. Communication of all happenings is conveyed and no one feels left out of the loop. Once again, the balance between Ahriman and Lucifer seems to have been made at Nokken. There is a structure to their sacred time together, yet the time is filled with knowledge, perceptions and responsibilities that are Luciferically fluid, depending on their discussions and inner work. It would not be far-fetched to guess that the three teachers also have their fair share of Ahrimanic type discussions concerning family contracts, tuition, pay raises, and safety procedures, but they still find or rather make time for this balanced nourishing meeting each day.
Morgan and Ashbaker take more of an Ahrimanic approach to communication and respect. It should be noted that their work was written for the larger landscape of public schools and mainstream institutions, but the methods they provide can be tempered or warmed for consciousness-raising work in a Steiner School. They encourage setting time aside every day and one meeting a week among the lead teacher and the assistants. The authors also recommend speaking with administrators to ensure that the assistants’ work week includes this review time and that the assistants be compensated for that time. At these reviews, various exercises and worksheets that have been completed during the week by both teacher and assistants are reviewed and discussed. There is an Observation Form that is filled out for a specific area of focus in the classroom, i.e., how often does a shy student volunteer in class, how often does the teacher show positive encouragement, how many girls answer math problems, etc. Then there is another form called an Observation Action Worksheet that provides an opportunity to dissect the data collected from an Observation Form and decide on actions that can be taken to improve the class experience. The Observation Form is also used for the assistant to keep detailed notes on a classroom skill the teacher is trying to impart to the assistant, i.e., how to handle behavioural challenges in the class using positive language. This allows the assistant to focus and collect data on one type of instructional work the teacher wants her to be able to take on. The teacher and assistant would then meet to look over the data collected to make sure the assistant understands what she needs to do and the teacher can self-evaluate to find out if her recorded actions truly reflected what she was trying to convey.
A third form discussed is the Communicating Preferences Form. The goal of this form is to show the difference between a principle upheld strongly by the teacher, for example punctuality, with a preference, for example removal of classroom clutter. Both teacher and assistant fill out separate forms and then meet to compare and discuss their answers. Three ring binders for collecting these various forms are also recommended for the teacher and assistant. These forms are available in the Appendix section of this paper.
It seems difficult to imagine such organized data collecting and review taking place among the teacher and assistant(s) in early childhood Steiner classrooms, but there is something to glean from this methodical approach. While note taking usually does not occur during time with the children, what if teachers and assistants took part of their break time to write down their observations for discussion at a weekly review session? Perhaps they are working with a new circle structure or trying out a new way of working curative-ly with a child. If these adults were gathering data in some way and discussing it, would they perhaps find some patterns they would have otherwise missed without their collective focus? Collaborative research is an attempt to better share our striving as human beings, to remove our thoughts from isolation and hold them in a circle of care (Finser 40-41). The mainstream approach is very intellectualized, very in the head so to speak, but as mentioned, perhaps some of these organizational data collecting and discussion ideas could be warmed with the art of the conversation between the teacher and assistants by utilizing Goethan Conversation or Non-Violent Communication (NVC).
Goethe found true conversing to be the art of arts. Marjorie Spock writes of the art of Goethean conversation and how it could allow conversations among a select group of individuals to "...take place across the threshold, in the etheric world, where thoughts are intuitions.". Perhaps a weekly discussion among teacher and assistant(s) could present an opportunity to practice this type of exchange. Spock provides guidelines for Goethean Conversation which meld well with a weekly classroom meeting. She says that the topic of the meeting would be set up in advance and that participants would keep this topic in their daily meditations. As the day of the meeting draws near the group should "...anticipate coming together as a festival of light, which...will lead to their illumination in the spiritual world." Spock also advises that any thoughts previously encountered on the topic prior to the meeting should be discarded so as to become an open vessel for spiritual insight. The group should abstain from chatter or personal courtesies during the meeting as well as side remarks. The meetings should have an exact starting and an exact ending where the participants stand together at both times and recite a verse. This type of conversation at a weekly teacher and assistant(s)’ meeting seems well geared toward topics relating to a child's challenges or a reworking of circle structure. In a Goethan conversation, the data from an Observation Form or an Observation Action Worksheet, described previously, could be warmly presented. This collaboration can be greatly advantageous to finding solutions as "...illumined hearts serve as the organs of intelligence, and the tendency of hearts is to union."(Spock 12)
Goethean Conversation might not work as well if the topic is emotionally charged, for example if one of the adults in the classroom takes issue with anther adult's actions in the classroom. In this case, an approach using a form from Morgan and Ashbaker (35), entitled A Problem Solving Template for Enhanced Communication might help participants remain objective. Participants could complete the form and bring it for discussion at a weekly meeting. The discussion participants could also seek to employ NVC dialogue techniques where facts are stated without judgements in an effort to foster respect among the individuals (Rosenberg 16-17). Two major parts of NVC are expressing honestly and receiving empathically. The speaker's expression includes only "...the concrete actions we observe that affect our well-being; how we feel in relation to what we observe; the needs, values, desires, etc. that create our feelings; the concrete actions we request in order to enrich our lives.". (Rosenberg 47-49) This communication methodology may seem artificial at first, but could help avoid hurt feelings and misunderstanding. It requires commitment on the part of the discussion participants to learn the NVC form well enough to use it correctly. This requires some work to understand the differences between feelings and non-feelings, value judgements and moral judgements (preferences and principles), listening and paraphrasing skills and to be fluent enough in the vocabulary and method to actually focus on the problem instead of the process of NVC.
Aside from the various communication improvement and problem solving forms, fostering respect among teachers and assistants was tackled in additional practical ways by Morgan and Ashbaker. They suggest the following concrete actions on the part of the teacher:
posting the assistant(s)'s name outside the classroom door alongside the teacher's;
putting the assistant(s)'s name on the teacher's mailbox for informational literature distributed in the school;
advising the assistant(s) as to the journals or publications or conferences available that would assist her(them);
allowing the assistant(s) to have some opportunities for shared decision-making with the teacher;
being the assistant(s)'s advocate if additional training outside the classroom is needed;
learning what life experience the assistant(s) bring(s) and valuing these experiences;
being aware of the way the assistant(s) is(are) spoken to.
One might not wonder if the Steiner School Early Childhood teacher does not already have enough to do in the classroom and as a member of the College of Teachers without having to add additional responsibilities for the assistant(s). But this is a required supervisory role of the lead teacher according to Morgan and Ashbaker. This supervisory role can lead to many rewards: "another adult perspective in the classroom, someonelse's lifetime of experience and skills, another pair of hands and eyes to help you learn more about your own effectiveness as an educator; an opportunity to facilitate another adult's learning and professional development; and...a tremendous source of support for the important work [of the teacher] (Morgan and Ashbaker 53). Indeed Steiner mentions that teachers can only provide the most favorable conditions for the children to educate themselves for "...there is no education other than self-education (Steiner, “The Child's Changing Consciousness”).” Part of shaping and influencing this environment depends upon the "...the qualities of the [teacher's] own being and her relationships to the children and other adults in the kindergarten, to the parents,...and to living on earth" (WECAN Mentoring Task Force: Susan Howard 22).
Communication and respect have been highlighted as major cornerstones to a healthy social dynamic among teachers and assistants. Commitment is yet another important ingredient; finding the will to carve out the time for such work. In most Steiner Schools, time is already carved out for weekly faculty meetings, faculty committee meetings, family responsibilities. Some teachers and assistants even have other paying jobs such as babysitting or teaching yoga classes once the school day ends. And school days end at 3:15pm in the Early Childhood classroom at some schools. Getting to school an hour before children arrive would mean arriving at 7am. Teachers and assistants with young children would have to bring them along early as well. These meandering, unsupervised children are the "Waldorphans" Eugene Schwartz mentions in his Waldorf Teacher's Survival Guide.
This author has had the opportunity to collect some data using 5 minute eurythmy and singing exercises with a lead teacher and her two assistants. The purpose behind these short exercises was to see if these exercises were effective in bolstering the bond among the three adults. and consequently affecting the quality of the children’s play. The three participants were Kerry (Lead Teacher), Claire (Assistant), Roxanne (Assistant). All three participated Monday through Wednesday; Claire did not participate Thursday and Friday as she works elsewhere on those days. The singing exercise was begun on Monday, November 15th, 2010 and lasted for approximately 2 weeks. The song was a simple round: "All things shall perish from under the sky, music alone shall live, music alone shall live, music alone shall live, never to die ." At the end of the day, when all the children had gone away, somewhere between 3 pm and 3:30 pm, the three participants would close the classroom door and sing. At first, Roxanne would sing and the others would join in when they felt comfortable with the lyrics. The three sang in unison waiting for one of them to break out into the second round. This waiting went on for several sessions. Finally one of them tried to break out, but the round was not very strong. Then it was observed that the song was really a two-part round not a three part round, so Claire modified the melody. The new melody took about two sessions to get used to. By the end of the two weeks, the group did not really achieve a strong three part round.
The Eurythmy exercise was begun after Winter Break and continued for almost three weeks. The dates were January 10th until January 28th, 2011 This exercise consisted of passing a knitted ball counterclockwise and then clockwise among the three participants. A nursery rhyme was chanted and then sung during the passing of the ball: "Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after." The direction of the ball changed when the second sentence of the rhyme began. To pass the ball clockwise, the participants were required to cross their right arm over the left as the restriction was to always pass the ball with the right hand and receive the ball with the left hand. This exercise was learnt quickly by the adults and was completed successfully on all but the initial session.
During February 2011 there were no exercises performed but a questionnaire was given to the participants to complete which concerned both the singing and the eurythmy exercise. The Appendix contains the questionnaire and the responses.
Basically all three participants were very willing to participate in this study. It was remembering to do the exercises that proved a challenge. It is easy to see why the beginning of the day can be such a sacred time together, before the children arrive and the hub-bub of the day begins. At the end of the day, especially after three p.m., the teacher and assistants were tired; their own children were finished their day also and were needing their parent's attention. Sometimes one of the participants would have to shoo parents and some of their own children out of the room for "just five minutes while we do our exercise." Roxanne would often be the one to remind the others that it was time to sing or time for eurythmy, and as the others were bustling about emptying potties or packing away bedding or collecting their bags, they would say, "oh, right!" Roxanne would usually remember because it was data she was collecting for her own research project. After carving out that time and after the five minute session, the group would usually take a collective breath in and out. There was a little space created that the women could leave with to continue on with the rest of their day.
It was originally hoped that these exercises would occur before the children arrived in the morning, but the logistics were just too difficult to work out. One of the children arrives at 8 am by special agreement with the school and two arrive before 8:15 am. Drop-off time for non-staff children is 8:15 am. Claire cares for two children before school begins and takes them into school for their 8:15 am drop off time Roxanne is able to deliver her son to his Kindergarten room at 8:00 am as she is a staff member. That leaves really no time for the three women to meet before children arrive. Because the exercises could not happen before the children's arrival, the effect of the exercises on the immediate dynamic among the adults and its resultant effect on the children could not be studied.
However, based on the questionnaire responses, all three participants felt the exercises were worthwhile even though the effect on the children could not be gauged. All three want to have more singing exercises at the close of the day. Kerry did not notice any real shifts during the exercise periods. Roxanne did notice that during the time of the exercises she was able to have a real heart-to-heart conversation with Kerry on some unresolved issues. Also, at the close of the exercises during the questionnaire period, Roxanne and Claire were able to air some differences and clear up some misunderstandings. An effort was made after the completion of the exercises for the three women to meet outside of school. During one of these meetings they viewed the Das Smal Documentary by Helle Heckmann. Several days after the viewing of the video the three agreed to start and end their days together with a greeting and a handshake as the teachers do at Nokken. It seems comfort levels and trust increased to some degree and perhaps sensitivity of the group. After some time spent together outside the classroom, Claire was able to air her feelings on being creatively frustrated in her work in the classroom as an assistant. Kerry and Roxanne made an effort to have a meeting with Claire and the three brainstormed ideas for the future. The ideas coalesced into two concrete actions that will be undertaken. These actions will give Claire an artistic outlet in the classroom and allow her talents to be utilized.
The singing and eurythmy exercises were very short. They were so short that it can probably be safely said that the exercises alone did nothing to affect social dynamics. It was thought that perhaps singing in rounds would allow the three women to discover nuances or cues they had not noticed before. It was also thought that perhaps the eurythmy exercise would allow a more rhythmic flow among them in the classroom when some work must be done quickly and in tight corners. In reality, the participants could have read a verse together or their grocery lists and there would have not been much difference. It was the meeting together in a sacred space, regularly with a united goal that made a difference; it was the commitment that raised the consciousness of the group.
Rudolph Steiner’s work on communities and social order is reflected in his structuring of Waldorf Schools. He replaced the function of the principal or headmaster with the collective work of the teachers as in the College or Faculty of Teachers. He did this to deepen their knowledge of the nature of the human being. To be able to listen to others in this iintensive group, the individual must work on herself to remain objective and non-judgemental; to hear what is truly being said. “Meeting and working together in this intensive way is intended to...create a “heart organ” for the school...[and] the spirit of the school is created by mutual cooperation of everybody involved” (Rawson 81). The teacher and assistants in the Early Childhood room may be considered a microcosm of this College. To this end, if all participants, lead teacher and assistants, share the commitment to raise group consciousness, in some structured way, at some sacred time, each day and each week, the children in their care can only benefit.
It is through this hard work of adult social interaction that the lead teacher and assistant(s) “...may bring to young human beings bodily strength for work, inwardness of soul and clarity of spirit” (Rudolph Steiner, “Foundation Stone Verse”).
Bibliography
Almon, Joan and Petrash, Carol, ed. Waldorf Kindergarten Newsletter, Maryland, USA, 1988.
Finser, Torin. Research, Association of Waldorf Schools in North America, Fair Oaks, CA USA, 1995.
Karutz, Mathias, Forming School Communities: The Renewal of the Social Organism. AWSNA, Fair Oaks, CA, USA 2003.
Morgan, Jill and Ashbaker, Betty. Working with Paraeducators and Other Classroom Aides. Association for Supervision of Curriculum Development, Alexandria, VA, USA 2001.
Rawson, Martyn, ed. Paideia Books No. 1: Working Together in a Waldorf School, Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship Publications, East Sussex, UK, 2001.
Rosenberg, Marshall B. Non-Violent Communication:a language of life, Puddledancer Press, Encinitas, CA, 2003.
Spock, Marjorie. The Art of The Goethean Conversation, Rudolph Steiner Press, London, UK 1973.
Steiner, Rudolph. “The Balance in the World of Man, Lucifer and Ahriman: The World as Product of the Working of Balance”, GA 158, Dornach, Switzerland, November 1914.
Steiner, Rudolph. Towards Social Renewal, Rudolph Steiner Press, London, 1977.
Steiner, Rudolph. “The Education of the Child in the Light of Spiritual Science”, GA 34, Berlin, October 1907.
WECAN Mentoring Task Force. Mentoring in Waldorf Early Childhood Education: The Gateway Series Four. WECAN, Spring Valley, NY, 2007.
Appendix
FOSTERING HEALTHY SOCIAL DYNAMICS AMONG THE ADULTS IN THE WALDORF EARLY CHILDHOOD CLASSROOM
ROXANNE ANTHONY
APRIL 2011
SOPHIA’S HEARTH TRAINING CENTER
KEENE, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Fostering Healthy Social Dynamics among the Adults in the Waldorf Early Childhood Classroom
The quality of the play and social interaction of the children in the early childhood room is of great importance. Equally or perhaps even more important is the social dynamic of the adults, specifically the lead teacher and assistant(s), who care for these children. If there is tension or lack of respect among the adults, the children absorb this into their beings like the little sponges they are and, consequently, their play and social interactions are detrimentally affected. One of the spiritual exercises recommended for the early childhood teacher is to shed her troubles at the threshold to the classroom, entering there with a blank canvas, to be painted with warmth and joy. This is a worthy exercise indeed, but what if the teacher and assistant(s) have shed their home life issues but harbor resentment among them, some mistrust, some miscommunication? Then the smiles on their faces are merely superficial, there is really not joy, but dread at being stuck in the room with these individuals for the next 6 hours. All the bedtime meditations about the class children, all the morning verses in the world cannot cancel the negative energy generated by unresolved feelings amongst the caregivers.
If those working together in the classroom are together committed to the study of anthroposophy, that is a great beginning to clearing the air of unnecessary emotional burdens. Studying anthroposophy seems to attract individuals on a path of continuous self-learning. The caregivers, for the good of the children, can find a will to work together, and take intentional steps toward strengthening their relationship and creating a healthy social dynamic amongst them for the children to feel and imitate. While this paper will in no way be prescriptive, it hopefully will provide some new ideas on this topic.
It starts with a word: assistant, aide, lead teacher, co-teacher, paraeducator; and then the question: who are these people? Helle Heckmann is the founder of a Danish children's program called Nokken. Her recently released documentary video, Das Smal (The Little Ones), depicting the smallest children at Nokken, includes a spellbinding segment on the social dynamics of the adult caregivers. Heckmann cares for the children with two other adults and refers to all three of them as teachers. The two younger teachers, though having their Steiner Early Childhood certification, may have much less experience than Heckmann, yet all three are called teachers. All schools or programs are different, of course, in their use of delineating nomenclature, but there is a subtle change in consciousness depending on the titles given to individuals in a group setting. "The term paraeducator was coined by Anna Lou Pickett, director of the National Resource Center for Paraprofessionals in New York, and it mirrors titles such as paralegal and paramedic to designate someone who works alongside (para) a professional in the legal, medical or ...educational field"(Morgan and Ashbaker 2). An interesting question arises: would an individual have as much deference for the medical opinion of a paramedic if they were called doctor's aides or emergency room assistants? There is definitely a change in consciousness there. For the sake of clarity, this paper will employ the terms lead teacher and assistant as these terms seem to be generally used in the Steiner School communities.
For the most part, human beings feel more comfortable in a group situation when they know what is expected of them. Morgan and Ashbaker (14-16) suggest that if an assistant in the classroom does not have a formal job description, that one be written. The authors go on to say that perhaps the lead teacher and assistant in one classroom could compose one together and then present it to the administration for school-wide circulation. That seems reasonable and efficient in a public school setting where standardization for various reasons is the norm. But herein lies the difference and the beauty of the Steiner School: each classroom (early childhood or grades) is independent in that the teachers' creativity is sustained through academic freedom. (Steiner, Towards Social Renewal) Each teacher uniquely brings the fundamentals of Waldorf Early Childhood Education : gestures worthy of imitation, activity, order, beauty, rhythm, warmth, reverence, imaginative play, into the classroom. Those individuals charged to assist her, must metamorphose to help her meet her goals. This is a very fluid, self-less social dynamic indeed. It can be said to transcend the realms of the printed word or hierarchical titles. Nonetheless a job description is a good launching point.
To illustrate the fluidity of the lead and assistant roles in Early Childhood settings are the many articles published in the Waldorf Kindergarten Newsletter (1988) on the theme of "The Kindergarten Teacher-Working Alone or With an Assistant." Four authors, Freya Jaffke, Janet Kellman, Patty Keats -Osburn, and Joan Almon describe the trials and tribulations of working with an assistant and the pros and cons of working alone with the children.
Jaffke was from Reutlingen, Germany and describes the training program of the Early Childhood teacher which at the time was prevalent throughout Germany. She says that, "In Germany, the kindergarten trainee spends one year as an assistant, two years in kindergarten seminar [formal course work], and a final year again as an assistant." These assistants were referred to as student teachers. Built into their days and weeks together was a structured requirement of meetings. The student teacher was required to be present at faculty meetings, the lead teacher and student teacher met every afternoon for two weeks and then at the student's request or in preparation for a festival. During the meetings and during class time the student teacher was corrected when needed to supplement her learning. The daily work of classroom and children's care was shared between them with all activities having equal value.
Kellman was from the Live Oak Waldorf School in Auburn, California. This school kept only two kindergartens and maintained 10 to 15 students in each room. The teachers worked without assistants. The school had made a commitment to keep these classes small and consequently did not make a profit on these classes. The teachers were willing to take a smaller salary and to work without assistants to stay within budgetary constraints. They were obviously not required to follow a mandate of adult to children ratio in the classroom at the time this article was written. Kellman found she developed a very intimate social contact with the children and that she could effectively hold her consciousness over the individuals and the group. She also notes that being the lone adult in the classroom was more physical work and that organization and simplification were key factors.
Keats-Osburn taught at the Calgary Waldorf School in Canada. She states that her formal training in Early Childhood Service and Education taught the method of the teacher having an authoritative role over the assistant. Government regulations required that a certain child/teacher ratio be maintained which forced her to keep an assistant three days out of the week. It seemed she would have rather done without her but was required according to the law. Keats-Osburn described many weekly meetings where she and the assistant struggled to work out the assistant role. The final outcome was this: "She assists me with maintenance - cleaning paint jars, mopping floors, cleaning walls, etc., but she works silently and directs the children to me in the case of conflicts, injury, questions, etc. She assists me in drawing my attention to areas of the classroom which I may not see (as I have 21 children on her working days), and sometimes she sees or hears things children say or do which are helpful to me in my understanding of the child's needs or desires. All information we discuss about the children is strictly confidential. My assistant does not speak with parents about their children, but directs them to me. In this way I have total responsibility for the class. "
Almon taught at the Acorn Hill Children's Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA. She had varied experience as lead teacher, co-teacher, assistant, and head teacher without an assistant. She mentioned how being the sole adult in the room can lead to an intimate harmonious setting and likened this to the loss of the power struggle once parents divorced and were parenting solo. "Yet the archetypal home is one where the loving relationship between mother and father serves to protect and strengthen the child." She also mentions how Steiner often said that the child brings an untarnished sense of goodness with them from the spiritual world, their pre-earthly existence. It is this dream-state of the child that the teacher seeks to protect. Goodness and beauty allow the child to keep this spiritual bridge intact and "...a good man is one who is able to enter with his own soul into the soul of another." (Steiner, "Truth, Beauty and Goodness"). Almon adds that "...as we strive to bring goodness into our kindergartens through the daily relationship of teacher and assistant, we are offering the children a gift much needed for their own development."
One would be hard-pressed to wrangle a job description for an assistant from the scenarios described above, let alone a set of guidelines for the lead teacher and assistant(s) in the early childhood classroom. There is one underlying theme, however, and it is communication and respect. While communication and respect seem obvious as necessities for a healthy social dynamic, so too seem many of Rudolph Steiner's indications. But what is it that makes follow-through so difficult? Perhaps it is this human sheath, constantly influenced by Ahrimanic and Luciferic forces.
At Nokken social dynamics amongst teachers seems to find a balance. The three teachers meet one hour before the arrival of the children. They greet each other with a handshake looking into each others eyes. They read a Steiner verse together, take up an anthroposophical reading, and discuss what is going on at Nokken that day: is there a birthday, is there a new child, was there a parent's phone call the previous evening? The three also look to the physical preparations of the gardens and napping beds. Now that their spiritual, emotional, intellectual and physical preparations together have been made, the three as a cohesive unit may now greet the children freely upon their arrival. Heckmann emphasizes repeatedly that the relationship amongst the three must have mutual respect; no voice goes unheard. Communication of all happenings is conveyed and no one feels left out of the loop. Once again, the balance between Ahriman and Lucifer seems to have been made at Nokken. There is a structure to their sacred time together, yet the time is filled with knowledge, perceptions and responsibilities that are Luciferically fluid, depending on their discussions and inner work. It would not be far-fetched to guess that the three teachers also have their fair share of Ahrimanic type discussions concerning family contracts, tuition, pay raises, and safety procedures, but they still find or rather make time for this balanced nourishing meeting each day.
Morgan and Ashbaker take more of an Ahrimanic approach to communication and respect. It should be noted that their work was written for the larger landscape of public schools and mainstream institutions, but the methods they provide can be tempered or warmed for consciousness-raising work in a Steiner School. They encourage setting time aside every day and one meeting a week among the lead teacher and the assistants. The authors also recommend speaking with administrators to ensure that the assistants’ work week includes this review time and that the assistants be compensated for that time. At these reviews, various exercises and worksheets that have been completed during the week by both teacher and assistants are reviewed and discussed. There is an Observation Form that is filled out for a specific area of focus in the classroom, i.e., how often does a shy student volunteer in class, how often does the teacher show positive encouragement, how many girls answer math problems, etc. Then there is another form called an Observation Action Worksheet that provides an opportunity to dissect the data collected from an Observation Form and decide on actions that can be taken to improve the class experience. The Observation Form is also used for the assistant to keep detailed notes on a classroom skill the teacher is trying to impart to the assistant, i.e., how to handle behavioural challenges in the class using positive language. This allows the assistant to focus and collect data on one type of instructional work the teacher wants her to be able to take on. The teacher and assistant would then meet to look over the data collected to make sure the assistant understands what she needs to do and the teacher can self-evaluate to find out if her recorded actions truly reflected what she was trying to convey.
A third form discussed is the Communicating Preferences Form. The goal of this form is to show the difference between a principle upheld strongly by the teacher, for example punctuality, with a preference, for example removal of classroom clutter. Both teacher and assistant fill out separate forms and then meet to compare and discuss their answers. Three ring binders for collecting these various forms are also recommended for the teacher and assistant. These forms are available in the Appendix section of this paper.
It seems difficult to imagine such organized data collecting and review taking place among the teacher and assistant(s) in early childhood Steiner classrooms, but there is something to glean from this methodical approach. While note taking usually does not occur during time with the children, what if teachers and assistants took part of their break time to write down their observations for discussion at a weekly review session? Perhaps they are working with a new circle structure or trying out a new way of working curative-ly with a child. If these adults were gathering data in some way and discussing it, would they perhaps find some patterns they would have otherwise missed without their collective focus? Collaborative research is an attempt to better share our striving as human beings, to remove our thoughts from isolation and hold them in a circle of care (Finser 40-41). The mainstream approach is very intellectualized, very in the head so to speak, but as mentioned, perhaps some of these organizational data collecting and discussion ideas could be warmed with the art of the conversation between the teacher and assistants by utilizing Goethan Conversation or Non-Violent Communication (NVC).
Goethe found true conversing to be the art of arts. Marjorie Spock writes of the art of Goethean conversation and how it could allow conversations among a select group of individuals to "...take place across the threshold, in the etheric world, where thoughts are intuitions.". Perhaps a weekly discussion among teacher and assistant(s) could present an opportunity to practice this type of exchange. Spock provides guidelines for Goethean Conversation which meld well with a weekly classroom meeting. She says that the topic of the meeting would be set up in advance and that participants would keep this topic in their daily meditations. As the day of the meeting draws near the group should "...anticipate coming together as a festival of light, which...will lead to their illumination in the spiritual world." Spock also advises that any thoughts previously encountered on the topic prior to the meeting should be discarded so as to become an open vessel for spiritual insight. The group should abstain from chatter or personal courtesies during the meeting as well as side remarks. The meetings should have an exact starting and an exact ending where the participants stand together at both times and recite a verse. This type of conversation at a weekly teacher and assistant(s)’ meeting seems well geared toward topics relating to a child's challenges or a reworking of circle structure. In a Goethan conversation, the data from an Observation Form or an Observation Action Worksheet, described previously, could be warmly presented. This collaboration can be greatly advantageous to finding solutions as "...illumined hearts serve as the organs of intelligence, and the tendency of hearts is to union."(Spock 12)
Goethean Conversation might not work as well if the topic is emotionally charged, for example if one of the adults in the classroom takes issue with anther adult's actions in the classroom. In this case, an approach using a form from Morgan and Ashbaker (35), entitled A Problem Solving Template for Enhanced Communication might help participants remain objective. Participants could complete the form and bring it for discussion at a weekly meeting. The discussion participants could also seek to employ NVC dialogue techniques where facts are stated without judgements in an effort to foster respect among the individuals (Rosenberg 16-17). Two major parts of NVC are expressing honestly and receiving empathically. The speaker's expression includes only "...the concrete actions we observe that affect our well-being; how we feel in relation to what we observe; the needs, values, desires, etc. that create our feelings; the concrete actions we request in order to enrich our lives.". (Rosenberg 47-49) This communication methodology may seem artificial at first, but could help avoid hurt feelings and misunderstanding. It requires commitment on the part of the discussion participants to learn the NVC form well enough to use it correctly. This requires some work to understand the differences between feelings and non-feelings, value judgements and moral judgements (preferences and principles), listening and paraphrasing skills and to be fluent enough in the vocabulary and method to actually focus on the problem instead of the process of NVC.
Aside from the various communication improvement and problem solving forms, fostering respect among teachers and assistants was tackled in additional practical ways by Morgan and Ashbaker. They suggest the following concrete actions on the part of the teacher:
posting the assistant(s)'s name outside the classroom door alongside the teacher's;
putting the assistant(s)'s name on the teacher's mailbox for informational literature distributed in the school;
advising the assistant(s) as to the journals or publications or conferences available that would assist her(them);
allowing the assistant(s) to have some opportunities for shared decision-making with the teacher;
being the assistant(s)'s advocate if additional training outside the classroom is needed;
learning what life experience the assistant(s) bring(s) and valuing these experiences;
being aware of the way the assistant(s) is(are) spoken to.
One might not wonder if the Steiner School Early Childhood teacher does not already have enough to do in the classroom and as a member of the College of Teachers without having to add additional responsibilities for the assistant(s). But this is a required supervisory role of the lead teacher according to Morgan and Ashbaker. This supervisory role can lead to many rewards: "another adult perspective in the classroom, someonelse's lifetime of experience and skills, another pair of hands and eyes to help you learn more about your own effectiveness as an educator; an opportunity to facilitate another adult's learning and professional development; and...a tremendous source of support for the important work [of the teacher] (Morgan and Ashbaker 53). Indeed Steiner mentions that teachers can only provide the most favorable conditions for the children to educate themselves for "...there is no education other than self-education (Steiner, “The Child's Changing Consciousness”).” Part of shaping and influencing this environment depends upon the "...the qualities of the [teacher's] own being and her relationships to the children and other adults in the kindergarten, to the parents,...and to living on earth" (WECAN Mentoring Task Force: Susan Howard 22).
Communication and respect have been highlighted as major cornerstones to a healthy social dynamic among teachers and assistants. Commitment is yet another important ingredient; finding the will to carve out the time for such work. In most Steiner Schools, time is already carved out for weekly faculty meetings, faculty committee meetings, family responsibilities. Some teachers and assistants even have other paying jobs such as babysitting or teaching yoga classes once the school day ends. And school days end at 3:15pm in the Early Childhood classroom at some schools. Getting to school an hour before children arrive would mean arriving at 7am. Teachers and assistants with young children would have to bring them along early as well. These meandering, unsupervised children are the "Waldorphans" Eugene Schwartz mentions in his Waldorf Teacher's Survival Guide.
This author has had the opportunity to collect some data using 5 minute eurythmy and singing exercises with a lead teacher and her two assistants. The purpose behind these short exercises was to see if these exercises were effective in bolstering the bond among the three adults. and consequently affecting the quality of the children’s play. The three participants were Kerry (Lead Teacher), Claire (Assistant), Roxanne (Assistant). All three participated Monday through Wednesday; Claire did not participate Thursday and Friday as she works elsewhere on those days. The singing exercise was begun on Monday, November 15th, 2010 and lasted for approximately 2 weeks. The song was a simple round: "All things shall perish from under the sky, music alone shall live, music alone shall live, music alone shall live, never to die ." At the end of the day, when all the children had gone away, somewhere between 3 pm and 3:30 pm, the three participants would close the classroom door and sing. At first, Roxanne would sing and the others would join in when they felt comfortable with the lyrics. The three sang in unison waiting for one of them to break out into the second round. This waiting went on for several sessions. Finally one of them tried to break out, but the round was not very strong. Then it was observed that the song was really a two-part round not a three part round, so Claire modified the melody. The new melody took about two sessions to get used to. By the end of the two weeks, the group did not really achieve a strong three part round.
The Eurythmy exercise was begun after Winter Break and continued for almost three weeks. The dates were January 10th until January 28th, 2011 This exercise consisted of passing a knitted ball counterclockwise and then clockwise among the three participants. A nursery rhyme was chanted and then sung during the passing of the ball: "Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after." The direction of the ball changed when the second sentence of the rhyme began. To pass the ball clockwise, the participants were required to cross their right arm over the left as the restriction was to always pass the ball with the right hand and receive the ball with the left hand. This exercise was learnt quickly by the adults and was completed successfully on all but the initial session.
During February 2011 there were no exercises performed but a questionnaire was given to the participants to complete which concerned both the singing and the eurythmy exercise. The Appendix contains the questionnaire and the responses.
Basically all three participants were very willing to participate in this study. It was remembering to do the exercises that proved a challenge. It is easy to see why the beginning of the day can be such a sacred time together, before the children arrive and the hub-bub of the day begins. At the end of the day, especially after three p.m., the teacher and assistants were tired; their own children were finished their day also and were needing their parent's attention. Sometimes one of the participants would have to shoo parents and some of their own children out of the room for "just five minutes while we do our exercise." Roxanne would often be the one to remind the others that it was time to sing or time for eurythmy, and as the others were bustling about emptying potties or packing away bedding or collecting their bags, they would say, "oh, right!" Roxanne would usually remember because it was data she was collecting for her own research project. After carving out that time and after the five minute session, the group would usually take a collective breath in and out. There was a little space created that the women could leave with to continue on with the rest of their day.
It was originally hoped that these exercises would occur before the children arrived in the morning, but the logistics were just too difficult to work out. One of the children arrives at 8 am by special agreement with the school and two arrive before 8:15 am. Drop-off time for non-staff children is 8:15 am. Claire cares for two children before school begins and takes them into school for their 8:15 am drop off time Roxanne is able to deliver her son to his Kindergarten room at 8:00 am as she is a staff member. That leaves really no time for the three women to meet before children arrive. Because the exercises could not happen before the children's arrival, the effect of the exercises on the immediate dynamic among the adults and its resultant effect on the children could not be studied.
However, based on the questionnaire responses, all three participants felt the exercises were worthwhile even though the effect on the children could not be gauged. All three want to have more singing exercises at the close of the day. Kerry did not notice any real shifts during the exercise periods. Roxanne did notice that during the time of the exercises she was able to have a real heart-to-heart conversation with Kerry on some unresolved issues. Also, at the close of the exercises during the questionnaire period, Roxanne and Claire were able to air some differences and clear up some misunderstandings. An effort was made after the completion of the exercises for the three women to meet outside of school. During one of these meetings they viewed the Das Smal Documentary by Helle Heckmann. Several days after the viewing of the video the three agreed to start and end their days together with a greeting and a handshake as the teachers do at Nokken. It seems comfort levels and trust increased to some degree and perhaps sensitivity of the group. After some time spent together outside the classroom, Claire was able to air her feelings on being creatively frustrated in her work in the classroom as an assistant. Kerry and Roxanne made an effort to have a meeting with Claire and the three brainstormed ideas for the future. The ideas coalesced into two concrete actions that will be undertaken. These actions will give Claire an artistic outlet in the classroom and allow her talents to be utilized.
The singing and eurythmy exercises were very short. They were so short that it can probably be safely said that the exercises alone did nothing to affect social dynamics. It was thought that perhaps singing in rounds would allow the three women to discover nuances or cues they had not noticed before. It was also thought that perhaps the eurythmy exercise would allow a more rhythmic flow among them in the classroom when some work must be done quickly and in tight corners. In reality, the participants could have read a verse together or their grocery lists and there would have not been much difference. It was the meeting together in a sacred space, regularly with a united goal that made a difference; it was the commitment that raised the consciousness of the group.
Rudolph Steiner’s work on communities and social order is reflected in his structuring of Waldorf Schools. He replaced the function of the principal or headmaster with the collective work of the teachers as in the College or Faculty of Teachers. He did this to deepen their knowledge of the nature of the human being. To be able to listen to others in this iintensive group, the individual must work on herself to remain objective and non-judgemental; to hear what is truly being said. “Meeting and working together in this intensive way is intended to...create a “heart organ” for the school...[and] the spirit of the school is created by mutual cooperation of everybody involved” (Rawson 81). The teacher and assistants in the Early Childhood room may be considered a microcosm of this College. To this end, if all participants, lead teacher and assistants, share the commitment to raise group consciousness, in some structured way, at some sacred time, each day and each week, the children in their care can only benefit.
It is through this hard work of adult social interaction that the lead teacher and assistant(s) “...may bring to young human beings bodily strength for work, inwardness of soul and clarity of spirit” (Rudolph Steiner, “Foundation Stone Verse”).
Bibliography
Almon, Joan and Petrash, Carol, ed. Waldorf Kindergarten Newsletter, Maryland, USA, 1988.
Finser, Torin. Research, Association of Waldorf Schools in North America, Fair Oaks, CA USA, 1995.
Karutz, Mathias, Forming School Communities: The Renewal of the Social Organism. AWSNA, Fair Oaks, CA, USA 2003.
Morgan, Jill and Ashbaker, Betty. Working with Paraeducators and Other Classroom Aides. Association for Supervision of Curriculum Development, Alexandria, VA, USA 2001.
Rawson, Martyn, ed. Paideia Books No. 1: Working Together in a Waldorf School, Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship Publications, East Sussex, UK, 2001.
Rosenberg, Marshall B. Non-Violent Communication:a language of life, Puddledancer Press, Encinitas, CA, 2003.
Spock, Marjorie. The Art of The Goethean Conversation, Rudolph Steiner Press, London, UK 1973.
Steiner, Rudolph. “The Balance in the World of Man, Lucifer and Ahriman: The World as Product of the Working of Balance”, GA 158, Dornach, Switzerland, November 1914.
Steiner, Rudolph. Towards Social Renewal, Rudolph Steiner Press, London, 1977.
Steiner, Rudolph. “The Education of the Child in the Light of Spiritual Science”, GA 34, Berlin, October 1907.
WECAN Mentoring Task Force. Mentoring in Waldorf Early Childhood Education: The Gateway Series Four. WECAN, Spring Valley, NY, 2007.
Appendix
FOSTERING HEALTHY SOCIAL DYNAMICS AMONG THE ADULTS IN THE WALDORF EARLY CHILDHOOD CLASSROOM
ROXANNE ANTHONY
APRIL 2011
SOPHIA’S HEARTH TRAINING CENTER
KEENE, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Working on Research
I am so glad to be on winter break. Near the end of this semester things just seemed to get overwhelming. I suppose holidays can do that to people. Well, anyway, my research project has been gnawing at me since I returned from Sophia's Hearth. I started in on the experiential part right way, thank goodness. so I have about 5 weeks of research to process. My co-assistant and lead teacher did agree to work on this with me, bless them, and we have had two weeks of singing together and about three weeks of eurythmy exercises for 5 minutes at a time. We did these exercises at the end of the day as it was completely impossible to get these in at the beginning of the day before children and parents arrived.
It is a shame though about not getting the exercises in at the beginning of the day...I did finally watch Helle Heckmann's entire video: The Little Ones: Ages 1 and 2 years and was absolutely inspired. There is a whole section on the work of the three or four lead teachers at Nokken. They arrive a whole hour before the children and greet each other with a handshake and look into each other's eyes. After preparing some items for the day (outdoor bedding, the space outdoors, etc) they take time to sit down together and read some anthroposophical work, read the verse of the day and have a moment of sharing about what is going on that day. Helle describes the importance of this coming together and of the mutual respect required of all participants. I was blown away.
I shared the beauty of this video segment with the lead teacher and while we cannot spare all that time at the beginning of the day...she has agreed to start our day with a handshake. I am feeling the difference. I have also finally gotten myself together enough to create the questionnaire for Claire and Kerry and have sent it along to them and I have outlined many items for the research project. Consequently I ordered three books as additional print resources and placed a research inquiry with the Rudolph Steiner Library. (More money...yikes)
Here is a copy of what is going on with the research right now:
Sophia's Hearth Family Center Training Course
Research Project
Roxanne Anthony
TOPIC: Does a daily 5 minute group exercise assist the Teacher /Assistant relationship in the Waldorf Nursery Setting, specifically with regard to harmonizing of energies, building trust, supporting verbal communication?
METHOD of INVESTIGATION: This topic will be mostly investigated experientially I have the opportunity to practice these exercises in the classroom with my lead teacher, Kerry Hoffman and my co-assistant, Claire Mc Connell. I had originally planned to have a 5 minute song for two weeks, a 5 minute eurythmy exercise for 2 weeks and then a baseline of no activity for 2 weeks. We began on Monday, November 15 th. The song we sand was given to me by Susan Weber and it can be sung in rounds:
All things shall perish from under the sky.
Music alone shall live, Music alone shall live, music alone shall live
Never to die.
The eurythmy exercise was given to me by Mollie Aimies. Using knitted balls, the three participants passed the ball to the person on the right, or passed the ball to the person on the left by crossing their right arm over the left. These activities were done alone and then alternating with verbal cues. Afterward, a chanted Nursery Rhyme was incorporated with the movements: Jack and Jill went up the hill.... Half way through the participants would switch from passing to the right to crossing to the left.
A literary search using the Rudolph Steiner Library has also been initiated. The search request pertained to any references regarding Rudolph Steiner’s advice on strengthening the relationship between teachers and assistants in an early childhood or grades setting.
An interview with another teacher/assistant group on how they build their relationship
Viewing of the Helle Heckman video: The Little Ones: Ages 1 and 2 years
METHOD of RECORDING FINDINGS:
1. Questionnaire developed and presented to all participants in the experiential work
2. Video tape of the eurythmy work
PRELIMINARY BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Helle Heckman video: The Little Ones: Ages 1 and 2 years. 2010.
Online resources: definitions of group cohesiveness
A Teacher's Guide to Working with Paraeducators and Other Classroom Aides, Jill Morgan, Betty Y. Ashbaker
Forming School Communities: The Renewal of the Social Organism, Matthias Karutz
Teachers And Assistants Working Together - Gary Thomas
It is a shame though about not getting the exercises in at the beginning of the day...I did finally watch Helle Heckmann's entire video: The Little Ones: Ages 1 and 2 years and was absolutely inspired. There is a whole section on the work of the three or four lead teachers at Nokken. They arrive a whole hour before the children and greet each other with a handshake and look into each other's eyes. After preparing some items for the day (outdoor bedding, the space outdoors, etc) they take time to sit down together and read some anthroposophical work, read the verse of the day and have a moment of sharing about what is going on that day. Helle describes the importance of this coming together and of the mutual respect required of all participants. I was blown away.
I shared the beauty of this video segment with the lead teacher and while we cannot spare all that time at the beginning of the day...she has agreed to start our day with a handshake. I am feeling the difference. I have also finally gotten myself together enough to create the questionnaire for Claire and Kerry and have sent it along to them and I have outlined many items for the research project. Consequently I ordered three books as additional print resources and placed a research inquiry with the Rudolph Steiner Library. (More money...yikes)
Here is a copy of what is going on with the research right now:
Sophia's Hearth Family Center Training Course
Research Project
Roxanne Anthony
TOPIC: Does a daily 5 minute group exercise assist the Teacher /Assistant relationship in the Waldorf Nursery Setting, specifically with regard to harmonizing of energies, building trust, supporting verbal communication?
METHOD of INVESTIGATION: This topic will be mostly investigated experientially I have the opportunity to practice these exercises in the classroom with my lead teacher, Kerry Hoffman and my co-assistant, Claire Mc Connell. I had originally planned to have a 5 minute song for two weeks, a 5 minute eurythmy exercise for 2 weeks and then a baseline of no activity for 2 weeks. We began on Monday, November 15 th. The song we sand was given to me by Susan Weber and it can be sung in rounds:
All things shall perish from under the sky.
Music alone shall live, Music alone shall live, music alone shall live
Never to die.
The eurythmy exercise was given to me by Mollie Aimies. Using knitted balls, the three participants passed the ball to the person on the right, or passed the ball to the person on the left by crossing their right arm over the left. These activities were done alone and then alternating with verbal cues. Afterward, a chanted Nursery Rhyme was incorporated with the movements: Jack and Jill went up the hill.... Half way through the participants would switch from passing to the right to crossing to the left.
A literary search using the Rudolph Steiner Library has also been initiated. The search request pertained to any references regarding Rudolph Steiner’s advice on strengthening the relationship between teachers and assistants in an early childhood or grades setting.
An interview with another teacher/assistant group on how they build their relationship
Viewing of the Helle Heckman video: The Little Ones: Ages 1 and 2 years
METHOD of RECORDING FINDINGS:
1. Questionnaire developed and presented to all participants in the experiential work
2. Video tape of the eurythmy work
PRELIMINARY BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Helle Heckman video: The Little Ones: Ages 1 and 2 years. 2010.
Online resources: definitions of group cohesiveness
A Teacher's Guide to Working with Paraeducators and Other Classroom Aides, Jill Morgan, Betty Y. Ashbaker
Forming School Communities: The Renewal of the Social Organism, Matthias Karutz
Teachers And Assistants Working Together - Gary Thomas
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Helle Heckmann and nokken and the feeding of young children
Helle's dvd was simply inspiring. Her new dvd is entitled...small ones ages one to two years, and is simply astounding. I haven't viewed the entire video yet, but te piece that shpws Helle with a table full of one and two year old children and an assistant, sitting down to snack is inspiring. She really truly holds the form. Thechildren are at ease and know to wait patiently to eat until everyone has been served. Helle is my lead teacher's mentor. Years ago when she took the training, she was paired with Helle. We chatted briefly about Helle's presence with regard to her being so able to hold the form of the mealtime.
Yesterday, i was in the lead position at mealtime, as Kerry needed to step out and converse with someprospective parents. the children had been out of sorts at circle and then at the sitting down at table part following. It took quite alot to bring some degree of peace and order to the group. I found rising within me from my stomach to my throat a type of sternness. Some children and their stools were pulled away from table until their hands could stop banging the table. Finally fire faery came and the children were waiting for their soup to be served. The chaos started to return, but i insisted on quiet at the table. We usually don't insist on complete quiet in the nursery but low table voices instaed. Something inside me felt that i needed to insist on quiet...and i was stern. It seemed to work, they quieted down. Later when we were all outside, i felt a wave of extreme tiredness...it had taken alot out of me to bring that order.
Today when Kerry needed to step out at the same time, it was much easier to hold the form. This time however, she stepped out after blessing. I was not exhausted outside, but energized. I need to think about this some more. Was my etheric drained from the effort of holding the form of the meal? I know i have been getting plenty of rest. Hmmm. I wonder.
Yesterday, i was in the lead position at mealtime, as Kerry needed to step out and converse with someprospective parents. the children had been out of sorts at circle and then at the sitting down at table part following. It took quite alot to bring some degree of peace and order to the group. I found rising within me from my stomach to my throat a type of sternness. Some children and their stools were pulled away from table until their hands could stop banging the table. Finally fire faery came and the children were waiting for their soup to be served. The chaos started to return, but i insisted on quiet at the table. We usually don't insist on complete quiet in the nursery but low table voices instaed. Something inside me felt that i needed to insist on quiet...and i was stern. It seemed to work, they quieted down. Later when we were all outside, i felt a wave of extreme tiredness...it had taken alot out of me to bring that order.
Today when Kerry needed to step out at the same time, it was much easier to hold the form. This time however, she stepped out after blessing. I was not exhausted outside, but energized. I need to think about this some more. Was my etheric drained from the effort of holding the form of the meal? I know i have been getting plenty of rest. Hmmm. I wonder.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Back to the grind
Well, i got back, so excited about sharing what i had learned with my colleagues, but the reality of the daily grind hit me full in the face. We are all so busy...with such full schedules. I personally have children in my care every day but thursday. Yesterday i even overbooked myself and i had. Six children in my care after school. Since it was my first day back, i had energy...but what was i thinking. They all played well and everything was great. But this is definitely not what i would call pacing myself.
Anyway, i haven't had an opportunity to share any of the songs with my lead teacher and co-assistant...let alone the concept i have for my rersearch project. Well actually i did briefly share the research project with my lead teacher...but she gave Me a reality check. She has two children dropped off at 8am. My research idea was to have the three of us have a harmonizing song in rounds for. Five minutes in the morning before we started. And then to see what effect it had on our working togethr more harmoniously. Oh well, what was i thinking anyway...this morning curtis raised a yell out of me as we were struggling with getting ready to go out the door, hence icarrived fiftenn minutes late at work.
Maybe we can sing at the end of the day?
Anyway, i haven't had an opportunity to share any of the songs with my lead teacher and co-assistant...let alone the concept i have for my rersearch project. Well actually i did briefly share the research project with my lead teacher...but she gave Me a reality check. She has two children dropped off at 8am. My research idea was to have the three of us have a harmonizing song in rounds for. Five minutes in the morning before we started. And then to see what effect it had on our working togethr more harmoniously. Oh well, what was i thinking anyway...this morning curtis raised a yell out of me as we were struggling with getting ready to go out the door, hence icarrived fiftenn minutes late at work.
Maybe we can sing at the end of the day?
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Be like a goat?
Well, I am back in new Hampshire for part two of the Sophia's hearth training course. It is very exciting to be back. 10 of the 12 students are able to attend this autumn session. It is refreshing and invigorating to reconnect with these wonderful women and with my teachers. One of the first lectures was about levity and gravity. This lecture was given by our spatial dynamics/movement instructor, Jane Swain Over the summer we did an exercise with her called the mercury thermometer. This exercise allowed us to see or rather notice where we were personally in regard to our upper and lower planes...were we experiencing too much levity, I.e., blowing off steam, high as a kite, head in the clouds....or were we experiencing too much gravity, I.e., down in the dumps, feeling really low, needing to pick oneself off the floor. Jane had us walk on blanace boards, rubber balls...she had us skate on blocks of wood covered in felt on a smooth cork floor...you should try that some time...you really have to feel your feet.
Time and time again, it came down to the fact that the caregiver of young children must be in a good state in her body. We are showing the child how to be in his body, and we should strive to reach this place of equanimity. For if the caregiver has her head in the clouds...the children in the class might spiral up and out into chaos...a very unsafe feeling place for a young one.
Jane brought the example that we should strive to be like a goat. This was a reference to the old practice of placing a sure-footed, unflappable goat into a paddock with a nervous, high-strung race horse to calm the horse. Just the goat's calm, composed manner was enough to calm the horse down. And if someone"got your goat" they took away your composure. So maybe I should have named this blog "Be Like A Goat" instead of "Be Like A Madonna!"
Time and time again, it came down to the fact that the caregiver of young children must be in a good state in her body. We are showing the child how to be in his body, and we should strive to reach this place of equanimity. For if the caregiver has her head in the clouds...the children in the class might spiral up and out into chaos...a very unsafe feeling place for a young one.
Jane brought the example that we should strive to be like a goat. This was a reference to the old practice of placing a sure-footed, unflappable goat into a paddock with a nervous, high-strung race horse to calm the horse. Just the goat's calm, composed manner was enough to calm the horse down. And if someone"got your goat" they took away your composure. So maybe I should have named this blog "Be Like A Goat" instead of "Be Like A Madonna!"
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