Each year, the Senior class has an opportunity to review their experiences at 黑料专区鈥攚hether they joined their class in Ninth Grade, Eleventh Grade, or have been 鈥淲aldorf Lifers鈥� here or in other Waldorf schools for the last 14+ years of their lives鈥攚ith the College of Teachers. It鈥檚 a meaningful and deeply impactful reflection on what education is truly about and how the young adults stepping out into the world for the first time on their own have felt seen, valued, encouraged, and challenged to become who they are. It鈥檚 also an opportunity to center student voices: students can reflect critically and a bit more objectively on their education by the end of Twelfth Grade, and they can and regularly do make fantastically thoughtful suggestions to help the whole school grow to be more responsive, culturally sustaining, and relevant for future students.

But before that even happens, students, parents, and SWS Alums have already been sharing stories about their experiences at our school. School review sites like and are increasingly how families share and discover the right schools for their children. Below are recent testimonials from students, parents, and alums that speak to the unique learning environment and supportive culture co-created between students and teachers in our High School. At SWHS, you belong, you are valued, and you are supported in becoming more you than you ever thought you could be (follow that one, kids?)

Last week, in the waning days of National Poetry Month, Communications Director Andrew May was able to speak with one Senior, Isabella Amend, about her project and the process she went through to create and self-publish her first poetry collection, The Predicament of Being a Dandelion.

So they became poetry鈥攖hat鈥檚 interesting. Had you been, besides the poetry you have been studying and writing in school, reading poets, studying, looking at, discovering poets and poetry?

No, not even a little bit.

So did you find that [the poetry] you encountered in High School provided you with a sufficient impetus to start experimenting with language, like how to work with line breaks [nervous laughter]?

You鈥檙e the one who actually taught me about line breaks in poetry! That was my first experience [in Romantics] because I didn鈥檛 have the Poetics block in Tenth Grade, I was a late transfer to SWS. But we had Romantics in Eleventh Grade, and that was my only experience and has remained my only experience really studying poetry in school.

So what was your takeaway on line breaks?

Well, for me, when I write, it鈥檚 actually hard to decide [where to break a line]. I try and play with meaning when I break a line so that there might be a kind of double meaning thing going on. But oftentimes it鈥檚 really hard. And then I remember you [Mr. May] telling me that you had the same experience, that there is technique to it technically, but that most of the time you have to just try to feel into it. Kind of intuitive sometimes. You said to read it aloud and then kid of鈥攚here you pause naturally should be the break. And that鈥檚 what I鈥檝e been doing.

Oh! So a lot of your poetry鈥攕orry, I don鈥檛 have a copy of the book yet鈥攁t least at first, you鈥檙e composing it, writing it, and then you read it out loud and revise?

Yes; or at least that鈥檚 more or less my process. So if it鈥檚 a long line, and then you read it out loud and find where it breaks best. And you break it. It鈥檚 not quite a science!

No, not at all, but there is some technique there for sure. So you got going, you ended up journaling and then turning your writing into multiple pieces. When did you know, 鈥淥h, I think this is going to be a book鈥�?

So it was all handwritten, and so when I got the stack that was about [three inches high], I was like, 鈥淲ell, I should probably do something with this at some point.鈥� And then, around the same time, Dr. Gruhn [High School Science Teacher and Senior Project Coordinator] send out the email about starting our projects, and it kind of took off from there.

Very cool; I love when things line up like that. What was the hardest part about making your way through this?

Creating this physical book, being okay with other people reading it, realizing, 鈥淥h, anyone can buy this on Amazon now. And that鈥檚 my name. And I wrote that and felt that. And now you get to feel that.鈥�

Right鈥攂ecause it all kind of began as a journal, didn鈥檛 it? It鈥檚 all very, very personal, kind of like confessional poetry.

Yes, it鈥檚 all based on experiences with other people.

Oh wow鈥攔elationship poetry. That鈥檚 intense, that鈥檚 a lot! But also a great vehicle to process, that鈥檚 what art and creativity is for, I think.

Exactly. So you just take out names or take out pronouns and turn it into a different story for the reader to experience and connect with.

So what are you happiest with? Or鈥擨 don鈥檛 want to say proud鈥攂ut do you鈥攚ell, what do you feel now? You look at this product that you鈥檝e made and put out into the world, and it鈥檚 the result of a lot of work. What are you glad you were able to accomplish?

I wasn鈥檛 going to do [the book]. I remember being, well鈥擨 went on vacation with my mom, and being in Italy, and I was thinking, 鈥淚鈥檓 not doing it, I鈥檓 not publishing this, but I will talk about this for my Senior Project. I鈥檓 not going to publish it. So I think the hardest part was getting over the fact that, you know, if people think it鈥檚 weird, then people think it鈥檚 weird. It doesn鈥檛 really matter. You know, the people who matter won鈥檛 think that, and I know it鈥檚 great no matter what it is. Yeah. So I think that was the hardest part to be happy with, just getting over the initial fear that my name and my feelings and my soul are going to be available to purchase on Amazon for $13. So I think I had to get over that, definitely, but I鈥檓 glad I am.

Do you feel like this is the start of something for you?

I feel like it is. Using Kindle to self-publish makes it possible to go back and add pages to this so I can make it longer.

Wow! So this is your Leaves of Grass [by Walt Whitman]: all your life you鈥檙e going to be adding to this collection?

I mean鈥斺�斺�擨 could! Or I could do something completely new, but it was easier than I thought it would be. And I feel very accomplished doing it, so I probably will continue to write.

What poets inspired you to take on this project?

I don鈥檛 really know very many, honestly! I did read an interview with Whitney Hanson, she鈥檚 a poet as well. I had read a few of her poems and just thought about them for hours鈥攍ike single lines. And that鈥檚 why I thought, 鈥淚 could turn these two-line things into something. She could do it. I could do it.鈥� In her interview, he said that she didn鈥檛 go to college to study poetry, that she went to college for business and didn鈥檛 finish her degree. A lot of people [who write and publish their poetry] don鈥檛. And I was like, 鈥淥kay, I don鈥檛 have a degree or, you know, to be a super professional to put my words out there in any sort of way. So I鈥檇 say Witney Hanson inspired me during this project.

What鈥檚 the most surprising feedback or reaction you鈥檝e received from this collection?

I know it was only just recently published, so it鈥檚 still fresh in the world. But I think some of the surprising stuff was when I was鈥擨 just had the manuscript, printed off of a Google Doc, and I was having teachers read it, and they would cry. Okay! Something鈥檚 going on here.

Yes! You鈥檙e moving people to catharsis! That鈥檚 one of the best things about artistic projects! I love that. So looking ahead, what advice might you give to Middle School students interested in writing, publishing, and taking their art seriously. Is there anything you鈥檇 want to offer to someone who is just beginning to ask these questions?

Well鈥攐ne thing is, I think it helps a lot to have an actual pen and actual paper to scribble things out and, you know, draw bubbles, annotate as you revise, before actually typing any drafts. And also, it鈥檚 easier than you think to put your work out there. It鈥檚 not impossible. You don鈥檛 have to be some super professional writer to do that. So I guess I would say that anything is possible if you want to publish your work.

Good point. Actually, I鈥檓 curious as someone who technically publishes but doesn鈥檛 want to be published鈥攚hy did you want to publish and not just write?

I felt like it was a healing thing for me, getting it out there and allowing other people to kind of鈥攚ell, I processed [a lot of what I was feeling], so maybe it鈥檒l help you process something, too. Which is why it was important for me to publish and share this with people.

Any last words on poetry, on this final day of National Poetry Month?

Poetry isn鈥檛 always what you think it is. Anything can hit someone deeply. It doesn鈥檛 necessarily mean whining! I feel like if a couple sentences can make you feel, then it鈥檚 poetry.

Isabella鈥檚 debut collection, , is currently available.

Another Spirit Week has come and gone in the High School, and another glorious afterglow descends upon us that will carry us through to the end of 2023鈥�24. Our High School classes did an amazing job this year supporting one another, engaging in playful (but also cutthroat at times!) competition, and having an amazing time celebrating their classes and their High School peers. Spirit Week is an entirely student-led week-long event that takes place every spring at SWHS. A big thanks goes to the HS Student Council and to HSSC Advisor Mr. Hosler for the inspirations, leadership, and encouragement you all exuded at every turn last week! We love you, Student Council! Thank you for a week we will never forget, a week that made us so glad and lucky to belong to this amazing High School community,

PS: there鈥檚 a as well, capturing the creativity, camaraderie, and strong community our High School students build together (we promise we have done nobody dirty here, SWHS, rest assured!馃槄).

The design of this Main Lesson is based on an oral history class I previously taught. The method I have used to teach this block extends efforts to decolonize curricula by questioning the very structure and hierarchical nature of the traditional classroom itself.

High School Humanities classes provide a unique opportunity to think through decolonization, both of content, which has become quite common practice, and of methodology, which, at present, is much less explored. There are many reasons for this, primarily developmental ones. First, adolescent students are more awake to and aware of the situatedness of characters and narratives they are being asked to study. Similarly, they are able to engage in more rigorous self-reflection on the learning process itself and how it impacts them. Finally, many young people today are coming to expect diverse representation in the types of stories they are asked to study, and teachers need to be ready to address this expectation. While these considerations are pressing in developing literature-and history-based curricula, they are also applicable across disciplines and for a wider age range. Even teacher training and credentialing programs are seeing an increased demand that issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice be incorporated into the way curriculum is designed and delivered, so we can only anticipate that these conversations will grow in the coming years. You can read more about this in , the main research journal on Waldorf education.

In addition to refining their listening and storytelling skills, students also complete original ethnographic research, integrate different worldviews about what constitutes reality, and investigate the relationship between education and healing. To that end, I am seeking with eagerness any elders who would like to participate in intergenerational storytelling circles on Wednesday, December 6 and Wednesday, January 17 from 8:45鈥�10:15am. These circles are a way to strengthen connections between those who are just starting to seek their purpose and those who have so much life experience and wisdom to share. Please contact me with questions or to RSVP.

I wanted to offer my heartfelt gratitude for the gift of being with these students, who in the course of this Main Lesson say things like, "I am trying to listen with more than just my ears" and who ask, "How does self-transformation actually work?" and "What can I do with what I know in order to make the world a better place?" These questions鈥攖aken directly from their daily reflections鈥攈elp me feel so lucky and blessed to be asking them with the class. I can't wait to see what's next.

Driving down the hill for the first time onto the SWS campus 17 years ago, I can still remember stepping out of my car and suddenly feeling that I had found the school I had been searching for.  I immediately recognized there was something special about this campus and this school.  I had no idea what Waldorf education was, but I certainly wanted to learn more.  My daughter and I began attending the Parent-Child program, and I enrolled in the high school teacher training program the following summer.  Those initial positive feelings I experienced the first time I stepped onto this campus are linked up with my feelings for this school.  They are part of my learning.   

Have you had the experience of driving in the car when a song from a different place and time in your life begins playing on the radio?  It鈥檚 not only the song you remember, but where you were when you originally heard it, who you were with, and how you were feeling.  That song is linked up within the context in which it was learned.  Part of what Waldorf education does well is recognize that learning is linked up with the environment in which the learning takes place.  Waldorf education respects and nurtures children鈥檚 innate ability to learn better than any form of education I have discovered.

Before finding Waldorf education, I completed a four-year training in the Feldenkrais Method.  It is based on the work of Moshe Feldenkrais, a Ukrainian-Israeli physicist and judo master, who created a type of somatic education that uses gentle movement and directed attention to help people improve their self-use. 鈥淭he is based on principles of physics, biomechanics, and an empirical understanding of learning and human development.鈥� 

Our nervous systems are learning systems.  They tend to do what is most efficient when we do not interfere with them.  An Olympic gymnast makes a floor routine look simple and effortless.  They have eliminated all extraneous, parasitic effort from their movement.

Similarly, we probably all remember learning to ride a bicycle the first time and how wobbly our first attempts were.  My son was given a wooden bike when he was three years old.  It consisted of a wooden frame, two wheels, and a seat.  The bike lacked pedals, a chain, and sprocket.  He was able to sit on the seat with both feet flat on the floor.  That enabled him to scoot around and motor up and down the driveway Flintstone style.

Within a few months he was coasting up and down the driveway without touching the ground. He learned to ride a bicycle at his own pace without the interference of a well-meaning parent.  When he made the transition to a real bicycle with pedals, he didn鈥檛 need training wheels.  While still three years old he simply hopped on a regular bicycle for the first time and rode off like he had been riding a bicycle his entire life.

Since he was afforded the time to learn at his own pace, he naturally assimilated the efficient and over time discarded inefficient effort.  His maiden voyage nevertheless provided a risible scene of learning to break for the first time.  Waldorf education recognizes and embraces the learning differences inherent between children and allows them to learn to read, play instruments, and write at their own rate. 

Furthermore, our nervous systems are designed to notice small differences, and the slower we move the finer a distinction we can make.  For example, a person holding a hammer will not likely notice a fly landing on it; however, a person holding a feather will notice a fly coming to rest on it.  This principle is the reason why Tai Chi is practiced slowly: to allow one鈥檚 nervous system, like the Olympic gymnast, to gradually learn to eliminate extraneous effort from our movement.  Consider the many ways in which Waldorf education creates an environment to allow children to assimilate what is essential and eliminate inefficiency from their movement.

Our curriculum and teachers are always working in the service of guiding each student to realize their full potential and become who they are meant to be.  The school can only achieve its mission though by teaching students the process of learning itself, and we can only do that by tapping into the innate learning systems of the human being that Rudolf Steiner so deeply understood.

In addition, current research is demonstrating how the social-emotional aspect of learning is integrated into and a central part of the learning process.  Attending to the social-emotional element of learning is a central aspect of Waldorf education.  This fact is acknowledged in the first sentence of the school鈥檚 鈥� 鈥淭he human relationships formed between Waldorf educators and our students and their families are at the heart of our education.鈥�

One of the first lessons Waldorf teacher training programs instill in their students is that teachers must be worthy of imitation because 鈥�what teachers really teach is themselves.鈥�  Moreover 鈥渃hildren learn from people they love, and that love in this context means willing the good of another and offering active care for the whole person.鈥�  The social-emotional aspect of learning is one of the keys to academic success and one that Waldorf education prioritizes.  鈥溾��

A Waldorf education encompasses and embraces all these important aspects of learning.  Anyone who has stepped into a Waldorf kindergarten classroom intrinsically recognizes the qualitative difference in that learning environment compared with a mainstream kindergarten classroom.  The environment is not rushed.  Children are encouraged and able to repeat activities, movements, and songs as many times as they like during the time allotted.  They begin practicing fine motor skills through painting and structured and unstructured play time.  The same rich and supportive learning environment is continued through the grades at a developmentally appropriate pace.  By the time Waldorf students reach our high school, they have been bathed in an environment that has supported and has hopefully awakened all a student鈥檚 capacities for learning.

Our high school teachers build on and take advantage of the foundation laid during the lower school and early childhood years.  And although each grade in the high school wrestles with different questions and has a curriculum directed for a specific developmental age, our curriculum and teachers are always working in the service of guiding each student to realize their full potential and become who they are meant to be.  The school can only achieve its mission though by teaching students the process of learning itself, and we can only do that by tapping into the innate learning systems of the human being that Rudolf Steiner so deeply understood.

Every year our high school graduates impress me with their well-developed capacities for the practical and fine arts, music, athletics, writing, science and math.  They consistently win National Merit Commended Scholarship awards and are accepted into some of the best colleges and universities in the country.  While these honors and abilities are certainly important ingredients of a well-prepared high school graduate, they are ancillary benefits of a Waldorf education.  The most important and relevant parts of a Waldorf education cannot be measured by standardized test scores.  What makes a Waldorf graduate special has to do with her sense of self as illustrated by the following story.

Several years ago, I asked a parent why he had his kids in a Waldorf school.  He told me that before he had children, he struck up a conversation with three young men he met while camping.  The three young men so impressed him as people he wanted to be around and wanted to be more like that he asked them what they had in common鈥攖hey all seemed so authentic and comfortable with themselves.  They replied that they had all attended a Waldorf school.  The parent told them that he didn鈥檛 know what a Waldorf school was but that if he ever had kids, they were going to attend a Waldorf school.

Our students and graduates provide the most powerful evidence of our success because they have learned how to learn and, most importantly, have learned to be themselves.  They are prepared for life and have the skills to be successful in any situation.

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The thing about Sacramento Waldorf High School is that it's not just one thing. There is no one thought that can wholly define the SWHS experience. A true Waldorf experience is made up of so many little moments that come together to form what I believe is the greatest education a young mind can know. A Waldorf education does not just nurture the mind or the body鈥攊t nurtures the soul. And this is especially important and true in the High School.

I came from a public Waldorf elementary and middle school where I learned to love how learning works. I knew that I wanted to continue with a Waldorf education for high school. I knew that the teaching and learning style worked for me, but I also have classmates who鈥檝e come from different kinds of schools and had the same great experiences I have had at SWS. There definitely was a difference between public and private school, and I was wondering a lot about that before high school began. But the only difference I experienced was the benefit of having more put towards my experience. In English classes, for example, each student is given their own copy to keep of the books we read in classes so we can annotate and add notes to what we read in the books themselves, helping to go deeper with reading comprehension and analysis. There are labs filled with the necessary equipment for all our Science classes where we conduct daily experiments and explore the phenomenon of the natural world; there is a gym, a library, and a kitchen where elective classes happen each day, and teachers are more than willing to help you explore all your interests during and after school. 

鈥淚f I could only take one thing with me when I graduate, it would be the relationships I have cultivated and the support that I will continue to receive from the teachers and staff at Sacramento Waldorf High School.鈥�

Sacramento Waldorf students take Art classes in between the core academic classes. Fine and Practical such as drawing, painting, woodworking, basketry, weaving, bookbinding, leatherwork, and blacksmithing and Performing Arts like choir, orchestra, jazz band, percussion, ukulele, and drama are key parts of the High School experience. There鈥檚 also Gardening class on the Farm for Ninth and Tenth grade where we learn about and help manage our working farm so the younger students can easily get to work when they come to the farm. We also have a celebrated Athletics program that is open to anyone who wishes to take part in a sport. We have sports throughout the year and boast 鈥渢he Sacramento region鈥檚 winningest basketball coach,鈥� Dean Stark.  

The teachers at 黑料专区 are experts in their subjects who encourage us to think for ourselves and provide us with the space to identify and solve problems on our own or in groups. Being a High School student means you are never alone in your learning and that the whole of you is welcomed. Especially during events like Harvest Fair and class plays, SWHS welcomes each student's entire family and gives them many opportunities to get involved and interact with other families, too. 

Since I joined in Ninth Grade, I鈥檝e had access to a developmentally-appropriate curriculum that pushes me to challenge myself and my mind while also giving me enough space and time to not feel burnt-out. I have always felt so welcomed at SWHS, so seen. The teachers take time out of their schedules to be there for you, and they always find a way to make themselves available when you need to talk. If I could only take one thing with me when I graduate, it would be the relationships I have cultivated and the support that I will continue to receive from the teachers and staff at Sacramento Waldorf High School. 

I have found that community and belonging is one of the biggest pieces of a Waldorf education. At SWS, I have cultivated a community of friends, peers, teachers, and staff, that I know I can continue to rely on even after I graduate. All students at SWS stand up for each other and push each other to be better, which helps to provide a meaningful and empowering experience to every student. Every student is provided with the opportunity to be seen and heard. Because of this created community, students at Sacramento Waldorf High School carry with them the love and respect of their peers and their teachers. This allows us to believe in ourselves and to grow into stronger, better versions of ourselves. 

Sacramento Waldorf students truly care about the world we live in and are constantly working together to try and improve the world around us. We are taught how to co-exist in our world and respect our community of people with different ideas and beliefs. We learn how to support one another instead of competing against each other, which creates a friendly environment where every person feels respectfully seen and heard by both their peers and their teachers. 

鈥淓very student is provided with the opportunity to be seen and heard. [Students] carry with them the love and respect of their peers and their teachers. This allows us to believe in ourselves and to grow into stronger, better versions of ourselves.鈥�

I suppose if I had to choose a single word that could begin to encompass all that 黑料专区 is, that word would be community. As students prepare to graduate and jump into the next chapter of their lives, we are provided with the support and love of an entire community that we know will push us to be our best and help us in any way they can to grow and thrive. Community is the basis of everything in our Waldorf high school because we lean on each other to learn and grow. 

The names of these ceremonies are more intentionally chosen than they may initially appear. While to the sensitive and perhaps prickly ears of an educator, 鈥減romotion鈥� might carry a commercial connotation of a hollow kind of marketing or the suggestion that students are receiving a workplace attaboy with a raise and fancy new title鈥攁dmittedly, 鈥淗igh Schooler鈥� does carry an allure in this phase鈥攚e do want to share with the world who are students are becoming. We are engaging in a promotional campaign in this rite. How could we not be excited to share and help bring them out into the world? The Eighth Grade is rounding out their Lower School journey and is summiting a significant phase of their development. As we celebrate this milestone with them, the excitement for and utter potentiality of their next steps call to us to lift our voices and sing out who these young people have become. The promotion ceremony is a chorus the community sings to send the class off on their High School journey with all they鈥檝e gathered over the years.

We are so proud of you, Eighth Grade, and we can鈥檛 wait to see how you will continue to grow and transform throughout High School into who you are meant to be.

鈥淐ommencement鈥濃�攁s you have no doubt heard and will likely hear again this graduation season鈥攊s more of a beginning, a setting out, and an opening. The Twelfth Grade ceremony is a gorgeously liminal threshold moment where these young adults are no longer High School students, nor are they yet alums of the school. Each student鈥檚 graduation remarks highlight their individuality and the love they鈥檝e grown for each other, their teachers, and this community. These speeches are truly the heart of the commencement ceremony. Each student is beginning their individual journey into young adulthood, setting out with support and love but, for the first time, without us.

Preceding this ceremony鈥攁nd inextricably part of it鈥攁re two additional ceremonies. The Senior Walkthrough is a beloved day with many bittersweet tears when the Seniors visit each class in the school, Kindergarten through Eleventh, to receive songs, poems, and flowers to build a metaphorical bouquet of memories to carry in their final days as students. The other event is a meeting each Twelfth Grade has with the College of Teachers, which takes place in an encounter held by some genius symbolism. The students, fresh from their final class trip together where they speak from their hearts all they appreciate in each other, arrive to a circle of chairs. One arc of the circle is made up of the College; to complete the circle, each student takes a seat to become an equal adult member of our SWS community as alums. The class then reflects on their school journey and, in the end, is gifted a verse that has been given to each graduating class since the very first Twelfth Grade graduated from the very first Waldorf school. I鈥檒l only paraphrase a key image from that verse鈥攕ome mysteries must be maintained, after all. We send these young people off on their journeys carrying with them all they鈥檝e received in their education imprinted in their hearts. This is an indelible mark they can come back to for guidance and solace in life鈥檚 questions and tempests. It is a font of heart-warmed memories which will unfold for them throughout their lives. There is always love and a home for them here, and they carry this love out into the world.

These ceremonies are moments for each student to begin to realize what their Waldorf education means. That meaning is deeply personal and individual and sometimes only surfaces after years of living life elsewhere. That this clarity and feeling only really begins to come about at the end of or even long after the journey is curious indeed.

We love you all so deeply, you who are promoted, you who are commencing with life鈥檚 great story. The meaning of what you have experienced and received begins to emerge once you leave where you are and head out towards where you will be. Remember that you carry with you all this love and all you have received here, imprinted in your heart like a seal of true humanity.

Much goes into our school celebrations and events, but really, each one is simply a container. The celebrations only happen when the container is filled, and the container is filled when the people gather. On a micro-level, these are May events in one school year cycle; on a macro-level, when we gather and celebrate, we are carrying on a rite which humanity has enacted and reenacted for longer than we鈥檝e had language to articulate it. If the past three years has taught us anything, it鈥檚 that regularly coming together鈥攆or work and for play鈥攊s the essential nourishing ingredient in the SWS special sauce. Without it, none of this works the way that it should. Without it, social renewal and social change won鈥檛 happen. But with it, when we can gather again, even the interminable to-dos dissolve in the brightness of what we remember and carry forward.

Every time we come together, we have an opportunity to redefine what it means to live well together. So remember to attend (wait for it! I feel the etymology coming on!) at your next gathering. Remember to take in one long, deep, full-bellied breath the next time you鈥檙e on campus. Press pause. Say hello to that vagus nerve and its life sense. Say hello to what you鈥檙e noticing. Say hello to what is surprising you. Say hello to the story you鈥檙e telling yourself about what you鈥檙e saying hello to. That鈥檚 one way of attending. Each gathering is a sequence of moments we are all invited to attend on all levels of who we are.

Okay, now for the etymology part: I really do mean attend, a word we have in English from the Latin attendere, meaning 鈥渢o stretch鈥� (think: tendons). Attending is more than just showing up. Attending, stretching (figuratively, but my creaky limbs also say literally) can be a chore, it can be a discomfort. Stretching can also become a poem, a prayer, a potential鈥攁 story that only you can tell. It鈥檚 where you can craft a magical millisecond of space amid the whirl to name: I am here, we are here, with each other, for each other. When you do it, you can feel yourself stretched into who you weren鈥檛 before. It doesn鈥檛 have to be revolutionary (right, Ninth Grade?); a small stretch is still a stretch worth acknowledging.

Welcome to the Ninety Days of May, the festival of stretching. This is life, and we鈥檙e living it together one event-filled day at a time.

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]]>The Stretch of MayCommunityHigh SchoolSWS CommunicationsThu, 09 Jun 2022 20:54:29 +0000/blog/class-of-202262bc5959e4fe9f676bc8d77e:62bf2eb66c3ef94168f5acfc:62bf2fcd6c3ef94168f5e1b1

Congratulations to the Class of 2022! We are so proud of the accomplishments of our graduating seniors. As you can see in the accompanying infographic, the members of this class are public speakers, creative and nonfiction writers, athletes, scientists, National Merit Scholars, and so much more. They are engaged in their communities and working toward a better world. We wish them the very best as they take their next steps in life.

Dean Stark was interviewed by Justin Clymo for his "Contacts" podcast recently. The focus of the conversation is lessons learned over Dean's four decades of coaching basketball and supporting athletes to be their best selves. Listen here: 

Providing our children with the opportunity to learn and explore within natural spaces at an early age can be one of the greatest gifts we can give in terms of child development. Sensory learning in the outdoors not only teaches kids to respect their environment but it also equips them with problem-solving techniques and motor skills that they otherwise might not have the chance to exercise in a traditional classroom. That鈥檚 why we reached out to the experts in youth outdoor education from to to provide you with a few creative ideas for transforming your backyard into a learning space for your kids where your kids can continue to learn and grow with nature.

Work with your surroundings

Work with your surroundings! So often we can find materials to build obstacle courses, and other play spaces right in our own backyard. Dead trees and logs can be transformed into an epic balance beam obstacle course like the one pictured here! - The next time a neighbor cuts down a tree, ask for a round or two鈥攖hey can become child-size furniture, or turn them on their side to serve as the fulcrum for a seesaw. - Natural features lend themselves to learning activities for children. Stumps and tree parts can be used for building. Balancing stones is a wonderful science and art activity. Uneven ground surfaces challenge children to use their core strength and coordination. Before you manicure your lawn, think about all of the natural learning opportunities your yard provides! - I鈥檓 very intentional about the materials that I include in my outdoor space. Instead of getting the typical big playground/swing set. I decided to include all the elements I valued most. If all you can fit or want is a swing set that鈥檚 great too!One reason I decided against the swing set is that I don鈥檛 want to spend 10 years doing under-doggies. I鈥檓 sorry #notthatmom. Second, there are 鈥渞ules'' typically that comes with the swing sets鈥�(don鈥檛 climb up the slide, one at a time on the ladder, one at a time on the swing, don鈥檛 walk in front of the swing, there鈥檚 no room for you right here, etc.) I wanted play materials that allowed them to expand their imagination. I converted one of our garden beds into a sandbox and built a little mud kitchen on it. The kids love to run the water and make mud pies, soups, habitats for insects they catch or dig really deep holes. The sand area with digging tools and kitchen dishes is so open-ended that the play is different every time and it can last for hours and hours. -

Make learning interactive

Garden paths are a treasure trove of learning opportunities, and not just because they allow kids to get close to a growing space and make scientific observations about plants and bugs. Lay your garden stones in sets of fives, creating a strong visual for number sense. The groups of five are easy to see without counting one by one, allowing students to play games where they move from stone "4" to stone "6" easily - the sixth stone is easily recognized as the first in the second group of five. Include an inviting chalkboard sign at the beginning of the path so you and your kids can leave each other pattern challenges; for instance, writing 1, 3, 5, ... means you can only step on every other stone. A pattern of 1, 3, 6, 10, ... will call for strong jumps and good body control, as well as mental concentration and reasoning skills. The combination of a cognitive challenge with a physical one helps kids connect their minds and bodies for better impulse control and mindfulness. It makes for a great homework warm-up or alternative to traditional worksheets. And it's FUN! -Leave a small area of lawn unmowed for a year (a yard squared). Once a month Get the children to record what species of plant, animals and bugs they find in that square in a nature journal. Talk to them about ways they can present this information. Diagrams, tables, paintings that will help them understand the change over the year. This will help them present and organize information and gain an insight into scientific recording. -

Add natural features where their imagination can roam

Natural logs, rounds, and half-rounds; boulders of various sizes; and trees to climb not only add natural beauty to your landscape, but they also offer your kids important opportunities for improving their physical health, creative thinking, and science knowledge. When presented with a landscape that they can climb on and manipulate, kids naturally start moving, climbing and balancing, picking up blocks of wood and rocks, testing and increasing their strength. Because they are uneven and changeable, natural pieces build agility in ways that conventionally built structures, with their evenly spaced bars and steps, can鈥檛 offer. Natural play spaces also offer more impromptu moments of creative thinking, as well as natural science lessons in physics, biology, and ecology. A tree that was a moment ago a rocket ship on its way to a distant planet, crewed by brave scientists, suddenly becomes a biology and art lesson when one of the crewmates notices a beetle with intricate patterns crawling along the branch in front of them. - Stump circles are a great landscape design feature to a backyard. Gives the yard a fun focal point. Children can practice balance with their bodies, while also counting steps by jumping to the next stump. - Mother Nature has already provided all the natural elements young children need for play and healthy development, so why not organize your outdoor space in such a way that provokes children's curiosity and leads them to more sustained nature play. This could look as simple as incorporating child-sized log tables and chairs for art-making surfaces, gathering loose parts (hunks of logs for rolling or stacking, leaves, seedpods, feathers, shells, etc.) to supportive creative play and critical thinking, or creating a space that is safe for climbing and exploring on natural elements. The best way to transform your space is to look at it with a child's eyes - and remember, we can never improve on nature! -

Build a nature nook

One of the best ways to engage kids in outdoor learning is to help them create their very own nature nook. It's a special place in the front or backyard that's completely their own. They get to decide what goes in the space (chair, table, outdoor pillow, decorations, etc) and how they use it (to read, complete homework, create art, or just sit and enjoy listening to the sounds of nature). Kids may enjoy a space that you create, but if you give them the autonomy and support to create their own, they're guaranteed to love it! -

Don鈥檛 be afraid to get a bit wild -kids learn best when they choose their own adventure

Recreate a wild adventure in your own backyard with a nature haven corner that brings the forest school to you, no matter what size space you have. It can be as simple as keeping a small, quiet corner that鈥檚 not so well-kept and allowing the grass to grow longer - counterintuitive I know!  But a few old broken pots on the ground next to some stick bundles and you have an instant bug haven. Make your own butterfly drive-thru by choosing to incorporate plants that attract local bees, and other pollinating insects that in turn will bring in birds and other intriguing animals to visit. Future scientists and eco heroes will enjoy running their own research project with a chart that notes how many of each animal they find. For the more adventurous, add a pile of branches ready for den building and a couple of log rounds for jumping, sitting or just about anything else they think of and your kids might never come back indoors again! - Not only aesthetically pleasing but a dry creek bed made of various-sized river rocks can also create an imaginative play environment for young children with endless possibilities. Encourage children to explore with their toys- construction trucks, animals, shovels and buckets, for example, add items to build with the rocks such as sticks or blocks, or paint a few of the rocks together as a family to assist in providing ample learning and play opportunities. To make it even more special, incorporate a small wooden bridge across the creek bed that can lead to a magical world! -

Get cookin鈥� with a mud kitchen

My top tip for backyard transformation can be summed up in one word: mud. Creating an area where kids can engage in water and mud play will not only provide a space for fun and entertainment, but also rich learning through imaginative play, as well as meaningful engagement in nature. Creating a "mud kitchen" is as easy as offering a space for them to dig and dip. Clear a dirt area, add an old sink (kid height), buckets and baking tools, shovels and spoons - Seattle winters will provide all the water - and kids will learn about everything from baking to watersheds. - A mud kitchen, using old pots, pans and utensils.  Let your kids use dirt, water, weeds, seeds, berries, anything they need to concoct and bake! - A backyard mud kitchen can provide hours of play, learning, and creativity. It only takes a few simple ingredients, a workspace, old pots and pans, measuring cups, a water dispenser, and mud or sand. Children will get an unforgettable sensory experience, practice life skills like measuring, mixing, and cooking all while being deep in imaginative play and connecting with the natural world. As the seasons change, add in natural items, rainbow flowers in Spring, lots of greens in Summer, colorful leaves and nuts in Fall, and pine branches in Winter. -

Engage problem-solving and motor skills with an obstacle course

Here at The Muddy Puddle Teacher, we love encouraging families to make homemade trim trails. Start by asking your local tree surgeon if they have any free stumps of wood.  Then head to your back garden and dig holes for the stumps to lie.  Dig deep enough so the logs do not move when stood on and are secure.  Spread the logs out so that the children can balance and jump from one stump to the other. - Creating a sensory path is a great addition to any backyard, allowing children to burn energy and build gross motor skills as they walk, skip, or jump across various materials. A large, covered sandbox can be used as intended when opened, as the cover provides seating and play, and while covered, it creates a stage for impromptu performances. Building a sound wall along a fence with a variety of pots, pans, cookie sheets, etc. mounted on a grid, along with wooden spoons and other kitchen utensils as tools, provides instant access to music. Adding a large metal sheet to a fence creates a magnet board where children can create designs and patterns with homemade magnets, using inch-sized ceramic tiles or colored glass 鈥渏ewels鈥� glued to magnets. -

Teach them to upcycle

Upcycle, upcycle! Let's help reduce our waste and give some classic household items a second life! Our favorite way to do this is by gathering a "mud kitchen." This can be as simple as you want, it looks like a big tub filled with cupcake pans, whisks, pots, wooden spoons, old baking dishes, measuring cups, spatulas, etc! This is the perfect way to get your children out in the yard, concocting potions (creativity), play cooking (practicing math and measuring), playing house/family (communications and conflict resolutions), and getting their hands dirty! -

More loose parts!

You're a young family with children...you've just bought a house with a nice, open backyard. Before you head to your local home improvement store to order a pre-fab swing set, may we share with you a decade's worth of nature school experience about what children really want...LOOSE PARTS! And lots of them! What are loose parts, you ask? Loose parts are natural and synthetic materials that can be moved, carried, redesigned, lined up, stacked up, built upon, combined, and taken apart - tires, pipes, sticks, bricks, tree cookies, sand mounds, boards, tarpaulins, hay bales, pots and pans. Opposite of that store-bought swing set, which can only be interacted with in one 'right' way, loose parts can be used in a multitude of ways. They serve to stimulate a child's natural urge to build and create, to move things around, to use materials differently than an adult may predetermine. And in terms of learning benefits, loose parts play encourages a child to see possibilities, to take initiative, to problem solve, to develop independence and interaction with the landscape around them. Be prepared for your children to play uninterrupted for hours in their magical self-created world! -

Keep it simple

Transforming outdoor space into a learning environment for kids doesn't have to take much! Head to a thrift store or ask the neighbors for some old muffin tins and stainless steel spoons or ladles. Add a bucket or a bowl, and you've got all the makings of a portable mud kitchen. When it comes time for gift buying, consider something that adds to that play: like our stone composite play food, or a rain barrel or water jug that allows kids access to water without running the hose. Keep it simple - no instructions are needed! -

Build a play structure using sustainably sourced materials

Build a play structure using recycled materials (found and/or purchased). This project incorporates sustainability thinking, strengthens planning and math abilities, supports executive function and collaboration, and develops gross and fine motor skills. It's sure to pay off when it's rainy, snowy, or very hot outdoors and kids can enjoy finding shelter in a place of their own design! - 黑料专区

Deborah Cornelison on motivating students who don鈥檛 want a career in STEM

By ,Published in theAtlantic.com, September 9, 2020

Deborah Cornelison is happy to see that American society has started placing a higher value on science education. In the past decade, government , business , and have argued that training in science, technology, engineering, and math must be a national priority鈥攂ecause it can help students land jobs with international giants like Google or Tesla and join the global economy. Yet references to global economic competition, Cornelison told me, often fall flat in rural communities, such as her hometown of Ada, Oklahoma. Some rural students don鈥檛 want to leave their small towns, which many of them view with deep pride and a sense of belonging.

The latest neuroscience research shows that learning a musical instrument increases brain power.

If there's been a theme to the technology industry's plans to reform education, it's that every child should learn to code. This is supposed to allow children to better adapt to a world where computers are omnipresent. However, there's not much, if any, connection between coding and

By .,
Published in the New York Times,
March 4, 2019

Arts education helps students build resilience, determination, and allows them to deepen their learning and master complex skills. We consistently integrate the arts as a teaching tool throughout our curriculum.

by Byron Sanders, Forbes Councils Member
Forbes Nonprofit Council
Published in Forbes, Dec. 7, 2020

The pandemic has caused trauma for people of all ages, including 鈥� and especially 鈥� our youth. These challenging circumstances have forced students nationwide to pursue their education in entirely new ways, using new technology.

Youth have had to do so while facing feelings of isolation and dealing with family members who have fallen ill; others have been affected by the digital divide