SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTES
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SEBASTOPOL CHARTERNOTES
SEBASTOPOL CHARTER NOTES September 2014 Monthly Edition Notes from the Director by Chris Topham, Executive Director Student Initiated Capital Campaign and New Campus Update During the first week of school, Leila and Cleo in the 5th grade class asked me if I would accept a donation towards the new campus. In my complicated adult head I first thought how we have not yet launched an official capital campaign requesting donations for the new campus, but I quickly recovered and said, “Yes, it would be much appreciated.” So, Leila and Cleo set up a lemonade stand at Safeway and sold lemonade to the public. On Wednesday, September 3, I received $9 from them. This donation was quickly followed by pleas that I use the money towards purchasing horses New Campus Master Plan for student use at the new campus. While I couldn’t promise horses, I thanked them heartily for launching our student-initiated capital campaign, which didn’t sound nearly as exciting to them as the horses. Similarly, I was asked at our New Parent Orientation meeting when the school might begin to accept donations for the new campus. I responded that for now we are emphasizing donations to our annual campaign (pledge program), which we rely on to fund our expansive Waldorf curriculum. I also pointed out that our pledge program through the Charter Foundation has had such wonderful success over the years that we’ve been able to purchase our beautiful new site (with the support of the Rudolf Steiner Foundation as our lender), as well as set aside some funds for the construction project itself. Under the expert guidance of Kelly Kim, the school’s Development Director, in the coming months we will launch a well-planned, strategic, and official international capital campaign to support the construction of our new campus. (I say “international,” as I know I’ll get at least a small donation from my mom in Sweden.) It’s been wonderful to hear the enthusiasm from people regarding our move to a unified campus in a couple of years. There have been many hours spent by many people in developing the master plan for the campus design. After garnering input from the school community at several workshops, from the new site’s neighboring residents and businesses, from the Master Plan & Design team and their design consultants, and from the teachers and staff, we have developed a plan that lays out a coherent, functional, inspiring and enlivening campus. We are now putting together all of the reports, drawings, and other documents for our zoning use permit application, which will be submitted to the Sonoma County planning department in the next few weeks. We expect that it will take a year or so for the application to make its way through the review process and for a use permit to be issued. We’ll keep you posted about the progress of the permit – and of course, we’ll be counting on you for contributions large and small when we begin our capital campaign that will make this dream a reality. Maybe we’ll even be able to get those horses. 6th Gr. Geometric Drawings September Issue Highlights New Campus Update Pg. 1 Meet our Development Director Pg. 2 Three Streams of Student Support Pg. 3 Music News Pg. 4 Festival of Courage Pg. 5 International Walk & Roll to School Pg. 5 Student Support Corner Pg. 6 Awakening Arts Pg. 7 1Revolution Pg. 8 Upcoming Events Oct 3 - Festival of Courage and All School Picnic,12:45 Early Dismissal at Ives Park Oct 4 - 7th Gr. Rummage Sale Oct 6 - SICS Board Mtg, 6p Oct 8 - International Walk and Roll to School Day Oct 9 - Photo Make-up/Retake Day, both campuses Oct 13 - Columbus Day, School Closed Oct 16 - Enrollment Tour, 9a Oct 24 - Halloween Dance, 7th & 8th Gr., 7-10p Introducing Kelly Lord Kim by Chris Topham, Executive Director Meet our newest staff member, Kelly Lord Kim, Development Director, in this interview with Chris Topham. C: Tell us a little bit about yourself. K: Sure. I was born and raised in the Midwest (Illinois). I went to public schools from K-12 and to college in Chicago. I moved to San Francisco when I was offered a job at Stanford about 15 years ago. I thought I would be here for a couple of years, then move back to Chicago, but it didn’t work out that way. I met my husband here, and we never left. In 2006 my husband and I bought a small property in Sebastopol. We began coming here each weekend and I spent 3 summers here. Slowly, over the years, we began to notice how much we appreciated the area. By this time, we had 2 children, and our kids couldn’t play outdoors by themselves in the city. Living here now, I can’t imagine that life anymore, given how much my kids thrive with this kind of freedom. We decided to move to Sebastopol full-time just over a year ago, and it’s been a wonderful change and a fairly easy transition. C: What is your professional background? K: When I was graduating from university, I was only interested in working for a nonprofit. Most of my friends were going into finance or consulting or into the corporate world in some capacity, and I was simply not interested in any of these careers. I told my college counselor that I was either going to graduate school or getting a job in a nonprofit. A few weeks later, she called me with an interesting proposition. She informed me that there was a job in the development office at Northwestern (my college) that could be flexible enough that I could also go to graduate school, provided I was admitted into Northwestern’s graduate program. This way, I could both work at a nonprofit and get a graduate degree. I took her advice, and it worked out beautifully. I ended my academic career at the master’s level, but I continued to work in development. After working in the development office at Northwestern for many years, I took a development job at Stanford. I am also an “integral coach,” which is a method of working with people based on integral theory popularized by American philosopher Ken Wilber. C: What made you choose to have your children in a Waldorf school? K: From the moment I heard about Waldorf education, I was hooked. Meeting some of its students and graduates only confirmed my interest and my choice. I tried to get into early parenting classes at the San Francisco Waldorf School when I was pregnant with my first child, but the school informed me that the classes were already full with families who had (real) babies. So I waited until my daughter was 9 weeks old to begin my education as a parent in the Waldorf system. I took early parenting classes at the San Francisco Waldorf School until my daughter was ready for nursery school, and then continued my learning in the classroom. About a year ago, my family moved to Sebastopol and we’re now learning from the from the many wonderful faculty members of the Sebastopol Charter School (where my son is a 1st grader) and from the fine teachers at Summerfield (where my daughter is a 3rd grader). C: What made you choose to be a development director at Sebastopol Charter? K: This is a hard question to answer, Notes from the Editor by Carrie Heim, Receptionist We are back! Welcome to the new school year parents, faculty, and Charter School community. The children are flourishing wonderfully, back together in the hum of our busy, productive rhythm of school. I love watching from my window as they gather from being outside, whether after recess or games class, and seeing just how refreshed and cohesive they look, faces flushed and slightly out of breath. It reminds me of the way Steiner saw the whole 2 CharterNotes September 2014 since it wasn’t really my choice alone. It was more of a co-creation between the school, the Foundation, and me. But I would have to say, from my perspective, it was a combination of life circumstances and my assessment that I could make a contribution to the school in meaningful ways. C: What does a development director at Sebastopol Charter do? K: As we all know, the cost of a Sebastopol Charter School education far exceeds the investment made by the State of California, especially since facilities are not covered by the state. The Director of Development educates the greater community of both the needs of the school and the opportunities for investment to help bridge that gap. C: The timing of creating this new position in the school’s 20 year history has a lot to do with needing someone to lead the fundraising efforts for the new campus, and you have a lot of experience with this. Considering the school has not had a development director before, we hope you will lead the school’s development work in addition to the new campus fundraising, which may entail making a few strategic changes that benefit the school community. For our last question, if you could have dinner with anyone (alive or dead), who would you choose? K: Rudolf Steiner? But seriously, while I would love to meet Rudolf Steiner (why not?) I would have to say the founders of the great spiritual traditions -- Shankara who rejuvenated the doctrine of Advaita, Gautama Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad. Some say that these are the most enlightened beings who have ever lived. I’m not sure if this is the case, but I wouldn’t mind being in their presence to see for myself. child, fed by the necessity of a main lesson and subjects, but also through movement and being with community. This month’s edition reflects those topics as we prepare for our updated Festival of Courage and All-School Picnic this Friday, a wonderful way to connect with our school community through a schoolwide play, service projects and a potluck. We hope you join us for this event. Also, learn about the faculty training with Kim John Payne, celebrated family and school consultant, our wonderful student musicians, how to participate in International Walk and Roll to School day, and so much more! How can I support Sebastopol Charter? New Parent Welcome Tea by Anna O’Neil, Pledge Program Manager by Kelly Kim, Development Director Greetings from the Charter Foundation! The school has come alive once again, as the fall season brings the changing colors, the start of a new school year, and the excitement of making wonderful friends and learning fun things. The changing of seasons also brings an opportunity to reflect on years past and to make plans for this year and for the future. Thank you to all of the parents who joined us for the New Parent Welcome Tea! This year, we held it at the K-2 campus, and over 20 parents attended. Here are just a few simple ways to make a difference for our school, our community, and our children: • Participate in the Pledge Program and make a gift by December 31 (TheCharterFoundation.org/ pledge) • Sign up for eScrip (TheCharterFoundation.org/ escrip) • Sign up for AmazonSmile (Smile.Amazon.com) Thank you always for your support. Three Streams of Student Support by Laurie Tuchel, 6th Gr. Teacher Nine years ago, our faculty held a threeyear training with Kim John Payne on Social Inclusion. This work described a school-wide approach to social difficulties among students. We began to adopt the approach in our school. Like so many of our approaches to parenting and education, the principles underlying our social work with the children are fairly simple. However, they do require a shift in some of our automatic responses. Social inclusion is based upon the model of Restorative Justice. Rather than labeling and blaming, it asks, “How can we set things right?” Our social inclusion work was inhibited by the budget cuts of 2008. At that time, we lost a full-time Pedagogical Coordinator position that provided organizational support. Of course, much of the work has been carried on by the teachers in the classroom, but without the organizational infrastructure, and with changing faculty members, we have been limited in what we can do outside the classroom. As a school, we have also observed that Also, special thanks to Mike and Crystal Doherty for the fabulous tea and coffee from Sunshine Coffee Roasters (http://www. sunshinecoffeeroasters. com), and to Gillian Helquist for her delicious baked goods. the need of children and their families extends beyond the social realm. How do we address behavior problems? What about children who have academic challenges? And some students seem to experience a combination of the three! This year we began a second training with Kim John Payne. Kim has heard our questions over the years, as well as those of the countless other schools he has worked with. He is helping us develop an approach that addresses all three realms (“streams”) in which students face challenges: social, discipline, and care/therapeutic (learning support). The beauty of the approach is that it is comprehensive and collaborative. The faculty works together to understand how best to support the child. The eighth grade student group (formerly the Social Inclusion group, now the Student Social Action Committee, or SSAC) is trained to support students with a variety of needs. Also, trained parent volunteers are helping fellow parents understand the principles behind the work. You’ll be hearing much more from us about these “Three Streams of Student Support.” Here are some things on our horizon: • • • • • ^ : David Tucker & Nick Sanders, < : Crystal Doherty & Carrie Heim, v : Daria Jacobs-Velde, Sabine Tucker, Rochelle Kelso, Crow Morgan On October 24, our parent volunteers will lead a morning chat in the assembly room after drop-off. We’ll announce a topic soon. Please join us. Some of you may be asked to join us for a Support Circle, where teachers and parents meet together to discover how to build upon the child’s successes, both at home and in the classroom. You may be directed to talk to the Student Support Coordinator about matters you might otherwise have taken to the director. In that case, I look forward to speaking with you! There will be a community meeting in January to describe the Three Streams of Student Support more fully. You will be invited to attend a presentation by Kim John Payne in the spring. This is an exciting time for us. I’m proud to work for a school with this level of commitment to developing the healthiest possible environment for the children and their families. I know it will take time and education on all of our parts, but I do believe we will succeed as we strive to meet the needs of the children in our care. September 2014 CharterNotes 3 Sebastopol Charter Student Mentors Strings by Cynthia Albers, Music Director You may have seen her on stage with one of the Santa Rosa Symphony youth ensembles, but Miranda Ronan (Grade 6) is also employed by the Santa Rosa Symphony. She serves as mentor for the “Simply Strings” after-school program, providing free in-depth music training to underserved students at Sheppard Elementary School. Miranda Ronan, Gr. 6 and takes individuals aside for private instruction when needed. She admits that her fluent bilingual skills in English and Spanish are invaluable when needing to instruct or discipline a student. Miranda has observed a student’s eyes light up when progress is achieved, and joyful pride from those who run next door to the Boys and Girls Club to boast of what they learned in Strings that day. Parent involvement is always key to the children’s interest and success. Miranda and her mother Marcela, K-2 Spanish teacher, have both worked to inspire interest and enthusiasm in the parents, with excellent results. Congratulations, Miranda! Miranda keeps an eye on violin students posture, Musicians to join San Francisco Orchestra Santa Rosa Symphony Youth Orchestras by Cynthia Albers, Music Director by Cynthia Albers, Music Director Special congratulations to violist Sophia Valenti (Grade 6) and alumna violinist Sophia Conti (Summerfield Waldorf High School) who were selected by competitive audition for the prestigious San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra. The SFYO is a pre-professional group that trains with members of the San Francisco Symphony and performs at Davies Symphony Hall. Following their full concert season, the SFYO will embark on a European concert tour in June 2015. Both Ms. Valenti and Ms. Conti were also prize winners at the local Etude Competition in their respective Junior and Senior categories. Congratulations to Sebastopol Charter students Daisy Abbott, Anya Brink, Naia Dolan, Sevannah Dufloth, Adelina Heath, Antonio Heath, Miranda Ronan, Kelsey Perlman, Isabelle Tickle, Avery Reed, Jayna Snyder, Sophia Valenti, and alumni Jone Bacinskaite, Koleah Bayen, Nic Casey, Sophia Conti, Jeramiah Kampmann, Amelia Malpas, Sophia Patrascu, Oliver Rogoff and Ava Scura-Iseyama, who were selected by audition for the Santa Rosa Symphony youth orchestras. This tiered system of symphony orchestras (beginning, intermediate and advanced levels) offers an excellent education and tremendous experience for students who wish to add to, and indeed, reach beyond, their school music work. Please also note: Santa Rosa Symphony Youth Discovery Cards are available in the school office. Discovery Concerts are open rehearsals where parents and students may listen to how a professional orchestra works. One pass admits one adult and one child to several dates throughout the school year. Sophia Valenti (pictured left) and Sophia Conti (pictured right) 4 CharterNotes September 2014 Events are held in Weill Hall at Sonoma State University. Festival of Courage Volleyball Season has Started by Chris Topham, Executive Director Come support our 7th and 8th grade teams! Games are generally held on Monday and Wednesday late afternoons (the full schedule is listed on our school calendar). The first game was against Summerfield Waldorf School with our teams taking the win! This year we have two co-ed teams with lots of enthusiasm, some great parent coaches and of course, our very own games teacher Mary Schwall putting 7th Gr. Volleyball team it all together. Go teams! Michael taming the dragon I am excited to share with you that the faculty of Sebastopol Charter School has been working hard on a new and improved Festival of Courage. In our opinion, it’s improved because the play now includes students in grades 2-8, and it has a stronger community gathering component. The play will take place from11:45am-12:15p on Friday, October 3, and you are warmly invited to attend. October 3 will be a minimum day with dismissal at 12:45pm in Ives Park for all students in grades 1-8 (grade 1 will be there as spectators). Kindergarteners will not attend the play, however, kindergarten parents are encouraged to join the community picnic after their pick-up time. It is a short and sweet play that tells a story about Michael. Many people are familiar with the tale of Saint George slaying the dragon. Most Waldorf schools (including charters) have made a modified story that uses components from the ancient tale of Saint George, but they have made the story about Michael taming the dragon. Michael is known from ancient times as a “great prince who stands up for the children.” Michael is mentioned as an important figure in the Hebrew Bible, the Christian Bible and the Muslim Quran, so he is not exclusive to one religion. The story of Michael in Waldorf schools does not promote a religion or any spiritual philosophy. It serves as a story of courage, and it’s often celebrated in the fall as the days get shorter and darkness creeps in. The dragon in the story is symbolic for dealing with a challenge. (Waldorf teachers often encourage each other “to be Michaelic” when dealing with a difficult situation.) Some Waldorf schools call the festival Michaelmas, but we simply call it the Festival of Courage. Parents of children in grades 1-8 are asked to pickup their children in Ives Park at 12:45p, and class teachers will be responsible for the hand-off. Please communicate to the teacher if someone else will be picking up your child. Any students not picked up will be brought to the Main Street campus, and parents will be called for pick-up there. As the Festival of Courage ends at 12:45pm in Ives Park (with grades 1-8 in attendance), we invite you to stay and eat your own packed picnic lunch with the school community. We will have some vegetable soup that the 2nd grade is preparing, in case you forget your lunch. We are so lucky to have the use of Ives Park, but we want to make sure to keep this relationship, so we ask that you please try not to leave a footprint and clean up after yourself at the end of lunch. So, pack a wonderful family picnic, bring your blankets or chairs, and prepare for a what is sure to be a wonderful Festival of Courage. Thank you for your support for this adjustment in our calendar, and for our festival and community gathering. International Walk and Roll to School Day by Paul Fritz, 8th Gr. Parent On October 8th, our school will be counting the number of kids who walk, bike or carpool to either campus and report our total to the county walk and roll coordinator. We award the ‘Golden Sneaker’ award to the class with the highest participation of walkers and rollers. We are also introducing the ‘Golden Hubcap’ award to the class with the highest participation of carpoolers. In 1969, 48% of kids walked or biked to school. In 2009 that number was down to 13%. Recent Walk and Roll days at our school are right at that national average. But we’re above averPaul Fritz keeping tally age, right? Let’s work on getting that number up. Because our school attracts students from beyond Sebastopol, not everyone is close enough to walk or bike directly to school. However, I’m certain we can increase our number of walkers and bikers with just a little advanced planning. To start, there are many reasons why walking to school is beneficial to our children: • It helps teach children safe walking and biking behavior • Since 1963, the rate of obesity has increased from 4% to 16% in kids age 6-11 • A child who lives 1 mile from school (a 20-30 minute walk depending on the age of the child) can burn 5 lbs of body fat per year by walking and biking to school every day. • 75% of CA students are not able to pass basic fitness standards • Travel to school accounts for 20%-30% of morning traffic and cars are responsible for 50% of the Bay Area’s greenhouse gas emissions. • Walking to school boosts a child’s self-confidence • Walking to school helps children develop a sense of independence as they are allowed to walk and bike on their own • Strengthens our communities by reclaiming our streets for people • Exercise helps children stay focused during their lessons Movement is an important part of our school’s curriculum. I know my daughter’s 8th grade class starts every day by running in the park prior to sitting down to Main Lesson. It helps shake out the sleep and gets them ready to learn. Let’s help our teachers by sending in our kids alert, awake and ready to engage. My daughter has been walking to school since kindergarten. When we began walking to school nine years ago it was amazing to see her strength and stamina increase. It is about a mile from our home to the lower campus, and she walked at least one way pretty much every day, rain or shine. The time spent walking to school was truly magical. It was a great opportunity to touch base, talk about the day ahead, explore the plants and animals we saw on the way to school, and tell stories. I feel so fortunate we were able to provide her that early experience. She was so proud when she was finally allowed to walk to the downtown campus on her own. This experience also translated into walking and biking to after-school activities and friend’s houses around town. I am now confident that my 8th grader knows she can get herself safely around town story continues on page 6 September 2014 CharterNotes 5 Student Support Corner Notes from by Laurie Tuchel, 6th Gr. Teacher Q: “I have a question regarding my youngest daughter, who is near Kindergarten age. While I know that mimicking is healthy in a young child, at what point do you need to make the child aware of their behavior? She came home from school mimicking a classmate of hers, but it got to the point where her voice became so elevated, and the look in her eye seemed a bit out of body, that I said to her, “come back to me.” She looked shaken up, like she came out of a trance, and crawled onto me crying. It was a really strange experience, and I’m not sure how to curb it before it gets to that breaking point. Any suggestions? Many, many thanks” A: You’re right. Imitation is a natural, healthy developmental stage in young children. That means that we adults have an enormous responsibility to provide our young ones with actions and words that are worthy of their imitation. Mimicking is not the same as imitating, though your child has probably picked up on mimicking by imitating someone else who was doing it. Mimicry in a young child is a way of putting someone else down. When we allow put-downs we are allowing socially exclusive behavior. We can intervene immediately with young children by letting them know, “ We do not talk about others that way.” This educates your child about your family’s values. No more needs to be said. If you do get a “Why?” the answer can be, “Because it is hurtful. We use golden words when we speak of others.” Of course, we must model this for them in all that we do. Unfortunately, our actions speak much louder than our words. Often, children try out behaviors at home that are perplexing to them. Our response helps them place the behaviors they have seen into a context. Perhaps your daughter was seeking a clear guideline as to what mimicking others is, and her escalation resulted when she did not get it. How lovely that you took her into your lap so that she could find her safety zone again. The lovely thing about the interactions with our children and our students is that they always give us a chance to try it again! They repeat the behavior until we get it right. They’re good teachers. Do you have a question for the Student Support Corner? Email charternotes@sebastopolcharter.org. International Walk and Roll from page 5 without depending on her parents to drive her. I think this is a lesson that will serve her well for her future. Walking and rolling to school does take advanced planning and extra effort on the part of the parents, but the results are well worth it. Here are a few suggestions: • • • • • Make lunches the night before Lay out clothes for the next day the night before Pack school bags the night before Give them a good healthy breakfast to help give them energy for the journey Plan your route ahead of time Even if you live outside of town, you can still participate in Walk and Roll to School day. If you come from Santa Rosa, park on Morris Street in The Barlow. If you are coming from Forestville/Guerneville, park on Murphy St. to walk to either campus, or park at Ragle Park 6 CharterNotes September 2014 the Office by Barbara Philipp, Office Manager We are at an all-time enrollment high! This year we started school with 286 students, more than we’ve ever had before at the school. Thank you to everyone for your commitment to our school and your children. Our school directory is almost finished being edited. If you have any directory changes, please notify the office ASAP. Expect directories to be available by mid-October. When at the upper campus, please make sure to follow pedestrian safety practices. Being in a downtown location, there is a higher traffic flow and this is very critical. We have been getting calls of complaints from local residents who have observed pedestrian negligence from our parent body. Independent Study submission is going wonderfully--thank you to all the parents who are taking the time to get these in. Please remember that we can only accept them if they are submitted before school begins that day. It is a simple process that makes a huge difference for the school. Please make sure that your child is picked up on time after school lets out. Keep in mind the construction happening on Hwy 12 coming into Sebastopol, causing long traffic delays. Students are allowed to use the office phone, but please do not leave playdates and carpools to the last minute. We do not allow students to if you are only walking to the lower campus. Coming into town from the south, park in the Palm Drive parking lot. The Walk and Roll team also wants you to meet for a walking and/or rolling school bus. The basic idea is to have several designated points where students in the same neighborhood can meet and walk or bike to school together. The groups will be led by a parent volunteer. Please contact Paul Fritz at paul@fritzarchitecture. com if you’d like to help with a walking or biking school bus. The school will be counting our walk and rollers weekly. The first Wed. of the month we will hand out pencils, and the class with the highest participation percentage of walkers and bikers will win the ‘Golden Sneaker’ for the month. At the end of the year the class that won the ‘Golden Sneaker’ and the ‘Golden Hubcap’ awards will win a bike-powered smoothie party offered by the Safe Routes to School program. use the phone to setup playdates, these issues should be taken care of before school begins. Our Lost and Found basket is filled to the brim! Please look through it to claim your childs clothing. Also, marking your childs clothing will ensure you get it back! We sort through the clothes just before Thanksgiving Break and distribute clothing that is marked. The 7th Gr. Hot Lunch fundraiser is going great. Check the website under Forms and Publications for the October sign-up sheet. Our first Enrollment Tour is scheduled for Thurs., Oct 16. This tour is for prospective families only, so please spread the word to any families that might be interested in our school. We will also be offering a raffle at the end of the year for all participants to win a $200 credit towards a new bike from West County Cycle. Thank you to Nick Sanders, WCC owner, school board member, and SICS parent, for offering this generous contribution. In order to qualify for the raffle, stamp cards need to be filled out when you walk, roll or carpool to school. Each card has 10 stars. When you walk, roll or carpool one way, color, circle or ‘X’ through a star. Once you have completed all the stars on a card, drop it in the basket at either campus. At the end of the year a raffle will be drawn from the submitted cards for a prize. Thanks so much for your participation in this important program. Start thinking now of how you can help your child walk and roll to school Wed. October 8th. Maybe start out participating monthly, build it up to weekly, with the goal in mind of allowing your child to walk to school every day. Let’s get our children to school under their own power and watch how all the benefits develop. 7th Gr. Rummage Sale! Sat. Oct 4, 8 am-3 pm -- in 5 days! Clear out those drawers, closets, garages and basements, and bring us your BEST rummage for this year’s sale. With Halloween nearing, it’s a great time to hunt for costumery, so come on down to score your get-ups! We will be accepting donations at pick-up on Thurs. 9/25/ and 10/2, and all day long on Friday, 10/3. Awakening Arts – a Waldorf Arts Experience for Adults By Mary Bowen, SICS 2nd Gr., 3rd Gr. and 7th Gr. Grandmother Outside, it is a breezy Autumn day, the leaves are turning, the gardens are heavy with ripe harvests. Inside the room, the tea is brewing, there are flowers on the table and a quiet candle burning. It is a carefully prepared time and space for a nurturing and aritistic experience. But this is not a Waldorf classroom. Adults gather here to paint, draw, sculpt, and more. Some are adept at art, but most would not consider themselves “artists.” Here, the process, not the product, that is important. If you can draw a line, dip a paintbrush or feel the clay in your hands, you are ready. Our children are shepherded in Waldorf classrooms with stories, drawings, paintings, sculpture, movement , music and drama – a rich soil for renewal and growth. As adults, some of us wish that we, too, could have had such a wonderful education. Awakening Arts classes give adults a chance to have this artistic experience. In fact, Awakening Arts is often referred to as “Waldorf Education for adults!” A number of themes provide inspiration for a class session: seasons and festivals, temperaments, the four kingdom of nature, stories, biographies of others or oneself, or the development of human consciousness. Each session has time for pure observation - quieting the soul and seeing into the natural world with new eyes. Then, plenty of time for creating, for quiet, for focus, for beauty, using the same materials our children use in the classroom. Awakening Arts, also called Nurturing Arts, was brought to the United States in the 1980’s by Maria de Zwaan, an Art Therapist from Holland. The practice has grown, and many facilitators have trained right here in Sonoma County in the past 19 years. For more information, visit the web-site at www.nurturingarts.org. As adults, it can be hard to find time and space to nurture oneself in a deep way. Awakening Arts classes foster a life-giving experience that nourishes adults in personal and social development. A quote from a Nurturing Arts participant: “This is the best kept secret in Sonoma County.....it is an artistic soul bath.....a cleansing of the senses.” Mary Bowen, M.Ed., is an Awakening Arts facilitator and experienced Waldorf teacher, who has led groups for 24 years. Now semi-retired, Mary still offers limited classes. New classes are forming: 7-week courses Wednesday or Friday morning (Oct 1-Nov 12 or Oct 3-Nov. 14) 8:45-12:00, $140 suggested fee. 3-session Saturday morning course on the Life and Work of Great Painters, Oct. 4, Nov. 1, Dec. 6, 8:45-12:00, $90 suggested fee. To register, contact Carol-Jean Boevers (jcjb221@gmail.com or 545-2153) or call Mary Bowen (526-5667). 1Revolution: A Global Citizens Youth Brigade by Paul Lambrecht, SICS 1st Gr., 4th Gr, and 8th Gr. Parent Connections are being made in the Sebastopol Charter community inside and outside of the classroom. Over 40 of our families have taken part in my local not-for-profit 1Revolution’s school-year and summertime community-based experiential education programs. Merging SICS students on a whitewater nature connection and wilderness rafting adventure adventure, 1Revolution brings youth together with a developmentally appropriate team and skill-building curriculum. “1Rev is the best,” says 5th Grader Paxton Gude, “you make new friends and have fun times with classmates, too.” This past summer, 32 Charter School students completed either a 5 or 7-day program. Perhaps none is more qualified than Ayla Cimen to report on her experience based on the three different trips she took part in this past summer. “I learned a lot about myself. I learned to trust myself and that I’m strong. I felt so alive.” Though participants backpacked in remote places like the Trinity Alps and the Desolation Wilderness, and whitewater rafted the Trinity and the South Fork of the American, these place became friendly and familiar as each group found its natural camaraderie and rhythm. During the school-year, programs include Nature Immersion, meeting one-weekend day a month, the Thursday After-School Club, and school-break trips. “Celia came home totally grounded after each session. We love how happy and comfortable in her skin she seems when she comes home,” shared parent Jonas Goldstein. Participants can expect a fun mix of adventure activities, including rock climbing, nature-based skill building (i.e. making fire), and plenty of time playing games and exploring our local wild spots. “1Revolution is definitely rooted in community and really encourages kids to know more about where we live. I think our whole family feels a sense of belonging,” reports Paxton’s dad, Bryan Gude. I founded 1Revolution in 2013, with the mission to help shape a new generation of global citizens. “I really appreciate 1Revolution offering these amazing programs, not to mention doing it with a sliding scale that’s sustainable for working families,” offers 1Rev parent Anna O’Neil. Scholarships are also available for all programs. My hope and wish is to make life-impacting experiential programs and trips a reality for families of all backgrounds and means. I suppose our version of making a difference is to help people build sturdy relationships with nature, themselves, and others and provide real-world opportunities to try on and grow those relationships. To learn more about 1Revolution visit www.1rev.org. September 2014 CharterNotes 7