Madrona School Alphabet (L)

Next up in our alphabet-based exploration of what makes a Waldorf education unique...L for living education. We've explored this topic in other ways throughout this alphabet, but it bears repeating. Living education happens when you offer learning through experience and discovery, when you have a strong relationship between teachers and students, and when you offer a curriculum that engages all the senses.

As members of the Madrona School community we can all think of the glimpses we have of this education in action. There are the bean bag exercises that combine mental math with rhythm and song, taking practice to perfect. There are the demonstrations of middle school science -- making sound resonance visible with a Chladni plate demonstration or studying mechanics through building simple machines. There are the 1st graders in handwork class, knitting yes, but stopping often to count their rows and look up at the shared pattern posted at the head of the room, mentally calculating and then announcing how many "mountains" remain in their project. There is the sharing of applesauce, sauerkraut and beeswax candles from 3rd grade practical arts lessons, and the understanding of a life cycle as they prepare to plant grains in our new garden space for next year's 3rd grade to harvest and study. There is the focused silence of book work in the 4th grade after an energetic and physical game of energetic sentence diagramming in language arts. Countless examples abound...

In a 2014 interview, Christof Weichert said: [A dynamic lesson] is the essence of Waldorf education. Steiner said that we teach within an artistic process…the experience is that of expansion and contraction. It is shaped by very precise use of oral qualities, visual qualities and interactive qualities, and they have to be in balance. You should always have an eye for what refreshes the children and what tires them. If the children get tired, you change into another mood or another activity so you and the children are in kind of a flow….If you are engaged—and you’ll find that in the third chapter of The Study of Man—if you engage yourself in what you do, you stay alive. You stay fresh.

—adapted from our weekly email newsletter, May 20, 2014



Our Annual School-wide Open House

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The whole family is very welcome at our annual school-wide Open House, this Saturday, January 26th! Please come walk through the school, meet teachers, see current student work and hear about our early childhood program expansion and new outdoor kindergartens! We are so excited to share a glimpse of our school with you. You are welcome anytime between 10 am and 12 pm, although if you are particularly interested in early childhood, join Miss Mary at 10:45am in the green house classroom to hear more specifically about those changes…..And, plan a trip up to Lowery Farm to visit with Teachers Isaac and Jamie about our plans for that space — the farm is open between 10:30am and 12:30pm.

See you there!

Meanwhile, please enjoy these examples from previous years of the sorts of work you’ll be able to view:


Season of Light and Warmth

Our annual look at the warmth and light we enjoy in December at Madrona School…. Here, as in all Waldorf schools, we cultivate a sense of beauty in our classrooms all year long, helping us all relax into learning and strengthening the important relationships between our teachers and our students. In many ways, this darkest time of year here in the Pacific Northwest offers just as much warmth and joy as the breezy, flower-filled days of spring or the comfortable mellow-lit afternoons of fall, as we deliberately create opportunities to celebrate. We light candles on menorahs and Advent wreaths, we sing seasonal songs from a variety of cultures as a whole school and in our classrooms, we play and walk outside even in the cold rain because we are all bundled up, we pour fun into Secret Santa gifts, we make seasonal crafts like beeswax lanterns and colorful window stars, we enjoy visits from Santa Lucia and St. Nicholas, and we hold at least two Spirals of Light….We hope you enjoy a glimpse into these celebrations!

Wishing you a joyous season of light, however you celebrate. See you in the new year!

Some Parent Testimonials

We are grateful for those parents who chose to include testimonials for our website with their answers to our end-of-year survey this past summer. We highlight a selection of them here:

“Madrona School's approach to nurture our children's love of learning has been deeply moving. We appreciate how the school weaves the emerging scientific understanding of child's psychoneuro-developmental process along with the wisdom of Waldorf education. The school's ability to hold open and growing spaces for new information and the lived knowledge of the past to coexist has been important. Such a discerning and non-judging attitude the school embodies, we hope our children will continue to learn to practice to become who they are as unique individuals and as vital members of a meaningful community.” —Sierra, mother to two students

“The first week of school, my daughter said: ‘Mom , I wish school lasted until 5 pm’. The last month of school, she told me: ‘Mom, I wish school did not end so soon’.” —Mom of a 7th grade student

“This school brings so much joy to our child's life which in turn makes our lives so much richer. The wholesomeness and care each teacher puts into their students is in invaluable.” —parent to a kindergarten student

“Madrona is a gift to our children and the whole community! Keep up the great work! I tell everyone I come in contact about the school and what it has meant to our lives and our daughters! I have watched [them both] change dramatically since becoming part of the Madrona community. They entered unhappy and with a lack of confidence. Now I am in awe of how confident, happy and well rounded my daughters are! I for one will never be able to thank you enough for what your wonderful school has given them.” —Dad of two students

“My child’s teacher is ALWAYS prepared. Every week, everyday. She is amazing.” — from a parent of a rising 6th grader

“Rooted in the reliable insights of Waldorf and renewed by the inspired, loving presence of its teachers, Madrona School has been a wonderful blessing to our family. I'm very grateful.” -- parent of two students

Madrona School is a non-profit, tax exempt public charity organization incorporated in the State of Washington. Madrona School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender expression or identity, national and ethnic origin, sexual orientation, or religion in any of its programs, classes or activities.