NEWS FROM THE PARENT COUNCIL
OCTOBER 16, 2018
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Hello MLWS Families!
Autumn has arrived, bringing chilly mornings and vibrant landscapes! We hope you enjoy this issue of our newsletter, which includes a Parent Council update, highlights activities of various classes and other school-related topics, offers Classified listings, and provides information about upcoming events in the MLWS community.
Parent Council Update
Waldorf Weekend: For our first event of this school year, we are delighted to welcome Anna Silber of the Sunbridge Institute to MLWS to present a Waldorf Weekend on Friday and Saturday, October 19 and 20. Please
CLICK HERE for a description of the event and a detailed schedule and to register. For more information, you can also send an email to
parentcouncil@mountainlaurel.org.
Enchanted Walk: This year’s Enchanted Walk, a Halloween-time event for K through 2nd grade families, will take place on Sunday, October 28 at 6:00pm. We are also seeking volunteers to donate time and/or supplies. Please call or text Tara DeLisio ay 845-594-2600 or email
parentcouncil@mountainlaurel.org to get involved.
Parent Council will not hold monthly meetings during the 2018-19 school year. Instead, we will aim to work on our priority projects in small working groups, which will meet as necessary to advance their efforts. These projects include the Enchanted Walk, Faculty Nourishment, a weekly Craft Circle, Food Drives at Music Shares, a Welcome Committee for new families, and this bi-weekly newsletter.
If you are interested in being involved in one of these working groups, or if you have an idea for another initiative you would like to work on through Parent Council, please send us an email at
parentcouncil@mountainlaurel.org. Please consider getting involved and offering some of your time to one of our projects. Many hands make light work!
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Calendar of School Events
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Friday, October 19, 7:00-9:00pm
Waldorf Weekend
Free Evening Presentation focused on the foundations and fundamentals of Waldorf Education. For more information and to register,
CLICK HERE.
Saturday, October 20, 9:00am-3:00pm
Waldorf Weekend
Day-Long Workshop focused on the foundations and fundamentals of Waldorf Education, designed to provide an in-depth and experiential survey of the basis and the basics of Waldorf Education. For more information and to register,
CLICK HERE.
If you are planning to attend and have not yet registered, please sign up now! We need a minimum of 10 people for the Saturday workshop for it to run, and we do not yet have 10 people registered.
Monday, October 22, 3:00-4:15pm
Steiner Study Group
Led by Theo Lundin, meeting in the Second Grade classroom. Free and open to all!
Wednesday, October 24, 8:30-10:30am
Community Craft Circle
Bring your current project or work on crafts for upcoming school festivals and celebrations, and join us in the Handwork classroom to craft in community. For more information, contact Poliana at
polianthestuberosa@gmail.com
Thursday, October 25, 6:00pm
Fifth Grade Play: Passage of Veils
Come out and see the Fifth Grade perform Passage of Veils, written by Fifth Grade teacher Preston Neel, in the MLWS Community Room!
Friday, October 26: Staff Development Day – NO SCHOOL!
Sunday, October 28, 6:00pm
Enchanted Walk
A Halloween-time event for K through 2nd grade families. We are seeking volunteers to help organize this event. Please contact
parentcouncil@mountainlaurel.org to get involved.
Wednesday, October 31, 8:30-10:30am
Community Craft Circle
Monday, November 5, 3:00-4:15pm
Steiner Study Group
Led by Theo Lundin, meeting in the Second Grade classroom. Free and open to all!
Wednesday, November 7, 8:30-10:30am
Community Craft Circle
Thursday, November 8
Lantern Walk
Get your lanterns prepared and stay tuned for more details from the MLWS administration about this seasonal event for families with children in Nursery through Second Grade. (Rain date: November 15)
Sunday, November 11, 10am-3pm
Annual Clothing Sale
Coordinated by the Third Grade (and supported by the entire school through our clothing donations), this event raises funds for the annual Third Grade Farm Trip during the winter. This event is not to be missed, with great deals on gently-used clothing, outerwear and more, and delicious bake sale offerings as well!
Monday, November 12: Veterans Day -- NO SCHOOL
Parent-Teacher Conferences (Meetings with “Specials” teachers will also be available.)
Wednesday, November 14, 8:30-10:30am
Community Craft Circle
Saturday, November 17
MLWS Open House
Who do you know who might like to attend?
Monday, November 19, 3:00-4:15pm
Steiner Study Group
Led by Theo Lundin, meeting in the Second Grade classroom. Free and open to all!
Tuesday, November 20
Thanksgiving Work Share
A sampling of the work of the students, Grades 1-8
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QUESTION: What is the difference between the Enchanted Walk and the Lantern Walk?
ANSWER:
The Enchanted Walk is a Parent Council-organized event for Nursery through Second Grade families, a Halloween-time alternative to trick-or-treating. Participants are guided in small groups along a luminary path through a series of vignettes created and performed by older students. A treat or trinket is given out to the children at each vignette. The luminary path concludes with a bonfire, dessert potluck, and story–telling to complete the evening, The event is put together entirely by parent volunteers, so please think about what you can contribute to this magical event.
The Lantern Walk is a core seasonal event carried by the MLWS College for Nursery through Second Grade families. In November, as the natural world darkens, the Inner Light of man wants to shine forth.In our annual Lantern Walk, this light appears as the flame enclosed in each child's lantern. The children make lanterns in their classrooms and learn lantern songs during the weeks leading up to the Walk. At the start of the event, a teacher tells the story of St. Martin. Participants then walk together along a luminary path to a clearing in a meadow, where all gather in a circle and are visited by star fairies who share star cookies with the children, after which everyone processes in silence back home.
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A Peek Into the Classroom
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From Mr. Lundin:
The Second Grade began the school year full of vigor and opportunities for courage. We had to learn a Michaelmas play to present for the school in just a few weeks. We practiced the lower case alphabet, basic punctuation and capitalization, as we wrote out our memorized script a page at a time. We finally shared our play. A week later, while scrambling through the Labyrinth and famed Lemon Squeeze at Mohonk Mountain House, the class spontaneously broke out in lines from the play to offer each other encouragement up the treacherous pass. In a similar vein, here at Mountain Laurel, the teachers offer each other encouragement through the following verse from Rudolph Steiner:
“Imbue thyself with the power of imagination.
Have COURAGE for the truth.
Sharpen thy feeling for responsibility of soul.”
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From Mr. Neel:
The Fifth Grade stands at a threshold with one foot on either side, mourning the loss of the seed they once were, and looking ahead as the saplings they have become. They look back upon the early grades with maturity and toward middle school with enthusiasm, and in this place they find balance. The fifth grade year is known as the “golden year” because the children have reached a plateau between being innocent babes and savvy teenagers. The class is bathing in the glory of a living education as they begin their studies of ancient civilizations. They started the year in ancient India by hearing the Mahabharata, from which a deeper study of the Bhagavad Gita will continue, and a master yoga teacher will teach yoga asanas throughout the year. In the Bhagavad Gita, the Lord Krishna explains to Arjuna that yoga is more than a stretching exercise, and more than their muscles will be stretched as the fifth graders delve into the stories and mythologies of ancient India, Persia, Egypt and Greece. This begins with the class play, in which the children live into the iconic characters of these ancient cultures and mythologies. Botany studies will follow the play, in which the fifth grade will draw and record wild herbs and medicinals in their journals.
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Welcome To Our New Faculty
Ms. Tayvah (Educational Support Specialist)
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Paola Tayvah had joined the faculty of Mountain Laurel Waldorf School in the newly created position of Educational Support Specialist. Ms. Tayvah comes to us from the Waldorf School of Princeton where she was the full-time Support Faculty. In addition to her teaching responsibilities at WSP, she also coordinated support services. Ms. Tayvah has a B.A. in Educational Psychology and an M.S.Ed. in Language and Literacy and a background in Gifted Education, literacy and math intervention with varied application experiences including: Barton Screening for Dyslexia, Woodin Math Multimodal Strategies, Hochman Writing Instruction, Orton-Gillingham and Wilson Reading System. She is interested in integrating evidence-based interventions within an artistic, progressive educational environment and will be working closely with our teachers, staff and parents to coordinate support and enrichment for our students.
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Cleaning out your closets?
Please put aside donations for the Third Grade clothing Sale! Between now and November 11, Ms. Loshak and Mr. Lundin will leave their car trunks unlocked and parked in the faculty parking lot in front of 6 Elting Avenue whenever weather permits. Please put your donations in the trunk of either car. Look for Clothing Sale signs near the cars to direct you. You can drop off donations from 8:25 am until 3:00 pm each school day. Gently-used children’s clothing, adult clothing, Waldorf-friendly toys, books, games and small household items welcome. If you have any questions, please contact Stephanie Young at 845-255-0021 (land line) or Sibylle Jud at
sibyllejud@gmail.com.
STUFF (For Rent, For Sale, For Free, ISO…)
ISO Other Families to Share Healthy Cooked Meals Organic healthy cooking available for busy, working, and/or chronically-ill parents and their families. Seeking interested families to go in on affordable weekly meals together. If interested, contact Lisa Hansen via email at
sunsnake@optonline.net or at 845-430-4633.
For Sale: 1/2 size violin With case and bow. In good shape. Plays and sounds great. Why rent when you can own. Asking $140. Contact David Gandin at
dgandin@aol.com or at 845-633-8767.
LEARN
Herbalism Classes with Ashely Sapir Lathrop. Join Herbalist and MLWS parent Ashley Sapir Lathrop for medicine making and herbal journeying, in the three-part series "Deepen Your Herbal Roots". Dates are October 28th, November 18th and December 2nd. You can read more about it at
http://www.dreamkeeperbotanicals.com/education-events/ or call Ashley at 845-519-5067.
Outdoor Programs with Wild Earth At Wild Earth's weekend and summer programs, children and adults head into the woods and off the trails to meet plants and animals, learn wilderness living skills, create natural crafts, and to build deep connections with friends and inspiring mentors. Learn more about our programs and reserve your space at:
https://wildearth.org.
Traditional landscape paintings in oil – Tim Smith
Offering private tuition for adults and 8th grade students in classical oil painting method. To organize a session around your or your child's specific schedule and needs, contact Tim at
https://www.timsmithpaintings.com/.
Guitar and mandolin lessons with Mr. Steve Bernstein at his home in Gardiner, NY. Children, teens and adults are all welcome. Please call: 845-255-0822 or drop a note in his mailbox (2nd floor) at school.
SERVICES
Valentine and Wilder's Pet-Sitting Service
Experience with cats, fish and guinea pigs, but also open to other pets as well! (917) 309-7790 or
seanaskye@me.com.
Photography for All Occasions Roy Gumpel has been a photographer for more than 40 years. He has done assignments in many different areas, including travel, corporate, environmental portraits, cd covers, studio portraiture, still life, fashion, architecture, documentary projects and film stills. He also shoots video. Roy and his camera were featured in a National Geographic Explorer film about Rt.66. He has traveled extensively and is open to assignments of all kinds. Contact:
roygump@gmail.com, 845-544-5373.
Children’s Haircuts Jodie Naccarato -Fanning is a MLWS parent and a hairdresser specializing in children’s haircuts. If you are interested in her services, please contact her at 845-380-8488.
FREE Sustainable Living Consultations Would you like to live a more sustainable lifestyle? Do you need help determining what personal actions have the biggest impact? We offer consulting to help you tread lightly on the Earth and mitigate climate change. This is a free service because we truly believe in building a viable future for all of our children. Samrat Pathania (Waldorf parent) and Dan Guenther are the Climate Consultants. For more informarion, email
samratpathania@gmail.com or call/text 631-848-1599.
Jason Boyd Contracting Quality craftsmanship with an artistic edge, 25 years experience, Free Estimates,
www.jasonboydcontracting.com, 845-616-6365.
Newburgh Seamless Gutter Owner Jason Fanning is a MLWS parent. Please give him a call if you need any gutter installation or service. 845-236-7873.
http://newburghseamlessgutters.com.
Home Inspections: emfs, dirty electricity, radio frequency
Concerned about children’s cell phone or lap top use? Get protection from new electric meters. Get emf readings on prospective new homes. Learn about router signals. Create an emf free sleeping environment. Teach children about safe wireless use. Decrease overall field exposure. Measure offices, cars, dorms. Learn about resources. Public talks. Harrison Barritt,
selfkindness@yahoo.com, 845-256-0446.
Permaculture Home and Property Designs installed and maintained by Andrew Faust and Adriana Magaña. We help you to adapt your vision to the ecological and geological realities of your site. We have more than twenty years of experience in the region offering the following services: Real Estate Assessment and Land Selection, Installing and Maintaining Ponds and Solving Water Problems, Creating Biodynamic Orchards and Farms, Organic Vegetable Gardens, Off-grid Natural homes and communities, Native Landscapes, Permaculture Forest Gardens. Contact us at 917-584-4588 or see our portfolio and get a quote here:
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