Uncategorized

Kamaroi Steiner School Parent Education Sourdough Workshop – Testaments

ADULT EDUCATION, COOKING, EDUCATION, Uncategorized

“I was thrilled to join the sourdough workshop. It really was an amazing revelatory class for me and I will be using what you taught me with my family for years to come”

“I Just wanted to share my very positive feedback on the Sourdough Workshop with Sandra which we went to as a family last Sunday. We had a very good time connecting with other families, cooking and learning new things, singing songs and eating a meal together. Sandra made everything look so easy and even though I had baked bread before, I never felt easy or creative about it. After the workshop I had attempted to bake another loaf of bread using the starter Sandra gave us to take home and it was a success! I have baked three loaves since then.”

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NATIONAL TREE DAY

GARDENING, TEACHING, Uncategorized

CLASS 4 CELEBRATES NATIONAL TREE DAY 2020 WITH GUM PLANTING

In late 2019, as a result of a big weather storm cell, our school lost 20 trees and has since been working on the clean-up and regeneration of the affected areas. This year, for National Tree Day, (Sunday 2 August) Class 4 got behind the Planet Ark initiative, to highlight its leadership position in environmental education and regeneration.

Head of School, Andrew Hill said, “Glenaeon’s Middle Cove campus sits on three hectares of beautiful bushland leading down to Scotts Creek. Our school emblem is an image of a tree and its root system reflective of our school’s respect for Nature and the physical, emotional and spiritual growth our students make from Preschool through to Year 12.  The school has over 300 trees on the campus. It’s an open, clean and healthy place for children to learn.”

Gardening teacher Sandra Frain explained, “Our students used leaf litter compost, a native potting soil mixture of local leaf matter which has been decomposing for over two years, rich in nutrients and wriggling with worms, to plant ‘hot pink gum’ seeds donated by the Schuback family.”

“The seeds will grow into saplings and be nurtured for replanting in an appropriate location, or gifted to parents to be planted in backyards by Glenaeon families.”

The school will also be replacing the 20 lost trees with 20 new trees that are native to this special bushland area. There are only six types of tree native to the gully in which the campus sits.

Glenaeon teachers work with students in regenerative gardening activities to ensure that they enhance and improve the space they are in, improving the land, growing flowers to attract insects, fruits and vegetables, herbs and spices not only to grow healthy food for students to eat, but for visual enjoyment, and learning how to live a more sustainable lifestyle in the future.

https://news.glenaeon.nsw.edu.au/news/issue/glenaeon-newsletter-august-6-2020/

A WASHING HANDS STORY

EDUCATION, HEALTH, PLAYGROUP, TEACHING, Uncategorized

This was written as a parent resource at the request of Glenaeon Rudolf Steiner Preschool for their children at the time of the COVID -19 outbreak.

Once upon a time two keen children were standing on a step
stool at the bathroom sink. When they turned on the tap the
water came flowing out.


All the water droplets were rushed together. Those children
were sure that they heard voices in the water calling ‘ I want
to wash their hands,’ ,’ I do too’, ‘And me too ‘, and mee
toooooo’. “Let’s do it together’ the voices said.


‘Swish, swish’ said the water drops, as they toppled down,
down, down from the faucet above to the sink below.
The children watched the water swirling and twirling down
from the faucet to the white sink below. They put some
slippery soap on their fingers and hands. Then they put their
hands under the fast running water. It was a waterfall!
The children sang while they rubbed their hands and fingers
together:

‘Fish swim in the water
Birds fly in the air.

Come and sparkle your hands here
And dry them over there’.


‘Fish swim in the water
Birds fly in the air,

Come and sparkle your hands here
And dry them over there’.

The children turned the water tap off.
They used a paper towel to dry their hands. They put the
towel into the white plastic bucket and they covered it with
its’ lid.


Later they carried the white plastic bucket out to the worm
farm. There, there would be worms who would wriggle
through the paper and turn it into the rich black soil for the
garden.


Sandra Frain
March 2020

Class Three Gardening

GARDENING, TEACHING, Uncategorized

Class 3 are seasoned gardeners, and returned from holidays to check and aerate the liquid fertiliser they prepared last Term. It is made from sorghum plants, which releases silica and other nutrients into the solution that is then sprinkled onto the plants. Here they are learning how to aerate the natural fertiliser in a hand-mixer that has been repurposed from the art and building department to the garden and will start a new life as a garden tool! Class 3 are also particularly fond of the chickens, and we are delighted to introduce the newest 3 hens Dot, Whitney and Olive. They get a LOT of cuddles when Class 3 are around!

    SANDRA’S GLENAEON PLAYGROUPS

    EDUCATION, PLAYGROUP, Uncategorized

    MONDAY (PRESCHOOL CAMPUS)

    TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY (CASTLECRAG CAMPUS)

    TERM 1, 2019 – STORYLINE & SONGS

    T’was a sweet unfolding of friendships for all as we explored the vibrant Glenaeon Playgroup settings in a health filled tapestry for our children.

    Appropriate stories build our resilience for what life demands of us and offers us too. Through feeding our imagination; through hearing the rhythm and repetition of our human voice and word ; through feeling the goodness of wisdom intended, we grow.

    In February Sydney is a – buzz with the ‘Chinese New Year Celebration’. Thus we began our first term of 2019 with puppet show stories of our large pink knitted pig ‘Liang Liang’. (Mandarin for light.)

    While she dug in the compost with her babies, the 12 Chinese zodiacal animals on the farm celebrated her for “Year of the Golden Pig’ . Her kindness, humility, and good luck were honoured though she was bashful to hear this.

    This theme carried over into our baking as our dough was overflowing PIG! In our game time we combined our silk cloth peek- a -boo game with ‘Old Mac Donald’. There was much merriment as we snorted and squealed and mooed and some children even danced while we clapped!

    In March we explored the story of the Three Little Pigs leaving their maternal home and making their houses of flimsy straw, then hard sticks and then sturdy stones. This puppet show gave us a metaphor for our own and that of our children’s gradual resilience building. When the ‘strong winds’ threaten to ‘blow our house down’ we may ‘run home to safety’. There we recoup ourselves with the strengthening of sleep. The next day we are more mature and we are more knowledgeable about protecting ourselves. Our fears defeated, we can ‘live happily ever after’.

    Good for us trying new things and learning how to support ourselves! Through our discussions we learned tools from each other for facing our fears ( and those of our children) and being patient with ourselves (and our children) as we all adapt to new adventures. Our empathy grows.

    How can we protect our children for what is not necessary for them to be exposed to? How can we prevent unnecessary trauma and heal wounds of all natures? What facts can we convey so we can stand up for their right to grow up in a nurturing, age appropriate environment? ‘Together’ we can.

    To introduce our butter making activity, we had the puppet show story of the farmer needing us to help make the cream after the cow had been milked. She had eaten lots of juicy green grass which had now been made into creamy milk. Then we all too turns shaking the cream jars until we had the golden sun surprise in the jar! Home made butter!

    ‘Come butter come Come butter come If you don’t hurry you’re gonna be late and I’m gonna beat you to the garden gate.’

    In fluctuating weather of autumnal April, the Chinese story ‘The Dragon’s Gate’ [1] was appropriate for continuing our resilience- building work. My adaptation was of a dragon wishing for a friend and the fish wishing to fly. Daring to wish and being open to the wish coming true is a worthy motivator for life.

    The colourful fish dared to leave it’s safe home element of water to try to make its’ dream come true. With one deep breath after another and accompanying large leaps ‘up, up, up’, ‘Swish Fish’ succeeds in traversing the grand, gushing waterfall that connects the treasure filled lake he lived in and reach finally, the top of the mountain.

    At the top of the mountain his fins become wings, he can fly in the light, and now colourful Dragon ‘Ani Aff’ (Hebrew for ‘I am flying’) has his dream of a friend to fly with!

    Amongst the white fluffy clouds and the blue, blue sky they fly together:

    ‘I am flying I am flying I am flying

    Adorned with wings of light. ‘

    As the calendar year moved along, children’s birthdays were celebrated with a specially crafted story unique to the intricacies of each child. The birthday celebrations flowed with familiar songs, a birthday bread and lots of love too.

    SONGS

    (In order of end of term to beginning)

    Theme songs

    ‘Little bulb little bulb come into your bed so dark. Comfy there until its’ time to shine, shine, shine.’

    ‘Come little leaves said the wind one day come over the meadow with me to play.’ X2

    ‘Puff the Magic Dragon lives by the sea and wallows in the autumn mist in a land called Honalee.’ X2

    ‘I am flying I am flying I am flying Adorned with wings of light ‘

    ‘Come butter come Come butter come

    If you don’t hurry you’re gonna be late

    and I’m gonna beat you to the garden gate.’

    ‘It’s a new moon after all It’s a new moon after all

    It’s a new moon after all It’s a new moon after all. ‘

    (Tune of ‘It’s a small world’)

    ( It’s a half moon, It’s a full moon.)

    ‘I see the moon the moon sees me

    The Angels bless the moon and the angels bless me’

    ‘Old Mac Donald had a farm ee I ee I oh

    And on his farm he had a mooo Ee I Ee I oh

    With a moo moo here and a moo moo there, Old mac Donald had a farm ee I ee I oh!’

    ‘Bluebird, bluebird through my window

    Bluebird, bluebird through my window

    Bluebird, bluebird through my window

    To catch a little sweetie’.

    Circle Songs

    ‘Roly poly roly poly all the way to …’s house’

    (when we roll a ball from one person to another’ )

    ‘Good morning dear Earth Good morning dear sun Good morning dear stones and flowers everyone

    Good morning dear animals and birds in the trees Good morning to you and good morning to me’

    ‘Oh here we are together, together, together

    Oh here we are together at play group today.

    There’s … and …and … too.

    Oh here we are together, together, together

    Oh here we are together at playgroup today’.

    Healing Song

    Healing, healing loving for my beautiful daughter/son

    Healing, healing has begun

    Now my son/daughter will have some fun

    (When a child has hurt themselves)

    Birthday Songs

    ‘In Heaven high there shines a star

    An angel brought you from afar

    From Father sky to Mother earth

    Brought you to your place of birth’

    ‘Twinkle twinkle little star how I wonder what you are

    Up above the world so high Like a diamond in the sky

    Twinkle twinkle little star how I wonder what you are’.

    ‘Rock a bye baby on the tree top

    When the wind blows the cradle will rock

    When the bough breaks

    The cradle will fall

    and down will fall baby cradle and all.’

    Baking Songs

    ‘Fish swim in the water

    Birds fly in the air

    Come and sparkle your hands here

    and dry them over there’. (For hand washing)

    ‘Soft sifted flour from wheat golden x2’

    ‘Roly poly, roly poly, roly poly roly’

    (When we roll bread dough or a ball to each person)

    ‘The bakers are baking, baking the bread today

    The bakers are baking, baking today. ‘

    ‘We’re kneading We’re kneading We bakers we are kneading We’re kneading we’re kneading we’re kneading dough today.‘

    (And many other adjectives: pounding, rolling, squishing, knuckling tapping, patting, pushing, pulling, adorning, embellishing, squashing, )

    Patt’a cake patt’a cake bakers man

    ‘Bake me a cake as fast as you can

    Roll it and prick it and Mark it with a ‘B’

    And put it in the oven for Baby and me.

    Eating songs

    ‘Morning tea, morning tea

    Won’t you come and dine with me?

    Fruit and vegetables and porridge and bread

    and a little bit of tea for you and me.

    Morning tea, morning tea

    Won’t you come and dine with me?’

    ‘Make a mountain with your hands

    The strongest mountain that you can.

    Thank you for this food, this food, this glorious, glorious food.

    And the animals, and the vegetables and the minerals that make it possible. ‘

    Transition Songs

    ‘We can make a circle round like the sun

    And we can make a circle with a place for everyone’.

    (Gathering people into circle form)

    “I met a little dusty gnome

    He said: ‘It’s time to go for a roam . Let’s clean our home.’

    Follow, follow … follow follow

    Follow, follow… follow now.

    (When we are moving from one place to another. It allows children to feel the order of the direction and they enjoy being the leader’.)

    Row, row, row your boat

    Gently down the stream

    Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily

    Life is but a dream.

    (Group Unifying song that children love to enact with adults)

    We’ve had a lovely day and now it’s time to go on our way.

    Good bye … good bye… goodbye…. And …. Too. Good bye… good bye …. Goodbye… and … too.

    A HEARTWARMING EXPERIENCE

    ADULT EDUCATION, BIODYNAMICS, Uncategorized

    As shared by ‘Between the Leaves’, the eNewsletter of Biodynamic Agriculture Australia Ltd.

    Here is a testimonial from a former wheat farmer who now hosts Perth Biodynamic Group. In July this year she attended Sandra Frain’s biodynamic day in Perth.  She brought along the preps for the compost making and the stirring.  She teaches a parent/teacher biodynamic group and also how to make preps at the Perth Steiner school.

    ‘Hello Sandra, it was such an amazing experience attending the biodynamic day of your [teacher training] course.  There were so many instances which I can only describe as the light bulb in my head fusing with the light in my heart.  You spoke from a place in your heart where not many dare go.  Heidi.’