This above is the famous dragon bread that is served every September at the premier fall time festival at the kid's school. They have many celebrations throughout the year to welcome in the changes of the seasons and to celebrate the harvest which the bountiful Earth has given. The celebration of Michaelmas is the first big event of the school year and it reminds us that we have great wisdom inside of us and to trust that. Just as the light diminishes in the outside world, in the winter, with shorter days and much less sunlight, life can mirror this internally. We must rely on this inner strength and wealth in order to get through the "winter of the soul" as I like to put it. Challenges (or dragons) are met each and every day and we must remember that we can be warriors of light and goodness.
This bread dragon reaches 20 foot easily.
After the Michaelmas play and all of the presentations that the grades classes have performed, we all, as a community, go outside to plant spring bulbs together around the school property. I took this opportunity to take just a sampling of pictures of the unique play space that the children at the Cincinnati Waldorf School get to enjoy every day.
If I remember correctly, the building that we are in currently sits on ten acres. There is plenty of green space for the kids to play sports at recess, go sledding, do their games classes and just run. That's my Elijah to the left of the soccer ball....he absolutely loves soccer and might go far in the sport one day.
The children don't have typical play ground equipment here. Instead they have natural objects such as enormous sections of logs and sticks which provide simple, open ended creativity. That's my Josiah in the middle facing you with a group of second and third grade boys. I sort of crept up on them and I'm not even sure if they noticed me :)
When we first moved to this property five years ago, it was completely undeveloped and just simple mowed grass. Over the years, and with much help from parent volunteers, a large marshy area was turned in to a wetland for the children to explore in. Willow was planted and a long board walk was constructed so the children could easily get around the mud and water.
A lot of the younger children enjoy the large sand box. Again, they will use sticks, pieces of bark, grass, leaves, and whatever else they can find in the natural world to create their own little worlds outdoors.
No one ever said they come home clean...this is after Toby refused to walk on the boardwalk.
This is what being a child is all about~
Another view of some of the strategically placed tree stumps that the children adore. In the background, you can see the bell tower that Elijah's class built as a project several years ago. They also have a volleyball court, large covered picnic area, deep hills for winter sledding fun, a rain garden, raised garden beds, herb gardens, flowers and trees gallore......This reverence for nature was one of the reasons I have always had a strong affinity for this style of education. I am always renewed and refreshed when I spend time outdoors in the simple beauty of nature...and it makes it even more enriching when you get to spend the time with your good friends <3
xoxo
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