movement

What does a games and movement teacher do to celebrate the Waldorf 100 Anniversary?

Why... Run 100 miles in a school year of course!

Tracking our progress…

This year, to celebrate the Waldorf 100 year anniversary, the Madrona School 2nd through 8th grades, will be cumulatively running 100 miles during games classes. That's 33 miles for the fall, 33 miles for the winter, and 34 miles in the spring. Surprisingly to most of the students, we reached our fall goal early just this week, with the 2nd grade running the last mile and a half to complete the first 33 miles. Over all, the 2nd and 3rd grades put in a lot of running time and came out on top with 6 miles each towards the goal. All of the classes have put forth an amazing effort!

Planning the next run at the start of a class…

Along with all of the enthusiasm around reaching this goal, I have had a great chance to talk about the importance of hydration. Several of the students call me "Ms. Do you have your water bottle?" Quite a few of the students have realized how much better they feel after fueling up before, during and after our time together. Additionally, proper footwear has come into play. Nothing like trudging along in your fancy school shoes, to remind yourself to bring running shoes for the next class.

Make sure to be on the lookout after Thanksgiving break, when the Madrona Waldorf 100 Running Club will be back in action piling up those miles running around town, and in Moritani Park working towards our collective goal of 100 miles!

— From our games and movement teacher, Jamie Villella

The Purpose of the First Grade Circle

Back in October, at our Experience Waldorf event for parents, our 1st grade teacher, Ms. Hartz, shared the why and what of circle time in first grade. There is a lot behind what looks like fun to these eager students at the very beginning of their grade school journeys!

A first grader’s day begins with a handshake and a greeting to and from the teacher. The mood in the classroom is one of calm and expectation, sometimes with some excitement about something from home, or in anticipation of the day. The class speaks their morning verse together, and then, before moving into work at their desks, they will clear a space in the classroom for some circle time. A circle in 1st grade incorporates movement, music and singing, spoken word, rhythm, breathing, and concentration. It’s purpose includes:

  • Joy and delight

  • Awakening a healthy imagination

  • Wake up! Get out of breath, prepare to sit

  • Immersion in the season or “mood” of a block

  • Incarnation into hands/feet and fingers/toes

  • Creation of artistic and beautiful movement

  • Strengthen uprightness, endurance, coordination

  • Connect hemispheres of the brain

  • Working on body geography and spatial relationships

  • Enhancing a sense of touch, balance, controlled movement

  • Supporting speech development an sound/letter connection

  • Working on rhythm: foundational for math as well as music

  • Flexibility: work between polarities.

Ms. Hartz writes: “A first grader continues to be a being in movement. A first grader imitates out of an attitude of devotion and trust in the goodness of the world. Out of this feeling of goodness (reverence) will come an internal sympathy for goodness, a moral compass that does not need its own direct instruction.”

She shared her autumn circle with parents, including some of the “whys” behind its design:

  • Morning Verse to imbue and experience reverence and silence.

  • Seasonal Songs: Yellow the Bracken; The Autumn Winds; Golden is the Garden (to learn the months, movement crossing midline); Ghost of John (for fun).

  • Form a Ring: Expansion Contraction (to learn to make a beautiful circle); One for the Golden Sun; A Sailor Went to Sea; Tony Chestnut (for slow, fast, quick, slow); Bean bags passed to Hickory Dickory Dock (coordination with your neighbor and the group).

  • Balance boards and beam.

  • Drink of water and move desks back in preparation for the day.

Morning verse, movement circles, music including singing and recorders, and recitation continue up through the grades and develop depending on the needs of the class and the teacher. Often, teachers include some math games and mental math too. Some teachers employ movement as a mid-morning break, while others prefer to begin the morning with circle time. Please ask your child’s teacher if you have questions about how she or he incorporates movement and music into a morning’s lesson!

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.