I worry that as time goes on and, as schools increasingly focus on the “thing” that is the curriculum and the “thing” that is the test, we will forget what is missing at school. So, I want to invite you into my classroom in a school where teachers and their students are free to learn together without the interference of…
“It was as if my long-term students and I were taking a long journey by ship and it was my fault that, in the parlance of the controversial education law, William was being left behind.”
Readers say: Told in an easy to read style, this book is actually a page turner. This turned out to be the best book I’ve read in a long time. It has the emotional impact of a book of fiction, and the educational value of a non-fiction book. Perhaps, long ago, a teacher made a difference in your life.…
The Festival of the Child is a week long international online summit offering free interviews daily with doctors, teachers and parenting experts. You sign up through this link:https://www.festivalofthechild.com/?fbclid=IwAR2UlV9MGwOxJtyCcvSMpdAN4x0e-6enlCF0I0H04ScakGFJJ6_1SJe1BYE And then watch for a confirmation email, then an email that gives you your free pass to the content. You can watch the interviews posted that day and those released within the…
As we enter the school year, this. Only this. What you see above is a post on my Facebook page, Growing Children. In 12 days it has reached more than 599,000 people. My page has only about 3,500 followers, so I think this amounts to going viral. And it’s still going. It’s going viral because people know that it’s totally…
A Gift of Wonder is set in an independent school but written with public school teachers and parents in mind. This review by Desirae Blake is the first of a series of reviews by public school teachers. ## Kim Allsup’s book, “A Gift of Wonder,” is a gently told story with a powerful message. As a public school teacher, I…
A Gift of Wonder is a beautiful collection of vignettes chronicling Waldorf teacher and mentor Kim Allsup’s journey with her first class. Each chapter focuses on a key element or trait – Curiosity, Resilience, Nurturing, Responsibility, and Balance to name a few – and the story that follows allows the reader to see how that capacity or quality can emerge…
Since retiring from teaching in Waldorf schools, I’ve enjoyed working with a homeschooling second grader who often comes up with an idea for our lesson time than is more engaging than what I planned. “Can we start in the garden today?” And why not? We are both more focused after time in the fresh air where she weeds her fairy…
Soon the first grader would wave good bye to her four year old brother at my classroom door. But now they both sat in a wooded glade on a hot August day listening intently to my story during a home visit, a tradition in our school. I had been telling the same story at each home and I felt apprehensive…
Have you imagined a future in which we reversed climate change? This video shows such a future. My novel – in – progress also imagines a future in which people take action to avert climate catastrophe. Click here for article with video I started writing Rachel’s Way when my fourth graders started reading dystopian novels. Where, I wondered, could I…
Moss gardens bring nature inside. They offer children opportunities for imaginative play, experimentation, and hands on exploration of the world of plants. We started by collecting moss and a mossy log in the forest. Then we placed a layer of soil on a boot tray and added the pieces of moss. At this point my eight year old helper took…
This page launches on February 2,2019. You are welcome to join now. click here: https://www.facebook.com/waldorfwisdom/ As a participant in a number of very worthwhile Waldorf-related Facebook pages, I saw a gap that asked to be filled, hence Seeking Waldorf Wisdom. The goal is to work together in the manner of a Waldorf faculty meeting to explore topics that support our…
My friend Robert tells me, “How we raise and educate our children is a key element in whether or not we survive! That’s why your book is so important! Because civilization is, in Victor Frankl’s term, “running on the wire.” “But,” I counter, “my teaching memoir is simply life in a Waldorf classroom, moments, conversations, little kids becoming big kids,…
