December 2013 Calendar

HS Trimester 2 Begins
12/2/2013 – 12/2/2013

Parenting for Puberty with Drew Joseph (new morning time)
8:30 am – 10:00 amLibrary
How do we prepare our children for both the pleasures and the responsibilities of adult sexuality? In this workshop we'll explore how to support this important part of our children's development from infancy all the way through adolescence. Come to one or to all four sessions! For parents and teachers of children of all ages. Specializing in "people not problems," Drew Joseph is a licensed marriage and family therapist with more than 20 years experience.

Observation Morning
8:00 am – 10:30 amWWS
Observation Mornings include a presentation on the philosophy and approach of Waldorf education and visits to five classes to see the Waldorf approach “in action.” The tour spans the grades, observing our youngest students in the Children’s Garden, several Lower School grades, and a class in the High School. Observation Mornings begin at 8 a.m. in the school library and end in the library at 10:30 following a Q & A period. These events are for adults. For more information or to RSVP, please contact our Enrollment Director, Lezlie Lawson, at 301-229-6107, x154 or at llawson@washingtonwaldorf.org.

G5 Parent Evening
7:30 pm – 9:00 pm

The Art of Raising Strong, Resilient Children, POSTPONED
7:30 pm – 9:00 pmLibrary
This event was postponed due to the snow day, and will be rescheduled at a date TBA. Parenting is not an easy assignment, especially in our complex, modern world. Often as parents we are good at holding our children close or we are good at letting them go. The challenge is to embrace both of these polarities. It can make all the difference. Please join us on Tuesday evening to find out more about raising strong and resilient children. Jack Petrash, brings over 30 years of classroom experience and is now teaching his fourth class (the current 7th grade) at WWS. He is the founder and director of the Nova Institute, whose mission is to “build a bridge between Waldorf education and contemporary educators to encourage dialogue and a sense of common purpose.” Jack has written extensively on issues pertaining to innovative classroom instruction and has served on the editorial board of the journal Encounter. He is the author of Understanding Waldorf Education: Teaching from the Inside Out; Covering Home: Lessons on the Art of Fathering from the Game of Baseball, which received the National Parenting Publication's gold award; and Navigating the Terrain of Childhood: A Guidebook for Meaningful Parenting and Heartfelt Discipline. In addition, he has traveled extensively to work with parents, and his parenting pieces have appeared in the Washington Post, National Public Radio, and other outlets. Free

Community Carol Sing
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Presentation on WWS Finances
7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Thank you to all of the 140 parents who participated in our online community survey last month. Trustees Council Treasurer, Jack Benson, compiled and summarized the results for the TC meeting as part of the TC process for setting next year's tuition. Jack will offer a similar presentation on the survey results and WWS finances to the community on Monday, December 16 at 7:30 p.m. in the WWS library. This is a great opportunity to see how parents view the school and what issues are of most concern, while getting a detailed look "under the hood" of WWS finances. All are welcome.

Trustees Council Meeting, Rescheduled
7:00 pm – 9:30 pmLibrary
Rescheduled from Dec 10 meeting that was canceled due to snow day. All welcome

Lunch music
12:40 pm – 1:00 pmAuditorium
Lunch music featuring 4th grade quartet, 5th grade strings, and music faculty

Oberufer Plays
7:00 pm – 8:30 pmAudtitorium
Paradise Play at 7 p.m. Shepherds' Play 7:30 What are your inspirations at this time of year? Please come experience one of the traditions at this time of year in Waldorf schools worldwide! The Oberufer Plays (The Shepherds’ Play, the Paradise Play, and the Three Kings’ Play) are among the so-called “miracle plays” performed in Central Europe in the middle ages that have survived through the centuries. When emigrants from the Lake Constance area in Southern Germany settled on a small Danube island near Bratislava at the end of the 16th century, they brought with them these plays, now known under the name of the island. Passed on orally, with roles handed down in families from generation to generation, the plays were performed within this island community for over 300 years. A professor of German discovered these plays at the end of the 19th century and was inspired to seek permission to write down the text. When Rudolf Steiner encountered these plays, he recommended that the teachers of the first Waldorf school in Stuttgart perform them for the students and community. Since then, many Waldorf schools around the world created a tradition of faculty performing the plays for the school community. Traditionally, preparations for the actors were strict; players were expected to lead moral lives in the year leading up to the performance …. and as you can imagine, our faculty with roles in the plays have been similarly inspired to lead a temperate life during the times of rehearsal this fall! Come see the result of our faculty’s devotion and enjoy an evening of witty language, singing, physical comedy, and many moments of wonder. The children will have the opportunity this wonderful gift from their teachers on Friday morning. On Thursday, we hope to share with you this inspiration for bringing light into the dark winter days. The Paradise Play begins at 7 p.m., followed immediately by the Shepherds’ Play at 7:30. Please note that the Paradise Play is recommended for children ages 9 years and older.

Dismissal
12:30 pm – 1:30 pm

Alumni Basketball Game, time TBA
6:00 pm – 10:00 pmLab School Gym
Game at 6 p.m. at Lab School, followed by reception at Pulpa in Cleveland Park at 8 p.m.

Winter Break
12/23/2013 – 12/23/2013

Winter Break
12/24/2013 – 12/24/2013

Winter Break
12/25/2013 – 12/25/2013

Winter Break
12/26/2013 – 12/26/2013

Winter Break
12/27/2013 – 12/27/2013

Winter Break
12/28/2013 – 12/28/2013

Winter Break
12/29/2013 – 12/29/2013

Winter Break
12/30/2013 – 12/30/2013

Winter Break
12/31/2013 – 12/31/2013

Winter Break
1/1/2014 – 1/1/2014