Dear Members, 

Fall has arrived, and a new year with the children has begun for all of you. New beginnings bring a sense of renewal and freshness, and yet, at this time of year, we can’t help but hesitate a little before saying goodbye to summer’s sweet season. The harvest is abundant, the days still hold a little of the sun's warmth, and that summer light and warmth have renewed our energy.

For all of our colleagues throughout the movement, I wish a wonderful year ahead - a year filled with kindness, strength, and love.

Please note: in order to view all of our wonderful articles and event offerings, remember to click on " View Entire Message" at the bottom of the email.

Blessings on your work.

Warmly, 

Heather Church, on behalf of WECAN

WECAN BOARD SHARED AGREEMENTS

Laura Mason on behalf of the DEI Committee and the Board

WECAN Shared Principle A7

“We recognize that child development takes place best in the context of a community based upon healthy social relationships among educators, children and their families, and other community members, and we strive to create conscious, collaborative communities around our care for children.”

Though we’re not actively working with children, the WECAN Board strives to function in a way that is consistent with our Shared Principles for early childhood programs. We believe that the work we do as a board is intricately woven together with that which happens in our member communities, among administrators, educators, and families. Together we form a strong and beautiful tapestry, woven of many different threads. 

As the board has expanded and diversified over the last several years, it has been important to remain conscious in our collaborative work. How can we ensure that everyone in the circle is fully engaged, has a voice that is heard, and feels a sense of belonging? Can we create a space in which we can all participate on behalf of the whole without having to surrender our individuality? 



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FROM THE WECAN BOARD

Anjum Mir, Board Member

As schools across North America settle into the rhythm of a new school year and the hope and possibilities that it holds, the WECAN Board would like to take a moment to express our deepest gratitude to Meggan Gill, who is venturing back into the heart of school life. After a year of meaningful collaboration and contribution as a WECAN Co-Director, she will take her leadership gifts to the Rudolf Steiner School in New York City, where she will serve as their Early Childhood Educational Support Teacher and Administrative Coordinator. Meggan’s collegiality and kind spirit, forward and innovative thinking, and courage and eloquence that inspired us to ask new questions and explore new approaches to our work have left a lasting impact on us that we will carry forward. We are equally grateful to Heather Church, who will carry the leadership of WECAN as its Director. Her deep devotion to early childhood education, the path of human development, and the spiritual impulses that are essential to both, give us strength and optimism for the path ahead and the new questions and needs that are guiding our movement.

With sensitivity toward the future, WECAN will continue to offer programs and resources to support our educators and families in navigating childhood as it is unfolding. Our conferences, workshops, and publications will offer ongoing conversation on the questions of our time: Who are the children coming toward us? How can we address and serve neurodiversity in our schools and classrooms? How can we protect development during this explosive digital age? And, as always, how can we strengthen the essential capacities of childhood?

WECAN Board: Top Row: Heather Church, Meggan Gill, Keelah Helwig, Susan Howard

Bottom Row: Ruth Ker, Laura Mason, Anjum Mir, Gabriela Nuñez Plata

FROM THE MEMBERSHIP OFFICE

Laura Mason, Membership Coordinator

WECAN currently has 200 active member and affiliate schools, early childhood centers, and home programs! Of those, 130 are Full Members, 41 are Associate Members, and 29 are Registered Initiative Affiliates. 

We continue to expand, thanks to our Registered Initiative Affiliation category, which provides greater accessibility to Waldorf-inspired early childhood programs, widening our circle of organizational colleagues throughout North America. We welcome interested programs to see our WECAN Registered Initiative Affiliation document for detailed information and a link to apply.

Congratulations to our newest Registered Initiatives:

●      Little Garden by the Sea in Island Park, NY

●      The Marin Mountain School in Corte Madera, CA

●      Singing Cedars in Fairfield, IA

●      Soul Blossom Child Care Center in Sisters, OR

We also welcome the following new Associate Members:

●      Amantolli Waldorf in El Arenal, JA

●      Colegio Yeccan Waldorf Guanajuato, GT

●      Waldorf de Guadalajara in Zapopan, JA

Click here for full article.

Amantolli Waldorf in El Arenal, JA, Mexico is a new WECAN Associate Member

JOIN WECAN BY BECOMING AN INDIVIDUAL MEMBER!

Membership benefits include:

• A subscription to the Gateways Journal (includes the Fall 2026 and Spring 2027 issues)
• WECAN News Updates
• A 10% discount on WECAN book sales
• Discounts on registration fees at WECAN conferences
• Regular email messages that include reports on activities, conferences, and events of both WECAN and IASWECE (the International Association of Waldorf/Steiner Waldorf Early Childhood Education).

Click here for more information.

REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES

Laura Mason, Membership Coordinator

WECAN is fortunate to have a group of volunteers who work on behalf of members and WECAN to represent each region. They are our on-the-ground connection to different geographic areas in North America, and their collaborative efforts strengthen the movement. For more information about the responsibilities of this role, see WECAN Regional Reps. We currently have 20 reps serving in 15 regions and sub-regions. You can find a current list of reps on the Contact Us page of our website.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to the rep in your region for support or with questions about WECAN. They’ll be happy to speak with you and/or point you in the right direction!

Regional Reps: top down, left to right:

Diane David, Rie Seo, Heike Adamsberger, Jess Moore, Ruth Ker

Aimee de Ney, Karen Fjestad, Su Rubinoff, Laurie Harper-Burgess, Laurie Clark,

Dagmar Eisele, Betty Jane Enno, Melody Birdsong-Shubert, Allyson Anthony, Louise deForest,

Lisa Pitillo, Gabriela Nuñez Plata, Beth Daly, Kate Hall-Gauthier, Angela Gladstone

TEACHER EDUCATION

Ruth Ker, Teacher Education Coordinator

I am writing this as our teacher education institutes are finishing their summer offerings and preparing for autumn beginnings for the year ahead. Each institute has their own way of offering their early childhood educator trainings, and many also provide ongoing enrichment opportunities for colleagues in North America. The WECAN website lists the WECAN-recognized member institutes and learning more about these different styles of EC offerings is well worth the exploration. 

During our last North American Teacher Education online meeting in May, there was a rich presentation on ways we can approach our teacher training educators so that we can support the strengthening of their abilities to advocate for the young child. The institute leaders also spent some time in conversation about the upcoming 2026–2027 meetings. It promises to be a fruitful year ahead of learning more through conversation and mutual support.

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OLDER CHILD SURVEY LETTER

Ruth Ker, Teacher Education Coordinator

Have you ever wished to know more about what other colleagues are doing in their early childhood classes and/or what practices other schools are adopting in the field of early childhood education? This is a wondering shared by many.

The WECAN Board also has been hearing about the increasing number of questions around the older child in the kindergarten, specifically the transition between kindergarten and the grades and the variety of ways that schools have been working with this. So, in November 2025 the WECAN Board sent out a survey to our member schools, inquiring about specific practices with the older child in the kindergarten. 

The survey results were objectively compiled after 82% of the member schools in North America responded by the March 2026 deadline. After careful, objective compilation, it is hoped that the information in this survey will help you and your school to feel informed about current North American practices and to bring a broader context to your own orientation to these questions. 

Click here for the full article. Click here for an artistic rendition of the survey results.

BIRTH TO THREE

Heather Church and Anjum Mir, The Birth to Three Working Group

The time between our spring report and this one has flown by!  We have all been out working in the world in our different realms, supporting the work of Birth to Three.

We are continuing to create a brand-new Birth-to-Three Resource Book with articles from authors from around the world. This book is intended to be an introductory collection of articles on child development from conception through birth, with a focus on teacher development as well as articles to support those of you working with unique areas of care in Birth to Three, including parenting, childcare, nursery programs and family and caregiver programs.  It will include articles from specialists in their field of work with this age group. We are thrilled by the articles that we have received so far.  

Anjum Mir, Somer Serpe, and Katherine Scharff have prepared a special Online Professional Development Event for all of you, titled Growing Our Community: Programs for Children and Those Who Care for Them. This online event will take place Tuesday, January 19, 2027, and is designed to include educators and enrollment and administration members of your community. Please register through the WECAN bookstore.

As always, we greatly appreciate each of you working in this vital field, and we warmly welcome your thoughts and suggestions.

The Birth to Three Working Group includes Anjum Mir, Katherine Scharff, Debbie Laurin, and Heather Church.

PUBLICATIONS

Kate Werwa, Publications Coordinator

This year, WECAN was proud to coordinate with IASWECE in publishing the title 100 Founders, 100 Years by Nana Göbel. Originally published in German, WECAN Publications oversaw the English translation, which materialized just in time for the 100-year celebration of Waldorf Early Childhood Education in Dornach, Switzerland. Sharing the stories of pioneers from around the world who devoted themselves to the creation and care of Waldorf Early Childhood Education programs, this publication serves as a historical tapestry that weaves together and preserves the fabric of the first 100 years of the movement. In recognition of the tremendous effort that was required to collect and record these stories, along with the importance of knowing from where we come, WECAN mailed a copy of this book to each of our full and associate members. We hope that this will live in your school communities as a source of inspiration for the vital role that you play in keeping this movement alive.

This fall, WECAN will publish Beneath the Pines by Shawna Fink, a book that serves both Waldorf and nature-based programs. Based on Shawna’s personal experience of leading an outdoor program from her home of Ladybug Farm in the Sandhills of North Carolina, Beneath the Pines is a beautifully illustrated inspirational guide. Filled with Shawna’s own weekly Waldorf-inspired curriculum of gardening, animal care, practical work, games, stories, songs, and recipes, along with her candid personal anecdotes, Beneath the Pines offers a rich abundance of ideas and insight for any outdoor early childhood program.

Order Now

Coming Soon!

GATEWAYS

Nancy Blanning, co-editor with Anjum Mir

The fall issue of Gateways is in the proofreading stage and will be delivered to readers by late October. The theme of the issue is WHO ARE THE CHILDREN OF TODAY? as they come to our classes with so many differences in family, race, gender, neurology, sensitivity, impulsivity, genius, and creativity.

Gateways is grateful that so many educators are answering the invitation to submit and speak to these subjects. The articles cover a wide range of experiences and give a call to action for how we must come to accept and understand these children and their circumstances. The articles also call for each educator to look at themselves, re-examining current attitudes and practices with the children, and to accept the challenge to stretch our capacities and adjust our expectations. The journal is excited and honored to feature new authors from across the continent who share their teaching experiences and what they have learned from the children and about themselves.

Click here for the full article.

IASWECE REPORT

Susan Howard, Board Member and IASWECE Representative for North America

We continue to celebrate the 100th anniversary year of Waldorf Early Childhood Education with recent celebrations in various countries around the world. The focus of our work this year, as expressed in the April World Conference in Dornach, is on cultivating qualities of kindness, strength, and love, as foundations for a healthy social future. Philipp Reubke, co-leader of the Pedagogical Section at the Goetheanum, expressed it this way: 

People today think that problems can be solved with power and violence, but real strength lives in gentleness and kindness: the ability to empathize with others, find solutions together, tolerate differences and view one’s own actions in connection with other people.

Participants at the conference received many seeds to take home with them—actual seeds from the gardeners at the Goetheanum to plant at home, and inner seeds of inspiration, a sense of belonging, enthusiasm, and hope for the future. 



Click here for the full article.

NEW DATE! WECAN 2027 EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS CONFERENCE

Learning to See, Love and Understand Each and Every Child

In-Person March 19-21, 2027, Spring Valley, NY

Online Conference April 3, 10 & 11, 2027

Registration Opens December 11, 2026

We are excited to invite you to participate in our conference this year—in person if you can join us, or, if you are further afield, through our newly revised live online conference.

We are very hopeful that Mother Nature will be a little more gentle with us at this time of year, allowing many more of you to attend in person. It may be a little early for spring flowers, but you just never know!

Dr. Blanning will lead us in exploring how we can grow and develop the capacities we need to meet every child who comes to us. We look forward to learning, reflecting, and growing together.

Artwork by Michael Howard

Life in today's world shifts all the time. We must continually seek equilibrium between chaos and order—waking to the outer world, then settling back into ourselves. How do we learn to navigate those movements, back and forth, that influence our health and well-being? 

In this conference, we will explore capacities that educators can develop to invite every child into their own well-being and equilibrium, both in their bodies and in their community.  

Dr. Blanning will share current research and experiential insights drawn from his work as a school doctor and private practitioner, working with families, children, and educators. 

The conference will focus on ways we can support this process: anchoring ourselves in our bodies, balancing our inner emotional life, and learning to interpret what we observe. 

WECAN FAMILY AND CAREGIVER EVENTS

Heather Church, Director and Board Member

We are excited to share with you the 2026/27 WECAN Family & Caregiver Event Series - a unique initiative designed to support families, caregivers, and educators in understanding and nurturing young children from birth through seven years of age.

Partnerships between families and teachers are essential to children’s healthy growth and development. WECAN has created these offerings to help build bridges, deepen understanding, and foster meaningful collaboration. Together, we are so much stronger, and we can create a brighter future for our children.

Please share this poster with your communities.



Click images below to register.

WECAN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR EDUCATORS

Join us for our Professional Development online events for educators. Our intention is to provide accessible educational opportunities to support you with some of the questions currently living in schools and school communities.

Please share this poster with your colleagues.

Click images below to register.

THE ESSENTIALS OF WALDORF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION ONLINE STUDY GROUP

As we enter the next 100 years of Waldorf Early Childhood Education, WECAN would like to use this pivotal turning point to study and enliven the essentials of Waldorf Early Childhood.

Can we deepen our understanding of these nine essentials, test them, and explore how they live in our work with children today? What is alive? What needs to be awakened? What is shifting and changing in our work?

We will work with WECAN’s Essentials of Waldorf Early Childhood Education, written by Susan Howard.

Click here for more information.

FOR A FULL CALENDAR OF EVENTS VISIT OUR WEBSITE

VOICES OF ELDERS - NANCY BLANNING

Voices of Waldorf Elders is an independent oral-history project that preserves the stories and

hard-earned wisdom of longtime Waldorf educators, created by Roel op ’t Ende, creator and host and Waldorf class teacher at Sebastopol Charter School in California.

He recently recorded an extended conversation with Nancy Blanning, a lifelong devotee of Waldorf education who has served the movement in a wide range of roles and capacities.

Nancy reflects on her path into Waldorf education, her work with young children, movement and sensory development, teacher preparation, mentorship, and the inner work needed to meet children with steadiness and care.

Please enjoy this meaningful conversation

100 YEARS OF WALDORF EARLY CHILDHOOD

Celebrating 100 Years of Waldorf Early Childhood! 

For a limited time, we are offering WECAN celebratory merchandise!

This collection is made to order, so you can choose the fit and style that suits you best. Simply place your order, and it will be shipped directly to you.

DONATE TO SUPPORT WECAN'S ACTIVITIES

Your contribution will help us support our members with additional resources, more ways to connect with colleagues, and inspiration for their ongoing professional development. Your support will help us collaborate with other organizations to keep a light shining on the ever more critical and precious treasure of the first seven years and protect the young child’s joyful devotion to everyday life and unmitigated hope for the future.

We are grateful for any contribution you are able to make!

Interested in offering a legacy gift to WECAN through your estate planning? Contact us at info@waldorfearlychildhood.org.