From Heather Church and Susan Howard, WECAN Co-Directors | |
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Dear Colleagues,
As we transition from summer to fall, many of you are settling into the rhythm of the year with your newly formed classroom communities. You may notice the children beginning to fall into step with the daily and weekly routines. Now is the perfect time to celebrate the summer’s harvest and prepare both yourselves and the children for the darker months ahead.
This shift from the outward-facing energy of summer to the reflective nature of fall also brings a rich gathering of seeds for the future from our committees and working groups, including Membership, Teacher Education, Public Policy, and the Board.
Below, you’ll also find all the details you need to navigate this year’s events, conferences, and more. Be sure to explore the fantastic Parent and Caregiver events, featuring speakers like Dr. Adam Blanning, members of Alma Partners, WECAN book authors, and others.
For those seeking professional development, we have several conference offerings. Along with the usual February Conference in Spring Valley, NY (in person and online) and the Birth to Three Conference in Keene, NH, we also have several regional conferences and a new Birth to Three Conference on the West Coast.
Read on to learn more about these exciting opportunities!
Susan and I wish you all the best for the coming year.
Blessings to you,
Heather
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BOARD REPORT
Louise deForest, WECAN Board Chair
The WECAN Board is busily preparing for our first Board meeting in Mexico at the end of October. We will meet in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, and will have the opportunity to visit the five Waldorf Schools in the area and meet with the local teachers. While our Board meetings are always full, we will have time to visit local Mayan ruins and cenotes hidden away in the jungle. Many thanks to Gabriela Nuñez and her local colleagues for preparing this special meeting.
As mentioned in our June Update, Magdalena Toran left the WECAN Board after 10 years of service. Over the years, Magdalena has led the Board in many new initiatives, including the Birth to Three Working Group, the WECAN Board Envisioning process, and opening the pathway for WECAN to grow and develop through the work with DEIJ in collaboration with several partnerships. Magdalena has the courage to ask the hard questions and has always been future-minded in her thinking. At the center of her work is love and deep respect - for the children and their parents, for Waldorf education, and for the process of becoming that we are all engaged in. We wish her well with her next steps in working with the earth at Natural Roots Farm.
The Board Committee has been busy putting into place our succession planning and preparing for Susan Howard’s retirement in 2025. This has been moving along well and we feel confident that the transition will be a healthy and strengthening step for WECAN.
Click here for the full article.
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GATEWAYS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Nancy Blanning, Gateways Co-Editor
The “Invitation for Submissions” to the WECAN journal Gateways brought a gratifying response. Sharing this invitation on the Hub and through WECAN email announcements brought many new writers to step forth. Seeing new authors and learning about early childhood work across the country is exciting and enriching. Thank you to all who responded.
The theme of IMITATION IN EARLY CHILDHOOD drew so many responses that this subject will be carried over into the spring issue, particularly the connection between imitation and play. The Invitation for Submission for the spring 2025 issue of Gateways is included in this Newsletter.
It is also a pleasure to announce that the WECAN board has invited Anjum Mir to join the Gateways staff as Co-Editor with Nancy Blanning. Anjum brings a wealth of experience and insight into Waldorf early childhood education and professional writing and editing expertise.
Click here for the full article.
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GATEWAYS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Nancy Blanning, Gateways Co-Editor
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FROM THE MEMBERSHIP OFFICE
Laura Mason, Membership Coordinator
WECAN currently has 190 active member and affiliate schools, early childhood centers, and home programs! Of those, 132 are Full Members, 38 are Associate Members, and 20 are Registered Initiative Affiliates in Mexico, Puerto Rico, and on Tribal Lands.
The WECAN Path to Membership includes a process of self-study and peer review intended to help programs better recognize their strengths and areas of growth and guide them in their future development. We’re expecting 47 member programs to host site visits this year and we have 4 applicants preparing for visits as well. We look forward to reading more about these programs in their reports!
Click here for the full article.
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Del Mar Waldorf Initiative in Cancún, Benito Juárez, Quintana Roo, MX.
Regional Representatives
The WECAN Board has invited experienced Waldorf early childhood educators and caregivers in each region to act as WECAN regional representatives. Regional reps are our on-the-ground connection to the regions and their collaborative efforts strengthen the movement. We currently have 20 reps serving 15 regions and sub-regions.
We’re happy to announce that Jess Moore and Afra Zhang have stepped in as new reps this year. Jess is a graduate of Sunbridge Institute and has been an early childhood educator in Waldorf schools since 2007. She will be serving the Northeast region from her home in Freeport, Maine. Afra received her Waldorf early childhood certificate from Rudolf Steiner Center Toronto and has been an early childhood educator in Waldorf schools since 2013, first in Toronto and more recently in Vancouver. She lives in North Vancouver and serves the Pacific Northwest British Columbia region. Please join me in welcoming them both!
Click here for the full article.
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TEACHER EDUCATION UPDATE
Ruth Ker, Teacher Education Coordinator
It’s an exciting time for WECAN Member Institute colleagues. This summer welcomed a time of rebirth for many: students new and old were welcomed to the institutes to complete their training, begin new training courses, or participate in a whole array of interesting new professional development offerings. Early childhood teacher education colleagues are embracing the new normal now in full swing. Congratulations to those who began new cohorts and to those whose students are completing their studies.
This summer, two institutes received site visits from WECAN. Congratulations to Sophia’s Hearth for the renewal of their WECAN Full Membership and to Great Lakes Waldorf Institute for their Associate Membership renewal. The WECAN site visitor was impressed with the quality of education she witnessed at these institutes. Site visits to additional Member Institutes are planned for this school year.
Click here for the full article.
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INCLUSION, DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND ACCESS (IDEA)
Laura Mason, Membership Coordinator
The WECAN board has been working consciously to advance IDEA in the association since 2018. This work has taken many different forms over the years, from a small board committee focused exclusively on the work of the board, to an Alma Partners-led DEIJ self-audit and I.D.E.A. coordinators who - along with an advisory group - focused on strengthening this work and helping us incorporate it into WECAN. We’re extremely grateful for the support we’ve received and the seeds of new capacities that have been planted, and we’re proud of what we’ve accomplished together.
We’re committed to continuing to focus on these essential themes, and weaving them into WECAN’s everyday work and the ongoing work of the board!
Please click here for more on the work that lies ahead.
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BIRTH TO THREE
Heather Church, WECAN Co-Director and Birth to Three Coordinator
The Birth to Three Working Group is dedicating our time to creating opportunities for you to deepen your understanding of caring for very young children and you will see the fruits of our labour below. This coming year, we are focusing on Parent and Caregiver programs and are eager to collaborate with you to deepen and strengthen this work with families in small and large communities.
As part of our offerings this year, we will host nine Parent/Caregiver Evenings covering a broad range of topics (see the lineup and dates below). Our goal is to provide something meaningful for everyone—parents, caregivers, and educators alike. We look forward to having you join us at some or all of these events.
In addition to these evenings, we have several conferences planned for this year. Sophia’s Hearth, in collaboration with WECAN, will host the third Birth to Three Conference - Developing Capacities for Being with Children from Birth to Three: Helping Children Meet the World Through Their Sense of Touch on November 15 & 16, 2024, in person at Sophia's Hearth.
We are excited to announce our first West Coast Birth to Three Conference, which will take place at the Seattle Waldorf School on April 4th and 5th. The conference, titled Communicative Companionship, will focus on the collaborative process of speech development in young children, supported by their caregivers. More details will be shared soon.
Click here for the full article.
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PUBLIC POLICY
Susan Howard, WECAN Co-Director
What is WECAN's Public Policy activity and how does it support Waldorf early childhood educators?
When state licensing agencies recognize a Waldorf early childhood educator's training certificate from a WECAN Member Institute, this lends credence to the professional training of Waldorf early childhood educators. It also often provides access for Waldorf-trained early childhood educators to state professional development funds for training and professional development courses, workshops, and conferences.
WECAN's Public Policy Coordinator Rachel Turner has been working for the past year to gain recognition of Waldorf Early Childhood Training certificates by the Registry of the State of Washington. This process is nearly complete, and we are eagerly awaiting the final announcement of this recognition. We are extremely grateful to Rachel for her excellent work, which requires diplomacy and perseverance with state agencies, working with detailed licensing regulations, and active collaboration with WECAN Member training institutes.
Rachel is moving on to a new position and we will soon be saying goodbye to her and considering our next steps in this important work. If you have experience or interest in this work, please contact Susan Howard at showard@waldorfearlychildhood.org.
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SAVE THE DATE!
WECAN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS CONFERENCE
In Person February 7-9, 2025 in Spring Valley, NY
Online conference begins February 22, 2025
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A New Path: Transforming Conflict Through Destiny Learning
Together, we will dive deeper into the seven-step process of New Adult Learning to develop the capacity to learn from life, interactions with others, and the outside world. Destiny Learning processes support us in addressing conflicts, chaos, and turmoil within our classrooms, faculties, schools, communities, and the broader society. By fostering personal awareness, we create a space to confront our shadow selves and transform our work individually and within the community.
Wahsonti:io Hill, Otsistohkwi:yo Elliot, and Heather Church will lead us through this process and share examples of how Destiny Learning has been used to work through and heal wounds in themselves and their communities.
Study material: Awakening the Will by Coenraad Van Houten.
If you have questions, contact us at conference@waldorfearlychildhood.org. More details to come soon on the WECAN website and Community Hub!
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UPCOMING EVENTS AND CONFERENCES - Click here for more events! | | |
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REST, CLEANSING, WARMTH AND MORE - SIMPLE HOME SUPPORTS FOR WORKING THROUGH COLDS, FLU, AND FEVER with Adam Blanning, MD
October 2, 2024 2:30pm HT, 5:30pm PT, 6:30pm MT, 7:30pm CT, 8:30pm ET - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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Great Lakes II Regional Gathering 2024
BECOMING REVOLUTIONARIES OF TENDERNESS
with Laurie Clark
October 26, 2024 - Rudolf Steiner School of Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor, MI
For more information and to register click here.
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COME PLAY WITH US!
with Lynn St. Pierre and Somer Serpe
November 13, 2024 at 3:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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Northern CA and NV Conference for Early Childhood Teachers
BECOMING REVOLUTIONARIES OF TENDERNESS
with Laurie Clark
November 8 & 9, 2024 - Marin Waldorf School, San Rafael, CA -
In-Person
For more information and to register click here
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DEVELOPING CAPACITIES FOR BEING WITH CHILDREN FROM BIRTH TO THREE
November 15-16, 2024, Sophia’s Hearth, Keene, NH
For more information and to register click here.
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THE POWER OF SCIENCE OF RHYTHMS: HOW THEY SUPPORT OUR HEALTH AND VITALITY
with Adam Blanning, MD
December 4, 2024 at 3:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET- Online
For more information and to register click here.
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CREATING YOUR FAMILY CULTURE
with Anjum Mir
January 8, 2025 at 3:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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PART 1: LOVE THE SKIN THEY ARE IN: FOSTERING HEALTHY RACIAL IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT IN THE YOUNG CHILD
with Keelah Helwig
January 29,2025, 3:30pm HT, 5:30pm PT, 6:30pm MT, 7:30pm CT, 8:30pm ET - Online
PART 2: PRACTICE/SKILL-BUILDING SESSION
with Aiyana Masala and Masumi Hayashi-Smith of Alma Partners
February 5, 2025, at 3:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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WECAN Early Childhood Educators Conference
A NEW PATH: TRANSFORMING CONFLICT THROUGH DESTINY LEARNING
February 7-9, 2025 In-Person in Spring Valley, NY
Online conference starts February 22, 2025
For more information click here.
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WECAN Pacific Northwest Early Childhood Educators Conference
February 14-15, 2025, Cedarwood Waldorf School, Portland, OR
More information coming soon on the WECAN website.
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AN UNFOLDING FLOWER: THE SPIRITUAL GROWTH AND
DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN
with Adam Blanning, MD
March 5, 2025 at 3:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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PART 1: AFFIRMING VALUES AND HONORING DIFFERENCES: ENGAGING IN ANTI-BIAS EDUCATION WITH YOUNG CHILDREN
with Meggan Gill
March 26,2025, 2:30pm HT, 5:30pm PT, 6:30pm MT, 7:30pm CT, 8:30pm ET - Online
PART 2: PRACTICE/SKILL-BUILDING SESSION
with Aiyana Masala and Masumi Hayashi-Smith of Alma Partners
April 2, 2025, 2:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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WECAN Northwest Birth to Three Conference
COMPANIONSHIP THROUGH COMMUNICATION - Caressing the Seeds of Self
April 4-5, 2025 - Seattle Waldorf School, Seattle, WA
For more information and to register click here.
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UNLOCKING THE DOOR TO IMITATION - Real Experiences with Real People in Real Time
with Nancy Blanning
April 4-5, 2025 – Halton Waldorf School, Onterio, Canada
For more information click here.
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PLEASE, CAN WE PLAY GAMES?
with Ruth Ker
April 16, 2025 at 2:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET. - Online
For more information and to register click here.
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SUPPORTING HEALTHY GENDER IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT AND UNDERSTANDING GENDER DIVERSITY ACROSS CULTURE
with Amber Chavez
May 7, 2025 at 2:30 pm HT, 5:30 pm PT, 6:30 pm MT, 7:30 pm CT, 8:30 pm ET.Online
For more information and to register click here.
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CARE1 Conference
THE ARC OF BECOMING: MEDICAL AND PEDAGOGICAL SUPPORT IN THE FIRST PHASE OF LIFE
August 6-10, 2025 - Spring Valley, NY
For more information click here.
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TEACHER REVIEWS OF BECOMING AND BELONGING
Becoming and Belonging is the book that I have been waiting for! As a teacher, it provides fresh and new perspectives on how I might look at and think about social and emotional growth and development in young children. It already has been helpful to me in my parent work and I am buying a copy for my new assistant! But is also holds lessons for all teachers, and I am recommending it to the grades faculty as well.
The collaborative effort is inspiring, and I appreciate the different voices and styles of the authors and the unifying theme which calls on educators to continually question, learn, and deepen our understanding of what we are doing, how, and why. This book pushed my own thinking on what it means to be truly present in creating spaces of belonging in all its layered, nuanced, and complicated forms where all feel loved, appreciated, and respected for who they are and what they bring to our world. What a gift!
--Shifra Levine
17 years of Waldorf early childhood teaching experience
Becoming and Belonging offers the reader opportunities to contemplate experiences in support of the healthy development of the young child. Slowing down the anxiety and stress of our busy lives, with the advice of "soft eyes" and 'the loving gaze', gives us a picture of the adult regulating their body in support of upholding a child's physical and spiritual body. 'The mantle of healing' is what is needed, and this book provides a path for all of us to embark upon.
--Peggy Roche
20 years of Waldorf early childhood teaching experience
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Becoming and Belonging: Supporting the Healthy Social-Emotional Development of the Young Child
edited by Holly Koteen-Soulé
Waldorf early childhood education, from its inception, has incorporated opportunities for social-emotional development through wholesome day-to-day experiences. However, a host of world events and societal issues have impacted how children meet each other and the world.
In Becoming and Belonging, the WECAN Early Childhood Research Group re-examines essential aspects of early childhood education in light of these influences. How can we better support children to meet our current social challenges and prepare them to meet the challenges of the future?
Becoming and Belonging discusses creating space for emotional well-being and social healing, establishing the foundations for healthy relationships, nourishing sensory development, and more.
$19.00 USD Order now
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WECAN BOOKS - New Publications | |
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Walking with Our Children: The Parent as Companion and Guide, 2nd Edition
Essays by Nancy Blanning
In tone and focus, and perhaps in adopting a certain sense of urgency, this revised and expanded collection acknowledges that the pace of life has accelerated dramatically, that the use of screens and personal digital technology has exploded, that we have endured a pandemic and its aftermaths, and that nations and ideologies are at war. We are now at a new beginning place, where we can make it our goal to face the future with optimism, to manage each moment as it comes, to affirm the goodness of life, and to deeply love and appreciate one another, no matter what comes to surprise us.
Walking With Our Children: The Parent as Companion and Guide collects essays on parenting wisdom by early childhood educator Nancy Blanning, originally published as a series in LILIPOH magazine, offering practical and enjoyable ways to approach parenthood with courage and a sense of freedom.
$16.00 USD Order now
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Nurturing the Senses: The Importance of Authentic Sensory Experiences in Early Childhood
by Philipp Gelitz
The second in the Right to Childhood series, Nurturing the Senses looks at how children achieve sensorimotor integration as they grow into today’s world and human community. How does the very young child grow into and take hold of the body? How does the caregiver guide wholesome development? The author answers by describing Steiner’s approach to the twelve senses alongside current research on sensorimotor development and embodiment. Wholesome sensory experiences can only be achieved in real life, not on a screen; joy in life and a positive attitude to life are rooted in authentic, embodied experiences.
Translated from the German by Margot Saar; originally published in 2023 by the German Waldorf Kindergarten Association.
The Right to Childhood Series is highly recommended for parents and available in bundles for distribution.
$9.00 USD Order now Bundle of 5 $35.00 USD Order now
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Speech Development in the Digital Age: Hidden Treasures of the Spoken Word
by Rainer Patzlaff
A new translation of Rainer Patzlaff's work on speech development in your children and the first in the Right to Childhood series, Speech Development in the Digital Age reports on the decline of speech and language development and the escalation of speech disorders over the last several decades. Patzlaff presents data and a thoughtful perspective on how we, as parents and caregivers, can downplay the influences of our digital devices and awaken our children to the treasures of the spoken word.
Translated from the German by Margot Saar; originally published in 2023 by the German Waldorf Kindergarten Association.
The Right to Childhood Series is highly recommended for parents and available in bundles for distribution.
$9.00 USD Order now Bundle of 5 $35.00 USD Order now
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Dancing Stories for Movement and Circle Time with Young Children
by Wendalyn Mayenfeld
As the stories in this book “dance” through the seasons of the year, each one offers ample opportunity to add movement and gestures that bring rhythm and flow to the telling. Movement activity makes a story visible to young children, bringing them to experience the joy of creation. In living each story, children traverse new inner pathways as they outwardly perform or experience the ups and downs of a tale. The vivid, colorful images and lively rhythmic language will be inspiring to anyone who works with young children.
$25.00 USD Order now
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Join WECAN by becoming an Individual Member!
Membership benefits include:
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A subscription to the Gateways Journal (includes the Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 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 within WECAN and IASWECE (the International Association of Waldorf/Steiner Waldorf Early Childhood Education).
Click here for more information
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