Waldorf 101

You have probably heard the expression “learning through play” at some point, but what does that really mean? How can I be sure my child is learning through play? Children learn so much through observation and interaction with the world around them. Letters, numbers, shapes, colors, names of objects and their purposes–even the simplest things are teaching your child more than you can imagine! Play is extremely important for your little one, even if it may look silly or fruitless to you. It teaches your children important life skills that they will take with them as they grow. What’s wrong with learning in school at a desk? Nothing per se, however, not all children thrive in a structured classroom setting. Take communication for example: Your child may not want to say the letter “A” because you point to it in a notebook and ask them to repeat it back to you; but if you’re out running errands and you start pointing out the letter “A” anytime you see it on a sign or a label, they may start participating in the game on their own. It creates an understanding that words are a form of communication that they can use to get your attention. Play motivates children in so many ways! This is just one example of how children can learn through play. Other skills they are likely to learn include problem-solving, conflict resolution, and relationship building. Your child does not need motivation to play–it’s inherent. Allowing your child to take the lead in their own learning via play means they are more likely to absorb the lessons, as opposed to just asking them to remember information that is formally being presented to them. 

Being away from your little one can be stressful for both you and them. For young children, the feelings of worry, insecurity, and fearfulness can culminate into separation anxiety. Children don’t have a clear concept of time, and when their learned routines are abruptly changed or disrupted, they aren’t sure how to handle the unpredictability. Normally, they would look to their primary caregiver for comfort and support, but if you aren’t physically present, they aren’t sure where to turn to for guidance and reassurance. If you are noticing tantrums when you drop them off at daycare or preschool, you might be seeing the signs of separation anxiety. This is very common, especially in children under four years old. Don’t get too worried, though; there are many ways you can help your little one cope with those big feelings.

Storytelling is an art, and the more you do it, the better you will be! Reading gives you and your child a shared activity. It is an invitation to interact, to teach, and to create with your children. Reading aloud to your kids also helps with their reading and writing skills as well as comprehension. There are many ways you can encourage literacy in your home and you can start by making reading a part of your daily routine! Listen to your child read out loud and give them encouragement. Keep books in your child’s room. Don’t be surprised if your child wants to read the same book over and over or if they want you to–it’s natural for kids to gravitate towards familiarity. Here are eleven of our top Waldorf book picks for kids. 

Watching your child laugh and learn through imaginative play is one of the most rewarding experiences of parenting. As parents, however, we know how challenging it can be at times to keep that smile on their faces for long. Toddlers’ minds are rapidly developing, constantly taking in new information, and they require lots of new stimuli to feed that curiosity. So what do you do when your child becomes bored of their toys and their everyday surroundings or activities? It’s not practical or affordable to constantly be buying new toys to entertain them. How do we combat their restlessness? Well, you encourage them to play in a new way. That may mean looking at an everyday, household object and repurposing it into something new, or perhaps it means finding new things to play with in nature. Here are just a few ideas of some Waldorf inspired activities that may be just what you need to spark some joy! Cardboard Box Creations You could create your own little world if you had enough cardboard boxes. All you need are boxes, a box cutter (or a good pair of scissors!), tape, and whatever you have lying around the house to decorate. The fun really just goes on and on with this activity. After you’ve completed your creation, you can decorate it with paint, stamps, stickers, ribbon, glitter, yarn, or whatever you have on hand! You could make a cardboard city complete with tiny cardboard houses, stores, and cars. If you have a really big box or a lot of small ones, you could make a toddler-sized house or car. Let them pick what color their house and car will be. For the kiddos that are a little older, you could create your own board game. You’ll be surprised to see the places their imagination can take them with just a cardboard box! 

Jacksonville, Florida, is a beautiful city that stretches from the St. Johns River to the Atlantic Ocean. It’s only a short drive to some of Florida’s most impressive, natural sites. If you’re ready to explore some of the most beautiful locations Florida has to offer, then pack some snacks and grab your water bottles. Here are some of the best day trips from Jacksonville. Jekyll Island State Park If you’re looking for a trip filled with peace, natural beauty, and endless fun, then Jekyll Island state park is the perfect day trip for you. With ten miles of sandy beaches and twenty-two miles of scenic trails, it’s a paradise for nature lovers and little explorers. Along with the natural beauty of the island, you’ll find the Summer Waves water park, known for its incredible views and capacity for family fun! As if that wasn’t enough to make a great day trip, there is mini golf, tennis, and the historic Horton House, where you can learn all about the colonial history of the island. There is something for everyone on Jekyll island. You may want to stay for more than a day! St. Augustine The Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park in St. Augustine is a place people have been attracted to for many, many years. This is an ideal day trip for inquiring minds. Learn about the legendary place where Ponce De Leon found the magical healing waters off the coast of Florida in 1513. Stop by the Spring House and have a drink from Ponce De Leon’s spring. Go back to 2400 B.C. when the Native American Timucua people occupied the region. Explore a Timucua village and learn about their traditions. Don’t forget to stop by the Navigators Planetarium and the founder’s Riverwalk. The Riverwalk offers brilliant views of the surrounding scenery and the park. Hannah Park One of the few places left in Jacksonville with undeveloped land all along the beachfront, Hanna Park is a place where you can see the true natural beauty our Florida beaches have to offer. The day will fly by making memories in Hanna Park! From hiking, biking, fishing, surfing, canoeing, paddle boating, and of course, camping, there are an abundance of activities to choose from. One of the most extraordinary things about Hanna park is the affordability; $5 gets your entire carload onto the park grounds. It’s a place where all Florida families can find something to enjoy during their stay. Guana Preserve The Guana Preserve is known for its wildlife. It’s actually part of the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail. This preserve is teaming with life; many different animals and different habitats all coexisting, from the ocean to the forest and everything in between. Guana Preserve is the perfect place for adventurers to see Mother Nature in action! There is hunting, fishing, hiking, biking, paddling, and wildlife viewing. You couldn’t ask for a more beautiful place to watch animals in their natural habitats. The Guana Preserve is a favorite for bird watchers and nature photographers, so you’ll likely run into other nature lovers out and about during your visit. The Guana Preserve is a protected place for the local wildlife; the beaches alone provide a safe nesting place for sea turtles and shorebirds. Florida is filled with plenty of magical locations to explore other than the four listed above. We encourage you to embark on your own adventure and who knows, maybe you will discover a new hidden gem! Take advantage of our Florida sunshine and start exploring today! 

Here at Moonbow, a slowed-down, consistent comforting rhythm of learning through spontaneous, planned, play-based activities and intentional group work enhances children’s foundations of self-awareness and whole-child development through exploration, cooperation, and wonder. Benefits for the Moonbow Child: Relationship-based care is built on love and respect for all children and members of our community, celebrating differences and the world as an abundant source. Family-style program grouping, children work with other children in a proximate mixed age group for support, care, and learning from one another. An aesthetically pleasing learning environment using warm, cool, and natural tones forms a connection to the living world of nature and home life for beauty, comfort, and security. Natural , tangible textures and real-life materials with purposeful use or open-ended manipulation. Trust and well-being is established through imitation-worthy teacher guides who use warm speech and body language, displaying empathy and respect for a child’s choice and individuality. Life is our model Instillation of healthy routines, creativity, and self-expression through domestic arts, creative arts, and spontaneous play where the curriculum is based on seasons, celebrations, and life. Human connection and social interaction is the heart of the child’s learning and foundation of skill development. We are a media-free center, allowing a child’s imagination (head), hands, and heart to lead the way. Inner self-work and healthy foundational experiences are critical and necessary for long-term learning success and character development. Whole-child development learning concepts and skill development within each learning domain (social-emotional, physical, spiritual, and cognitive) experienced within all activities. Academic concepts are introduced, recognized, and learned in relatable and child-centered subtle ways. Our guiding principles are mainly based on Lifeways North America approach that takes home life as its model, utilizing the Waldorf/Steiner approach for activities, creative expression, and routine-like rhythm, with a little Reggio Emilia approach, sprinkled in daily through invitations for discovery and exploration. The blend of these progressive approaches provides nurturing guidance and a healthy feeling milieu embodying reverence for the young child. Moonbow is a family! Our goal is to create a warm and growing community that honors the family unit, encourages holistic development, and supports the connection. Children thrive in secure relationships, and your children are our highest priority! For this reason, we have structured our packages to enable a predictable rhythm of care to ease transitions and allow your family to enjoy all the Moonbow community has to offer. Our care packages have been designed to allow the flexibility to support your family’s schedule while protecting the relational-care model. We offer three 3-hour sessions per day, six days a week. Our morning and afternoon sessions follow a similar rhythm and are limited to children 2.5 – 6 years old. Our evening sessions are open to children up ten years old and provide a unique opportunity for mixed-age programming, following a family-life model. Whether you choose one day a week or join us every day, all options give you access to the community with the following benefits: Access to play in our one-of-a-kind, media-free playspace Priority registration for parent-child classes, enrichment, and workshops Dependable care when you need it….minimize the sitter! Support from a staff that is trained in Lifeways principles Moonbow News with Waldorf and community resources Access to emergency care by the hour Details on packages and costs can be found in the attached Pricing Guide . 

Summer is the time for fun and imagination; so we start looking for ideas and planning summer activities. Things can get a bit pricey depending on the activities you pick. Here are seven summer activities that won’t break the bank and will make this a summer to remember!

A schedule and a rhythm may look or sound the same on paper, but they couldn’t be more different. One creates a calm environment and one a chaotic environment. Why is that? The goal is different. A schedule is meant to keep you on track and ensure you get things done in a certain amount of time. It can be stressful always wondering if you’ll get it all done or if you’ll make it to the next task in the allotted amount of time. You’re not really feeling your day if you’re rushing through it. Small tasks get left behind; things can build up. Of course, when used in the right way, a schedule can work for some. But rhythm works for all. Rhythm allows you to be fully invested in the tasks at hand. To live in the moment with the confidence that comes from knowing what’s coming. Rhythm, at its core, is about giving children the freedom to use the natural environment to understand their full potential. At Moonbow, we aim to cultivate a love of nature and healthy routines by instilling fundamentals through daily and weekly rhythmic activities. In the Waldorf approach of a loose schedule, our day-to-day movements are like the act of breathing, known as a Rhythm. In breath (inhale) activities are concentration activities where the child works alone (painting) or on themselves. The Out Breath (exhale/release) activities are when they are working with others (free play). Rhythms ground us – in our days, months, and throughout the year. What better way to set a rhythm than to follow Earth’s lead! When you’re following a rhythm, you’re following the flow of the earth. The books you read, your activities, and your lessons connect with the season. In many Waldorf classrooms or homes, you’ll find a nature table made for the season that stays until the following season. In the spring and the fall, most of the learning happens outdoors! Collecting the fall leaves to count and make collages and masks from; making jack o lanterns out of pumpkins and squash. In the spring, you can watch all the new life grow, making notebooks detailing the nature around you. Start a garden while simultaneously learning about what’s happening around you. This freedom allows children to follow their interests and instincts. Of course, this wouldn’t be possible without excellent Waldorf teachers and parents! Waldorf parents and teachers understand they play a vital role in guiding children in their rhythm. Unlike a schedule where tasks or activities can end very abruptly, the Waldorf method creates a flow of daily activities. Allowing time for calm, rest, and understanding. They also create community! Talking kids through difficult activities, reading stories out loud, and making them interactive. Teachers and parents also help bring our community together. Waldorf traditions and meaningful festivals celebrate the natural movement through time. We can’t wait to bring our Moonbow families together to grow in these traditions, lifting us out of the ordinary and into the mysteries and magic of the seasons!

A healthy life balance is important. Moonbow supports your unique schedule so you can be the best version of yourself for your little ones.