Now springing from the fertile Mother of all living things,

the Earth,

Comes joy-of-growth, as power leading all her children unto birth.

My life is charmed, my strength is sure,

For I am armed - my heart is pure;

And I can join amidst this joy and merriment with radiant mirth!

This week has been a quieter one than normal around the grounds at Golden Hill, with our Class 8 students away on camp at Boshack. We are all looking forward to their return and to hearing all those camp stories, mishaps and adventures! Class 1/2 and Class 5 are both gearing up for performances, with Class 4’s Norse Mythology play taking place later this month, and Class 1/2’s Eurythmy performance in September. Meanwhile, the remainder of our classes have been working hard at their main lessons:  Money and Time, Human Fertility and the Renaissance.

Our little town seems to be booming in population at the moment, and this growth has also been reflected in our class waitlists and enrolment numbers. School tours occur weekly for new families and prospective students, and we are often asked what sets us apart from other alternative schools or educational models in the local area. It can sometimes be difficult to summarise this in a nutshell, as there are certain buzzwords that seem to be almost universal in marketing a school. Some of these include nature-based play, whole-child learning, inclusive curriculum, etc. Whilst Steiner education (along with many other alternative education models) happens to be all of these things and more, something I often feel is quite unique to Steiner education is the concept of reverence.

I must admit that prior to encountering Steiner education, I had no idea of the meaning of the word 'reverence', only an inkling that it perhaps had some sort of religious connotation.  Indeed, it is not a word that is found in our everyday vernacular. The dictionary describes ‘reverence’ as a feeling or attitude of deep respect tinged with awe.

Gary Zukav describes reverence as “engaging in a form and a depth of contact with Life that is well beyond the shell of form and into essence. Reverence is contact with the essence of each thing and person and plant and bird and animal. It is contact with the interior of its beingness. The path to reverence is through your heart, and only an awareness of your feelings can open your heart.”

Reverence is not something that can be taught or insisted upon, but is something that is slowly nurtured, fostered and modelled to the children. The Steiner curriculum fosters a sense of reverence through our magical festivals, though time spent observing the wonders of nature, through verses and imaginative stories that awaken and enliven the feelings, and through our daily rhythms which allow for busier, livelier (‘breathing out’) times, as well as moments of focus, stillness and quiet (‘breathing in’). I believe that the concept of reverence really is one of the underpinnings of Steiner education, as illustrated in Steiner's quote below: 

“Receive the child in reverence, educate them in love: let them go forth in freedom.”

Rudolf Steiner

Wishing everyone a wonderful end to the winter season, filled with warmth and wellness!

Eliza Allan

Principal