“London has none of those nice things that children may play with without hurting the things or themselves – such as trees and sand and woods and waters… Trees are all different, as you know, and I am sure some tiresome person must have told you that no two blades of grass exactly alike. But in streets, where the blades of grass don’t grow, everything is like everything else.”
from The Five Children and It by E. Nesbit
While I … Read More...
Not so long ago, we packed books of mazes, small games, or other diversions when we needed our children to quietly while away some time in a doctor’s office, at a restaurant table, or during a sibling’s violin lesson. The ubiquity of smartphones and tablets has brought ease to creating diversions and with it some peaceful
Spring is seemingly defined by rain. Add some wind to the mix, and it can be hard to want to spend time outside. Here are a few ideas to get you and your child out in the weather, even if only for a few minutes to experience all that nature has to give.
Our family has lived in Vermont for over 13 years, and this place is very generous with seasons. January brings intense cold and some snow. With the returning light around Candlemas, the bitter weather abates and the season of snow really begins. On the first day of spring, we might have snow, but from mid-March to the end of April, you can feel nature speeding up. In fact, when our children were small, I found it very easy to make … Read More...
Life in Vermont makes February 2 seem special enough to deserve two festivals; the days are finally stretching toward 10 hours of daylight. However, each of these festivals has been a bit confusing to me, as they are each nominally about early signs of spring, and spring still seems very far away in early February. If like me, you wonder about these festivals and want to bring them to your children, perhaps you’ll enjoy the information and ideas below.
The long evenings and blustery weather of winter provide the perfect backdrop to hours of reading. In our family, we wandered the library and sampled picture books, storybooks and chapter books to find new tales and old favorites to visit and re-visit through the hours of a Vermont evening by the fire. The authors and books below are the ones my entire family anticipates, whatever their age, for wintery hours of reading.
Elsa Beskow- A hundred years later, her picture … Read More...
Playing games with your children can be fun; the relaxed time spent focused on a shared activity can be its own reward. Sometimes, you might even have a laugh over the progress of a game or a chat about what is happening in your children’s lives. But, the game table may also be far from an idyllic moment in a hectic day. Here are a few ideas that might help everyone enjoy it more, or might at least cut down … Read More...
The spiral is an image commonly associated with this time of year. If you are part of a Waldorf community, you probably even have the opportunity to participate in the creation of a spiral for your children. But why? What is the significance of the spiral?
At each of the solstices, summer and winter, daylight begins a new journey. In the fall, the days grow shorter and shorter, like the chambers in a nautilus shell get smaller and smaller as … Read More...
Perhaps you are a little tense thinking of yet more toys for your child and you to maintain and tidy. Maybe you are just looking for more ways to spend some precious free time with your child. The following ideas are all about one of the best gifts for any loved one- the gift of time.
With the gift giving season fast approaching, parents can struggle to find ways to include their children in more of the giving side of holiday time. We all love the surprise and joy of a child receiving a gift, but it can be hard to make the equation less lopsided. If gift giving is part of your holiday tradition, finding meaningful ways to include children can be tricky. I remember a school store that opened just before winter break when … Read More...
