Leaning Tree Community School

[EduCativ]

We deliver a balanced school curriculum guided by Steiner's educational philosophy and encompassing all developmental domains: social/emotional, cognitive, physical, language, and creative.
The atmosphere of our playgroup is warm, gentle, and enfolding. The children are surrounded by calming pastel colors and natural materials. Beautiful items such as handmade dolls, wooden toys, blocks, silk scarves, gum nuts, and shells are used to encourage creative, imaginative play and develop a sensitivity to, as well as a respect for, nature.
Other activities, such as painting, cooking, gardening, and simple crafts further enhance this. Nothing is taken for granted, for example, at morning tea we form a circle and give thanks to the earth and sun for our fruits and water. Music, song, dance, and celebration of the seasons and festivals bring our families together, to share in folk wisdom and experience the rhythms of life.
We aim to be child-centered, the activities, the songs, the talk, and the play are centered on the children. In doing so, we are creating a special sanctuary for the children and parents in an otherwise busy and commercialized world. As our foremost focus is the children and their experience of playgroup as a safe, serene environment, we save most of our personal stories until morning tea time, a truly social time.
Being aware of the dream-like quality of the child's soul, a special mood of stillness for the storytelling time has to be created by the parents and the Playgroup Leader. We guide the children into that mood with a quiet, soothing song and lighting of the story candle. Nature stories, fairy tales, and stories of everyday activities all appeal to little children. Puppets and props are used to enliven the story and to hold the children's attention. From each story, they will absorb what they can and there is no need for the adults to explain the hidden moral of the story.
Rainbow Playgroup is a place where the mood is of support, reassurance, and non-judgment for both adult and child. Please take the time to enjoy your mornings at Rainbow Playgroup and feel free to explore our parent library, peruse The Gum Leaf Shop and, of course, ask your Playgroup Leader any questions you may have.

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