SEPTEMBER 2025 NEWSLETTER

We've been together daily at school for just four weeks, but it feels like we have known each other forever. Our returning students have been wonderful, showing kindness by helping our new friends learn the school routines and helping them in many ways, whether it's figuring out whose turn it is to ring the music box at the end of the morning or setting the table for lunch.

Our school day begins at 8:30, with children getting ready for school and then engaging in various activities independently, with friends, and with their guides until 11:30. This extended period allows each child to work at their own pace and explore activities that genuinely interest them. It has been remarkable to observe how quickly everyone has adapted to the rhythm of the day, often repeating activities they instinctively choose to develop or refine essential skills.

The weather is finally cooling down, and we are all thoroughly enjoying our time at the park. Blowing bubbles remains a popular activity, and our older children have been busy digging for treasures and hiding them in "safe" places as playtime comes to a close. Some of us have also been practising swinging independently, and are proud to go higher and higher without a guide pushing them.

Autumn brings the apple harvest, and we had plenty of practice chopping apples to make applesauce. We all enjoyed sharing this special snack together at school. Lunchtime is one of the most popular times of the day. After our time at the park, everyone is quite hungry, and the first half of lunchtime is often very quiet. Gradually, small comments and conversations begin to emerge. We've noticed that most of us have a hearty appetite! Please check with your children if they need a bigger lunch! 

With Autumn showing signs of arriving, we have started planning what to plant in our garden. Soon we will be able to spend time up in the garden daily, making sure our seeds and plants are well cared for!  We have recently been collecting seeds from our Job's Tears plants and transforming them into beautiful bracelets. In this world filled with toys made of plastic, it has been such a treat to string beads that we've gathered ourselves!

The International Day of Peace is celebrated in September. We sang our favourite Peace song and practised some simple conflict resolution at our new peace table. We took turns holding the peace stone and verbalising how we felt when something was done to us that we didn't like.  Role-playing gave us a chance to get used to the idea of verbalising our feelings, and we will need support from the guides as we continue to practice using our words effectively in a kind manner. We really haven't had many conflicts in the class, so at the moment, we just like to sit at the peace table and hold our fuzzy peace stone, admiring the red heart on it. 

We look forward to another calm month ahead, filled with as much laughter as this past month was.