On Michaelmas

Posted by Donna Simmons

We are approaching Michaelmas, a very important festival from an anthroposophical standpoint and one which can be understood to speak to people from all religions. Michael is the “time spirit” of our age, He who brings an impulse both of…

Early Years Rant

Posted by Donna Simmons

Every once in a while a thread on my discussion forum hits me in such a way that I let lose with what basically amounts to a rant…. Most of my “sensitive spots” have to do with issues having to do with societal …

Dealing with Anger

Posted by Donna Simmons

 Following on from my last blog entry about inner work and personal development, here is an excerpt from a series of threads on my on-line discussion forum dealing with issues like forgiveness, slowing down, ensouling the home and so on. And…

Unending Personal Development

Posted by Donna Simmons

There are three things which Rudolf Steiner said were necessary prerequisites for someone to be a Waldorf teacher: 1) knowledge of anthroposophical child development; 2) knowledge of the particular children in the class; and 3) a commitment to personal development….

From Chaos to Form

Posted by Donna Simmons

This is a rather short reworked post from my Waldorf at Home discussion forum. An exhausted forum member wrote in, asking for help with transitioning her 7 year old daughter from total unschooling to a more Waldorf – ie formed…

Good Test, Bad Test

Posted by Donna Simmons

I like tests. I really do. I enjoyed them as a child in the Waldorf school I attended, I enjoyed giving them to my homeschooled sons and I enjoy giving them to my students. I enjoy creating tests and I…

Help with Painting

Posted by Donna Simmons

At the bottom of this post you can see that I wrote it more than 10 years ago. At that time the Third Grade Syllabus was new—it has since been joined by grades 4, 5 and, summer 2019, 6. In…

Understanding the Temperaments

Posted by Donna Simmons

 I am full of the temperaments at the moment because in writing our Christopherus second and third grade curriculum, I decided to include several sections on the temperaments. So in the second grade curriculum people will find an essay by Steiner…

When A Child Kills A Pet

Posted by Donna Simmons

By Donna Simmons (2008) (this is a post from our discussion forum. The thread was from a distressed forum member whose 3 year old son killed their pet rabbit. She was concerned that he did not seem to show any…

Daddy Central

Posted by Donna Simmons

Here’s a post from my old yahoo group on a popular question : how to cope with the chaos that Daddy’s daily arrival home wrecks on the peaceful pre-bedtime routine?! How to honor Dad’s need to see his children -…