Enrollment Form for Autumn 2011-2012

Click here to view/print the 
enrollment form- on google docs.

You can then mail it, along with your registration costs to us at
Greenwood Tree
PO Box 412
Conway, WA 98238

Autumn Season Info and more!

The Autumn Season is right around the corner and we look forward to sharing another wonderful year with you and your children. Currently, we are firming up our Autumn schedule and have narrowed our teacher applicants down to three very talented and qualified candidates.   

Autumn Offerings

            Root Children: (18 months up to 3 years, Special requests considered): This group will meet one day a week for 2 hours.  The program includes morning circle, fingerplays, storytelling, baking, an optional craft, snacktime, and closing circle with freeplay interspersed.  The environment embraces the young child with warmth and wonder and introduces them to the idea of transitioning from moments of "breathing out" in movement and exuberance to moments of "breathing in" with peacefulness and observation.

            Seedlings 1: (3 years up to 7 years): This group will meet one day a week for 2-1/2 hours. The program follows a similar rhythm to the Root Children and includes a more involved craft and wet-on-wet watercolor painting.  The seasonally appropriate stories and songs, and baking projects are selected to fit the developmental unfolding of the early childhood years. 

            Seedlings 2: (4 years up to 7 years): This group will meet two days a week for 2-1/2 hours per day. This program is designed for children who are ready for more time each week and a curriculum that takes the stories and discussions of Wednesday and delves deeper into the material on Friday.  The art projects and activities will be tailored to suit the varied needs of this age span.  

            Saplings: (7 years up to 14 years): The Sapling program is designed for the homeschooling family in which the children experience a weekly rhythm that includes morning circle, eurythmy, seasonal activities, math, foreign language, building, handwork, painting, cooking and outdoor play. This year the class will have an opportunity to be divided as to age during certain activities to receive individual help. This is a nurturing environment in which the children learn to work with one another, build confidence and friendships. Because of the nature of the rhythm of the class the two day program is recommended. However, if that is not possible, there is a one day offering on Friday in which Saplings 1 and Saplings 2 are combined.

Autumn rhythm
Wednesday: Seedlings 2: 9:00am - 11:30am
                    Saplings: 12:15pm - 3:45pm
            
Thursday:    Seedlings 1: 9:30am - 12:00pm
                    Root Children: 10:00am - 12:00pm
            
Friday:        Seedlings 2: 9:00am - 11:30am
                   Root Children: 9:30am - 11:30am
                   Saplings: 12:15pm - 3:45pm

Tuition & Registration Costs
        The way we have decided to organize our finances is on an at-cost basis, meaning that we look at our projected costs for the year, including rent, teacher salary, parent education nights, etc. and we divide it among the students based on the percentage of use. These numbers are intimately tied to our enrollment numbers. We have done this in order to keep costs as low as possible. Due to this we are offering a tuition range at this time. We are continually moving and shaping to meet our community’s needs; this is just another example of how we are doing this. We will be announcing the final tuition for the year by August 25^th. Please, if there are ever any comments or questions about finances please don't hesitate to contact us.
  For Each Family
- Yearly Greenwood Tree Registration Fee: $50
- Yearly PCPO Membership Fee: $9.50 per child
- Yearly Insurance Fee:$7 per participating child and supporting adult

Root Children: $129 - $144 per 12 week season              
Seedlings 1: $213 - $249 per 12 week season
Seedlings 2: $315 - $364 per 12 week season
Saplings 1: $246 - $285 per 12 week season
Saplings 2: $363 - $420 per 12 week season

We are happy to announce that this year we are able to offer a 20% discount on tuition for the second child from a family that is enrolled at Greenwood Tree.

This year because we plan to pay a teacher's salary, we are asking families to register for the 2011-2012 school year, with annual fees due August 10 to hold your space. Tuition can be paid for each season two weeks prior to the beginning of the season or we can work with your family to establish a monthly payment plan.

Full tuition will be due for Autumn season on September 1st. Our first day of class will be September 14th. Please contact, Britt Shellenberger (360) 510-9222 or britto222@yahoo.com, Treasurer, if you need to set up a specific payment plan that suits your family.

Parent Volunteer Responsibilities

In the spirit of becoming a true Cooperative, this year each enrolled Greenwood Tree family will be have the opportunity to volunteer their time and energy for the benefit of our children and the Greenwood Tree Cooperative. The Greenwood Tree Board will work jointly with the Teacher and the Resource Council to determine the jobs that need to be done to ensure the program days, festivals, education nights and all other aspects of the Cooperative run smoothly. Each family will be assigned a specific task and will hold the responsibility of completing the work or finding another family or individual to complete it if needed.

What this means for you: Once you have enrolled in Greenwood Tree for the 2011-2012 school year, you will receive an Orientation Package containing the information on your family's Work. We encourage you to involve your children in the Work and/or to allow them to see you doing it. What a wonderful gift we give ourselves, our children and our Cooperative by working together to create this community!  

We would like to know if your family is joining us for the upcoming year, so please submit the yearly registration fees and the registration for by August 20^th to hold your space. If you are new to the school, we are opening up 10 more slots this year, so please don't hesitate to contact us with your interest. You can send your registration fees and form to: Greenwood Tree School, P.O. Box 412, Conway, WA  98238. If you have any questions about how to calculate your individual rate please contact us. We will post when classes are full on our blog, yahoo group, & through the Greenwood Tree family's group emails. We will be hosting an orientation and open house on September 8^th from 4-7pm. For general question about Greenwood Tree please contact Laurel (360) 333-8922 or MaryAnn (360) 708-4276.

We look forward to spending the next year with you.

The Greenwood Tree Board
Laurel, MaryAnn, Shelley, Britt, Nancylee, Kathryn & Shanna

The Greenwood Tree Resource Council
Lara & Cassandra

Some upcoming dates for this Autumn:

August 10-13: Skagit County Fair (Craft with MV Library) 12-4pm
 
August 20: Registration Fees due for Autumn Season 2011 to hold your space.
 
August 19: Summer Gathering at Maria’s home 10am-2pm
 
August 23:Board Meeting 9-12pm
 
August 29-30: Greenwood Tree Work Party at Unitarian Church
 
August 31: Summer Gathering at Washington Park 10:30am-4pm
 
September 1: Autumn Tuition Due     
 
September 7: Open House 4-7pm     

September 14-16: First day of Autumn Sessions

September 23:Autumn Harvest Festival

Teacher Search Deadline!

Oh- the words deadline- how intimidating they sound.  In any case, we do have one in regards to receiving all requested materials from folks interested in applying for our teaching position.  And that date is August 5th.  Questions?  Just give a call or email us.

Thanks!  We are getting very excited for Fall!

and the singing

another thought on last day at padilla bay.

the interpretive center was  packed with end of the year field trips.  at one point a chaperon from another school poked her head into the small classroom area where children worked on drawing and playing with puppets to holler, and i mean holler, for a child engaged in an activity to the point that the world outside of her head was dulled and slightly forgotten.

which is a good thing, right?

the woman growled the girls name.  it's the impatient tone of an adult on a schedule.  i've growled like that before.

when it was time to gather up the greenwood tree kiddos a few of the adults decided to do so by singing the "follow me" song.  as our voice lifted up, so did the heads of the adults and children looking at star fish and listening to eagle calls.

it was a beautiful sight.  a beautiful sound.  and another reminder for me that there is always time to add some more beauty into this world.

i want to sing more.  growl less.  i appreciate being around other folks who inspire me to do just that.

what a caring community looks like

today was the final day of our spring season.  the group was gathered at padilla bay where the eel grass grows and the mud can suck off your boots faster than a crab can scurry.  the sun peeked out now and then, but mostly the rain showered us with various size of drops.  not that the kids minded- most seemed to ditch the rain gear after the potluck anyway to run on the grass and into the sand with slick skin.

yes, it was a sweet gathering complete with thoughtful gifts for the board members and facilitators.  it was another lovely opportunity to chat with friendly folks and my boys were blissed out on being in nature with their best buds.

until seren fell.

one minute he is running on the beach, a member of a swirling pack.  the next his soft face is hitting a hard rock.  right on his eye.   i heard his wail and went running toward him.

seren is very expressive about his pain.  and about his joy.  so it's a good balance.  but it can be hard to know exactly how badly he is injured because any injury elicits a BIG reaction.  sure, it's the pain of it.  it is also the injustice of it- how one minute is so much fun and then suddenly a slight shift takes all that away.

immediately, there were mamas swarming.  one mama went to get my younger son from the beach.  several mamas rushed to their cars for their first aid kits.  a mama and papa soothed seren and peered at his injuries.  even the kiddos stood by to offer love- and to see how much blood there was.

if you kid has to get hurt- and as i explained to seren everyone does get hurt in life and most of the time we don't know when it will happen- it's much more pleasant to have an injury happen in a supportive community.  if i had been alone with my boys when that accident happened i...well, i don't even want to think about that.

we made it home quickly and seren settled into a comfy chair with his softest stuffed animals.  the body starts to repair itself immediately but seren was still shaky, still worried, still hurting. 

on top of that was the disappointment that such a great day ended so abruptly with serious pain.  we nursed his wounds, made soup, snuggled deeper.  and one of the things that helped him to feel much better was the folks who called to check in on seren as the day went on.   and that made me feel better too.

if you're kid has to get hurt- it's nice to know he's got friends that will check up on him, send him love, wish him well.

This week!

Parent Education Night

Greenwood Tree is a Waldorf-inspired cooperative in Skagit. We offer weekly programs and parent education nights.

Our next Parent Education Night will be Wednesday, May 18 at 6:30 at the Burlington Senior Center (1211 E. Greenleaf Ave Burlington WA).

Adrienne Doucette from Whatcom Waldorf School will present a talk titled, “Protecting the Young Child - a Waldorf Perspective' and will address the following questions: What does the young child really need to be healthy and happy? How can we support and encourage the child's natural development, accept him in each phase he goes through, and meet him there? What does a child need to be protected from out in the world, at home, and with others? This talk will look at these questions in regard to children from birth to seven years

The event is open to all and is free to GWT families with a suggested donation of $5 from the greater community. Children are welcome to attend but there will not be childcare provided in a separate space, so please bring a quiet activity for your children.

One of our new families shares...

Last Friday, April 1, was our first day at Greenwood Tree. Natalie (5.5) is in the Seedlings Group and Laurel (1.5) is in the Root Children Group. The girls and I both enjoyed our Friday experience - from the songs and stories to the baking, crafting and playtime in the rain. But it wasn't just the things we were doing, it was who we were doing them with: each other, other families seeking to nurture their children, loving adults and friendly children - a community.

 

Several days later, at dinner, as I sat at the table holding Laurel I was feeling thankful for being able to hold my warm, nourished child and for being relaxed and in a peaceful place. With that in mind, I asked Natalie if she knew what gratitude was, what it meant to be thankful. "Oh yes, Mama," she quickly replied. "I am thankful for Greenwood Tree, because it's a place that we can go and still be together but do all sorts of fun things with other people!" Oh yes, me too, Natalie, me too.