Madrona School

Madrona School is the only school in Kitsap County offering Waldorf education.

Our programs range from our Parent Child class serving families with children between the ages of 1-2 to our Outdoor Preschool and Kindergarten and Grades 1-6.

05/27/2026

In Waldorf schools across North America, botany is traditionally taught in fifth grade. While certain themes are shared from school to school, each teacher brings a unique pathway into the living world of plants. This year, our class is exploring botany through the Plant Teachings for Growing Social-Emotional Skills curriculum, a collaborative project created by GRuB and the Northwest Indian Treatment Center. At the heart of this work is the understanding that plants are among humanity’s first teachers.

This morning, the fifth graders considered gifts of the Cottonwood tree. They learned of the soft white fluff that drifts through the spring air like summer snow, carrying seeds on the wind to new places of growth. The class also discovered that the leaves, buds, and bark of Cottonwood contain salicin, a natural compound long used to lower fevers, reduce inflammation, and ease pain. Through observation, story, and science, the children began to see how plants offer not only beauty to the world around us, but also healing, resilience, and quiet wisdom.

-Ms. Catherine, 5th/6th Grade Teacher

05/06/2026

Heavy work is a crucial part of the Waldorf outdoor curriculum. It can look like rolling logs and carrying boards to build forts and shelters, hauling buckets of water for mud kitchen play, digging in the sandbox, wrestling with classmates, pushing loaded wheelbarrows and pulling wagons, climbing and jumping, or even carrying our backpacks on our adventures off-campus.

Heavy work is important in the developing child because it provides resistance to muscles and stimulates the nerve systems in the joints. These activities center and calm the nervous system; helping to regulate emotions, improve focus, and builds neural pathways for the development of body mapping, spatial awareness, and sense of self.

Development of self through play is the work of the young child.

-Teacher Isaac, Lead Kindergarten Teacher & Grades Woodworking Teacher

04/17/2026

Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN) oversees Waldorf Preschools and Kindergartens in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Every three years, we renew our membership. In the past, we have been an associate member of WECAN.

This year, we applied and were granted full membership. This is the result of many hours of discussion, self-reflection, and writing—a process in which the full faculty participated. Thank you to Sherry Gutierrez for leading this effort and for writing and submitting the final application.

04/16/2026

In the 5th Grade, the class was introduced to the Pythagorean Theorem as a puzzle to solve rather than a rule to memorize.

The work began with a story: a farmer with two crop plots considering whether they could be moved into a single large cow pasture. Would there be more planting space, or less? The class discovered something surprising: the farmer could grow the same amount of crops!

From this question, the students moved into geometry. Using four identical right triangles arranged inside the same-sized square, they explored the spaces left behind. By carefully rearranging the shapes, they found that the open area formed by the large square on the hypotenuse is exactly equal to the combined areas formed by the two smaller squares on the legs.

By discovering the mathematical formula for themselves, the students will have a stronger relationship with it and will more easily remember it for the rest of their lives. And playful learning is fun! This is how we approach education at Madrona School.

-Ms. Catherine, 5th/6th Grade Teacher

03/31/2026

Science in the 1st and 2nd grades is about allowing the children to experience that which lives around them, their “home surroundings” if you will. The plants, the birds, the animals, the way the land slopes down to the sea, they will become botany, ornithology, ecology and geography in later grades; but for now, they become familiar.

We have been taking a bi-weekly walk down the same path through our school neighborhood since the beginning of the year to observe and familiarize ourselves with our surroundings. Spring is an especially exciting time to do this as there are so many changes each time we visit: bursts of color from early blooming bushes, leaf buds on trees, birds gathering twigs for their nests, the scent of flowers in the air as we pass by. The students are connecting themselves to their environment with each observation and thus providing a foundation for their future studies in the sciences.

03/25/2026

How do we truly make ourselves "at home" on the Earth?

In our 3rd and 4th grade "Shelters" block, the children are moving from a dreamy oneness with nature into a conscious relationship with it. They are discovering that the Earth provides the gift, and the human provides the care and the craft.

We’ve been looking at how human beings create homes using what the land provides- how the bison offers what is needed for a Tipi, the cedar tree becomes a Plank House, and the very earth and grass are shaped into a Pit House. Even the clay, sand, and water under our feet can be formed into the sun baked Adobe Pueblo.

The children are starting to see that these structures aren’t random; they come from place, from climate, and from generations of deep relationship with the environment. In the end, they aren't just drawing houses; they are discovering how we weave our lives into the land, finding a sense of home in the gifts the Earth provides.

03/18/2026

The first and second graders share their “How-to” stories.

Procedural writing explains how to do something by breaking it down into simple, sequential, actionable steps. Breaking down a task into step-by-step instructions builds logical thinking, organizational skills, and effective communication.

The 1st and 2nd graders took their skills through the writing process: brainstorming ideas, drafting, editing, revising, publishing and sharing. They even celebrated with a toast to all their hard work: “To us!”

-Ms. Kate, 1st/2nd Grade Teacher, Reading Specialist

03/17/2026

Registration for Madrona School's summer camp is open!

Seashore & Woodland Adventures Camp
Drop your adventurers at a different park or beach each morning and we will explore the forests and shorelines of our beautiful Bainbridge Island during some of the sunniest days and lowest tides of the season.

Storybook Summer Camps are literary-inspired outdoor adventures. Each camp brings stories to life through role-playing, child-led play, themed games, crafts, and imaginative quests.

Spanish Camp is a week of fun activities designed to grow their Spanish skills and enrich their cultural knowledge of the Spanish-speaking world. There will be storytelling, music, conversational learning and a special craft.

Registration link in bio!

03/13/2026

"Mousekins followed a path of colorful leaves that led all the way to Hedgie the hedgehog's leaf pile house!"

Waldorf early childhood puppet stories feature natural materials and fairly simple, calm storylines allowing young children to easily follow the narrative. Puppet stories create a safe space for children to explore emotions, build empathy, and problem-solve, as they watch the characters play out different scenarios. The physical and visual nature of puppet stories, along with rich and interesting language, captivates and deepens engagement while supporting the foundations of early literacy through oral language, listening comprehension, and mental picturing skills.

-Teacher Susie, Lead Preschool Teacher

03/11/2026

Self-imposed risk-taking in play is a valuable tool in children’s development, building resilience and executive function while overcoming fears. building resilience and executive function, while overcoming fears. Through climbing, jumping, wrestling, building large structures, and exploring new spaces, children strengthen their vestibular (balance) and proprioceptive (self-orienting) systems. Children stretch themselves gradually over time by pushing against the edge of their own comfort zones, finding self-confidence and forming their own risk assessment capacities.

-Teacher Isaac, Lead Kindergarten and Grade School Woodworking Teacher

Outdoor play is an essential part of Madrona School's program. Time spent outdoors creates endless opportunities for physical, mental, and social development, all of which set our children up for success when they enter the classroom.

Address

105 Winslow Way W
Bainbridge Island, WA
98110

Telephone

+12068558041

Website

http://www.madronaschool.org/

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