Ithaca Waldorf School

Doing things the hard way is worth it.⁠
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Contact us to schedule a tour!⁠
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Join us for our upcoming events! ⁠
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As a requirement for graduation, each 8th grade student at IWS must complete a year-long passion project, and then present their work, results, and reflections to our community. During this process, they learn how to forge a relationship with a mentor, how to plan and prioritize a long-term project, and how to design and perform an oral presentation.⁠
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Each year we are floored by the wide range of topics presented, and by the eloquence, confidence, and humor with which our eldest students present their work.⁠
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Our entire community, including prospective students and friends of the school, are invited to celebrate this pinnacle of achievement, and to enjoy the presentations!⁠
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Overheard in carpool after this week's field trip to see at :

On the ride home from the fantastic circus show, the five of us (three 3rd graders, one 7th grader, and one grandmother) were talking about it. I asked the group who they thought was the strongest performer. At first they said, "the woman," then "the blue man," and then, a 9-year-old said, "it depends on what you mean by 'strongest.'"

Then came about 5 minutes of the three of them sharing all the ways to be strong, like strong in your mind, in your spirit, in your soul, in your opinions, etc.!!! My jaw dropped hearing the three of them give these mature, insightful answers. Who knew that would come from seeing a circus performance!

This is how Waldorf education builds humans!

Breathing is the most fundamental rhythm of our lives - yet how often do we truly pause to notice it?

In this immersive, interactive morning workshop, three practitioners weave together movement, story, medicine, and seasonal wisdom to explore breath as a living force: in our bodies, in nature, and in the life of the human spirit.

Pre-registration required: please sign up on our website https://www.ithacawaldorf.org/store/p/waldorf-ed-2

We will begin together with a eurythmy movement - an embodied experience of expansion and contraction that sets the tone for everything that follows. From there, we move through three interlocking threads:

The Earth Breathes Too
The changing seasons are not just weather, they are the Earth's own in-breath and out-breath, celebrated across cultures through festival and ritual. We explore how attuning ourselves to these rhythms nourishes something deep in us, and in our children.

Stories on the Wings of Breath
The great storytellers have always known: a well-told story breathes. We explore how image and narrative carry us, how the right story at the right moment can open what feels closed, and settle what feels scattered.

When Breathing Gets Stuck
What happens in the body when the breath is blocked through asthma, sinusitis, illness, or the constrictions of modern life? Drawing on insights from Anthroposophic Medicine and Eurythmy Therapy, we look at what it means to restore dynamic balance between in-breath and out-breath, and what practical tools we can bring to ourselves and those in our care.

Throughout the morning, movement, readings, and open discussion invite you to bring your own experience into the conversation.

Your guides for the morning:

Dr. Helena Prieto brings her background in Anthroposophical Medicine to illuminate the physiology and deeper dimensions of breathing and health.

Maria Ebersole is a Therapeutic Eurythmist with over 20 years of experience. She will move us (literally!) into an embodied understanding of breath's rhythm and healing potential.

Laura Hayes is the School Director of Ithaca Waldorf School and draws from almost two decades of teaching in Waldorf schools. She brings the threads of storytelling and seasonal festival life into dialogue with the body and the breath.

This workshop is open to Waldorf educators, parents, and anyone drawn to the theme. No prior experience with eurythmy or Anthroposophical Medicine is needed - only a willingness to breathe, move, and explore together.

Small school; thriving students.⁠
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Contact us to schedule a tour!⁠
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