Westside Waldorf School

Westside Waldorf School www.westsidewaldorf.org

10/01/2026

Follow along with these special moments from our Grades 1–8 Festival of Courage, where our Michaelmas celebration brought students together through teamwork, sportsmanship, and the courage to meet every challenge as a community.

Class families baked dragon bread for students to share, while children from different grade levels played side by side in Tug of War, Hoop Jump, and a campus scavenger hunt. The Pageant of the Dragon added imagination, song, and storytelling to the day, featuring a giant dragon crafted (and performed) by our sixth grade.

Waldorf festivals bring the grades together around a common theme connected to the season and to where we are in the school year. Michaelmas is unique to Waldorf schools, giving students a meaningful way to practice bravery, cooperation, honor, and community through shared experiences.

These snapshots show another side of a joyful day when our school came together to celebrate the strength, connection, and courage we find in one another.

09/29/2026

In Waldorf schools, Michaelmas is a festival of courage, inner strength, and community. As autumn arrives and the days begin to grow shorter, we celebrate the light and bravery we carry within ourselves, and the strength we find when we meet life’s challenges together.

Today on Michaelmas, students from Nursery through Middle School brought the spirit of Michaelmas to life through story, song, handwork, baking, games, and shared celebration.

Our Nursery and Kindergarten students made special breads shaped like dragons, swords, and cinnamon stars. They dyed golden capes, sewed star crowns, sang songs of courage, and played special games, including tossing “shooting stars” into a basket.

In the Grades, a family from each class baked dragon bread to share (some that were incredibly life-like!). Students then gathered in mixed-grade “families” representing Courage, Honor, Wisdom, and Truth. They ate lunch together, sampled every dragon bread, watched a special dragon pageant presented by the sixth grade, sang songs as one community, and took part in a campus scavenger hunt and yard games.

Through these joyful traditions, Michaelmas reminds us that courage is not something we carry alone. It grows through practice, imagination, friendship, and community.

Hispanic Heritage Month offers us a meaningful opportunity to recognize and honor the many ways people from Spanish-spea...
09/22/2026

Hispanic Heritage Month offers us a meaningful opportunity to recognize and honor the many ways people from Spanish-speaking countries have enriched our shared lives through the foods we enjoy, the music that brings us together, and the art that inspires us.

Last week, students in Grades 1–8 each brought one ingredient to make our beloved, now-traditional Calabacitas Soup—from a whole zucchini to a head of garlic to homemade vegetable broth. Together, they chopped vegetables, cooked the soup, and enjoyed it together at lunchtime. That morning, the school came together for an assembly where students shared songs, poems, history presentations, and other offerings their classes had learned in Spanish class over the past month. The younger classes also made kites with flags from Spanish-speaking countries around the world and flew them at recess.

Waldorf schools include world languages and cultural studies in the curriculum because they help students develop curiosity, empathy, cultural understanding, and a sense of connection to the wider world. Through hands-on, age-appropriate learning, students build a deeper appreciation for different perspectives and the people and cultures they encounter.

09/21/2026

Good day, good day, good day to you…

Music is woven into the rhythm of every school day here at Westside Waldorf. In Grade 4, students build musical connection through singing, movement, listening, rhythm, and shared participation.

On this day, our music teacher led the class in their daily greeting song, followed by an Indigenous song, “The Earth Is Our Mother,” connecting with the students’ studies of California Indigenous tribes. The class also practiced singing in the round, clapping patterns, and keeping a steady beat, developing coordination, focus, musical independence, and joyful collaboration. The class closed with their Michaelmas song, which they are preparing to perform at the assembly later this month.

Waldorf education strongly incorporates music in all its forms because it supports the whole child. Singing and rhythm strengthen memory, listening, self-expression, and a sense of community while helping students experience learning through both body and voice.

09/17/2026

For our kindergarteners, each slice and dice represents a step toward holistic growth. Clad in their aprons, they carefully chop organic carrots and zucchini for tomorrow’s soup—a weekly tradition that nourishes both body and spirit.

We believe practical life skills are foundational for developing capable individuals. Through vegetable chopping, children enhance their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, crucial for writing and other tasks they’ll take on in first grade.

This activity also teaches patience, focus, and teamwork. Our young chefs learn about preparation and the joy of contributing to their community. Sharing the soup they’ve helped create fosters a sense of belonging and accomplishment.

Join us in celebrating these meaningful moments that prepare our children not just for first grade, but for life.

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17310 W Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA
90272

Opening Hours

Monday 7:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 7:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 7:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday 7:30am - 4:30pm
Friday 7:30am - 4:30pm

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+13104547064

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