Festivals are a vital part of any Steiner school community, where people of all walks of life come together to celebrate the changing of the seasons and connect to the world around us. In our modern and often busy daily lives, pressing pause on the usual hustle and bustle of the days and weeks and taking time to create a deliberate anchor point in the cycle of the year is an important opportunity to strengthen each child’s connection to the world, their community and their own place in it. In our classrooms, we mark this changing of the season through artistic methods, songs, stories, verses and walks and play in nature. Out in our beautiful grounds, children have begun to notice the honeyed gold and burgundy of falling leaves and are enjoying the cooler moments of autumn days now spliced between bursts of the last drops of summer. In our homes and with our loved ones, we can show gratitude for the earth’s bounty and our connection to nature as we begin to look inward and to our own inner life in preparation for the winter months. We can support children to enjoy and appreciate the gifts of the earth in many ways through sharing our excess with those less fortunate, gathering and harvesting fruit and vegetables from our gardens and spending time with loved ones to cook and enjoy favourite meals together.
Orana’s annual Harvest Festival for Classes 1-12 will be celebrated on Friday the 31st of March (Week 9). We warmly welcome all members of the School community to join us for the celebrations between 11.10-11.50am in the Amphitheatre. We ask that parents and family members are standing room only outside the Amphitheatre classrooms to allow space for our Primary and High School students to be seated on the steps.
An important part of this festival is that we will be collecting non-perishable foods to donate to The Little Pantry, which is a local community group that supports Canberrans in need. We encourage everyone to donate towards this cause. If you are able to donate, please ensure your child brings non-perishable food items only (for example canned food, pasta, cereal etc…) into school next week. The Year 3 students will be collecting the donations from Classes 1-6 throughout the week.
Every donation will be appreciated!
Sharaine Talip – Acting Deputy Principal / Head of Primary School K-6
