Northampton, Massachusetts
Waldorf-inspired preschool and kindergarten, ages 3 to 5
Rowan is a Waldorf-inspired preschool and kindergarten in Northampton. Every day begins and ends with circle, and every day of the week has its own work: painting, handwork, baking, a walk and soup.
The week
Circle opens every morning with a song and a verse for the season. The rest of the week turns on a different kind of work each day.
Children paint with watercolor on damp paper, one color at a time, while a teacher tells a short story about the colors. The paintings dry on a line and go home on Friday.
Finger knitting, felting wool and sewing small things by hand. In each room the older children often help a younger one with a stitch.
Children knead and shape bread for snack, and by mid-morning the room smells of it. Everyone sits down together to eat what they made.
A walk to the field and the woods nearby, with a story at the edge of the trees. On very cold, hot or stormy mornings the walk happens in the room.
Children chop vegetables for a shared soup, and a teacher tells a story with felt figures and handmade puppets.
Our rooms
Joins circle for a short song and a verse
Plays with wooden blocks, silks and a play kitchen
Helps set the snack table and wash the cups
Puts on boots and a coat with a teacher close by
When a child is ready for a longer morning and a bigger part in the room, the teachers and the family talk about a move to the Hazel room.
Paints, kneads dough and sews a small project from start to finish
Helps a younger child with a coat or a stitch
Stays for the long day, with lunch from home and a rest
Tells a story with felt figures at circle
The kindergarten year is the last year at Rowan. In the spring the teachers talk with each family about what comes next.
Sample levels.
Programs
3-year-olds
Three- and young four-year-olds, with a teacher and an assistant
4-year-olds
Four- and five-year-olds, including the kindergarten year
Each room is mixed in age, so a child usually stays with the same teachers for the years at Rowan.
Sample programs.
Festivals
The seasons set the rhythm of the year, and each has a small festival that families are welcome to share.
Late September · An afternoon of apples, bread and a song at the garden gate, with families.
November · Children carry paper lanterns they made, and we walk together at dusk.
December · A quiet evening with an evergreen spiral, each child walking it in turn with a small light.
March · We sow seeds in the garden beds and in pots to take home.
May · A ribbon dance and a flower crown for each child, outside if the weather allows.
Early June · The kindergarten children say goodbye with a song, and the school year closes with a picnic.
Sample dates.
Safety and license
Licensed by Massachusetts EEC
Child care center license · MA License # 000000Verify
1 adult to 9 children
3-year-olds
Group size: 18
1 adult to 10 children
4-year-olds
Group size: 18
Group size
Up to 18 children
with 2 adults
Capacity
36
Ages 3 years to 5 years
A teacher greets every child at the door and signs them in. At pickup a child goes only with the people on your list, and we ask for photo ID at the door until we know you.
A candle burns on the seasonal table at circle and on festival evenings. An adult lights it, it sits in a holder out of children's reach, and it is put out before circle ends.
We go outdoors most mornings and dress for the day. On very cold, very hot or stormy mornings we stay in and move the walk to the room. We count heads every time we leave or enter.
Children bake and chop with a teacher beside them. Tell us about allergies at the tour; we ask privately once you enroll. We ask families not to send nuts.
A child with a fever or a contagious illness stays home. If a child becomes ill at school, we call you right away and a teacher stays with them until you arrive.
We practice leaving the building and gathering at the garden gate, and we talk it through with the children in a calm voice. A first aid kit and a phone go with us on every walk.
Ask us about child care assistance
Sample details.
The team
Eight adults work at Rowan: the director and a teacher in each room, an assistant in each room, a handwork teacher, a garden helper and an office manager. Three of them are here.
Director and Hazel room teacher
Adele leads the school and teaches in the Hazel room. She is at the door most mornings, and she is the person to ask about a tour or the festivals.
Hazel room teacher
Kabir teaches in the Hazel room and leads baking day and soup day. He tells the Friday stories, and he builds the wooden props that go with them.
Willow room teacher
Alanna teaches in the Willow room, where a child's first weeks are slow and short. She leads circle there, with songs and finger plays that follow the season.
From families
“The week has a shape. Our daughter knows when it is painting day, and she tells us about the story on the way home.”
“The tour was unhurried. Adele let us sit in the Willow room for a while, and she answered every question about the day without a script.”
“We were invited to the lantern walk before we had even enrolled. It told us more about the school than any page could.”
Sample reviews.
Tours run in October, January and March, in the morning while the rooms are working. Book one, or call the school and we will find a time that works.