The Current – September 2026

New Beginnings & Warm Welcomes

Community * Respect * Integrity * Commitment * Reverence

Opening Assembly and Grade 1 Rose Ceremony

Dear Vancouver Waldorf School Community,

Are you looking for a meaningful way to get involved? If you have an interest in helping shape our school’s future, especially in legal or financial areas, consider joining the Society and running for trustee.

The Vancouver Waldorf School Society (VWSS) is the legal body responsible for our school. As a Society member, you can vote at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and run for trustee. To join, download the membership form, review the requirements, and bring it to reception with your membership fee.

The VWSS Board of Trustees meets monthly and works closely with the College of Teachers to set school strategy. If you have questions about what it means to serve as a trustee, please reach out to our Board Co-Chairs, Sophie McEntee and Adam Millard, at chairbot@vws.ca. They are happy to speak with you.

We will share more information about the AGM with you later this month.

The Student Support Program booklet and the Student Support Policy & Protocols will be available soon on the Current Families page.

Early Childhood Open House

Saturday, September 26 @ 10:00 am – 11:30 am
VWS Early Childhood Centre

This open house is for families considering Parent & Tot, Preschool, or Kindergarten at VWS.

Step inside the Early Childhood Centre and spend time in the spaces where our youngest students learn and play. Children are welcome and invited to join in: you’ll get a feel for the daily rhythm, try some of the activities that shape the program, and have time to speak with our team about our programs and the enrolment process.

Parent & Tot is for children ages 18 months to three years, with one parent or caregiver. Our Preschool program is for children ages three to five. Kindergarten is for children turning five by December 31. All programs are at the Early Childhood Centre on our Lynn Valley campus.

Register below to reserve your spot.

Grade School Open House

Saturday, October 3 @ 10:00 am – 11:30 am
VWS Grade School

This open house is a chance for prospective Grade School families to step into a working Waldorf classroom.

You and your children will spend time during an active main lesson, seeing how subjects like mathematics, language arts, history, or science are introduced through story, movement, and artistic work. This experiential visit is designed to give you a real sense of how a Waldorf school day unfolds.

Members of our team will be available to answer your questions about the Grade School program and enrolment process.

Register below to reserve your spot.

Parent Education
Breaking Through: How to Rescue Childhood and Heal the Parent-Child Relationship

Tuesday, October 6 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
VWS Grade School Hall

We welcome Mary Willow, a New Zealand-based parent educator and mentor with 35+ years of experience as a nurse, midwife, and Waldorf teacher and author of Breaking Through: How to Rescue Childhood and Heal the Parent-Child Relationship. She founded Plum Parenting in 2007 and has spent nearly 20 years working one-on-one with parents, caregivers, and teachers.

This evening lecture and Q&A for adults will introduce a new, practical way to understand your child’s behaviour and improve family life, from early childhood through the teen years. You’ll leave with useful tools you can start using right away.

Order Mary’s book here.

Curious about what your child is learning? The Main Lesson is a deep dive into one subject each morning for three to four weeks. Language arts, math, science, and social studies are taught to match each student’s developmental stage. Art is woven into academics through main lesson books filled with compositions, observations, drawings, and diagrams.

Faculty Service

Before the children returned, our faculty and staff got to work outside instead of at their desks. On the first day back, we refreshed the driveway markings at the school and helped remove invasive plants at Kirkstone Park.

Deer Fern Moving Up

In August, many of our Deer Fern children celebrated moving up from the daycare program, showing the confidence and readiness they’ve gained from years of play, rhythm, and care. Congratulations to our newest Kindergarten students and their families.

You’ll hear more soon from your Parent Committee chairs, Laura and Liza. To join the PAC and get involved, email vwspac@gmail.com and keep an eye on your inbox for volunteer opportunities as fall gets underway.

Applications Open Soon – Spread the Word

Applications for 2027-28 open on October 3. If you know a family interested in Waldorf education, please invite them to learn more by visiting the admissions page of our website. As our thanks for sharing positive reviews outside the VWS community, keep reading to learn about our referral pilot program launched this fall.

Orange Shirt Day

September 29 is Orange Shirt Day, a time to honour the children taken from their families and communities to residential schools and to affirm that every child matters. We encourage families and staff to wear orange all week.

School Closure

VWS will be closed on (Monday correction) Wednesday, September 30, in observance of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

VWS Marketplace

Check out the most recent listings in the community marketplace. Find items for sale, a help-wanted listing, and several services offered by members of our community.

What Tuition Covers, and What Giving Makes Possible

Tuition covers the cost of running VWS, like classrooms, teachers, and the day-to-day life of the school. Giving, however, supports things that go beyond the operating budget. Donations from our community help with tuition adjustment for families who need it, facility improvements, new equipment, teacher professional development, and community enhancement projects. That giving comes through the Annual Fund, through events like the Winter Fair and the Big Walk, and through everyday contributions like the optional Grocery Card program.

This is the first entry in Why We Give, a section that will run monthly in The Current and weekly in the Waldorf Weekly throughout the year. Over the coming months, we’ll share the thinking behind advancement at VWS, explain how different kinds of giving work, and take stock of what we build together when everyone takes part.

Refer a Family – Earn $500

The best ambassador for VWS is a family who loves it here. If you know someone who has ever wondered about Waldorf education, now is a great time to invite them to take a closer look at one of our upcoming Open House events.

As of September 1, if a family you refer enrolls their child in a K-8 program at VWS and the child completes a three-month probation period, you’ll receive a $500 cheque to use however you wish.

Here’s how it works: when a prospective family submits their inquiry or application, there’s a place for them to name the current VWS family who told them about the school. So if you’ve been talking up VWS to a family who’s interested, ask them to name you when they apply.

A few things to know:

• The new family must name you before enrolling their child.
• Current families may be named on an unlimited number of referrals.
• Each new family may name only one current family as their referrer.
• The program applies to new K-8 enrolments only and is not retroactive.
• You must have a child currently enrolled at VWS to be eligible.

Contact Huy Pham, Finance Manager, at hpham@vws.ca with any questions.

Curved lines in Hemlock Grade 1

I write this newsletter for you, with the hope that you see yourself reflected throughout and find the content worth your time to read. It’s your newsletter. If you have a story about your family’s experience at VWS, a photo from a school event, or a question that might interest others, please contact me at lbergstrome@vws.ca.

Written by Laura and edited for spelling and punctuation by Claude.