A new kindergarten in Canmore is accepting registrations for a Waldorf-inspired program that also connects children to nature.
President of the Alpenglow Community Education Society Ronna Schneberger provided interested parents with a presentation of the program and its costs last week at the Ralph Connor Memorial United Church, which is where the school will be located.
“The whole goal of this community education society is to promote, advocate and facilitate Waldorf inspired education and nature connection mentoring,” Schneberger said. “We are starting small first and seeing where we go from there.
“In the future we are aiming to go to Grade 6… so we will need a bigger space but for this year this is fantastic.”
The fees for the school works out to $12 a day, $130 a month or a total of $1,350 which includes tuition, registration fee, society membership fee and $50 a month for snacks and craft supplies.
Originally the move to establish a Waldorf-inspired kindergarten in Canmore proposed to use Canadian Rockies Public Schools facilities.
When the school board turned down the proposal the interested group of parents began looking elsewhere for space.
The program recognizes the important of imagination and play in early childhood development and uses deep sensory experiences to teach children.
“We want them to funnel their imagination into the toys in a deep rich way,” Schneberger said, adding the school will feature a simple home-like environment. “The system is designed to help them think on their own and have confidence in it.”
The Alpenglow society is already a registered non-profit and the school has been certified by Alberta Education.
Kaeli Benoit, who ran the pre-kindergarten program at the Canmore Community Daycare last year, has been officially announced as the teacher for the new school.
The program will run four half days a week, Mondays through Thursdays, and offer a nursery program on Friday mornings for children aged six months to two years. There will also be after school programs for French language skills and forest play.
“This whole nature connection piece is absolutely key for us,” Schneberger said.
Registration is open until July 6 and those interested can contact [email protected]
