Extended outdoor time is nothing new at the Charlottesville Waldorf School, where nature walks into the forest are a weekly tradition in many classes and recess is held on the spacious playgrounds regardless of the weather.
This year, students can look forward to moving outdoors even more, with official outdoor classroom spaces allocated for each grade.
Charlottesville Waldorf School is set to open on Tuesday with in-person instruction for preschool through eighth grade, featuring outdoor classrooms and unique indoor spaces
While the goal is to move almost exclusively outdoors, the school campus and classrooms are also uniquely situated for operating in safety during the pandemic – each classroom has an individual exterior entrance, eliminating the bottlenecking and close quarters of the entryway and hallways in a traditional school building; each classroom is outfitted with a separate air supply system to avoid contamination between spaces; and each classroom has an individual bathroom and an additional multi-use sink with filtered water.
Specialty classrooms are located across the playground – instead of traversing a crowded hallway between classes, students have another opportunity for fresh air and outdoor exercise!
CWS faculty and administration have developed a plan for in-person instruction for preschool through eighth grade students that combines detailed attention to safety precautions with providing a truly beneficial educational and social experience for the students.
“In our efforts to preserve physical health,” School Director Amanda Tipton said, “we must also keep in mind the emotional wellbeing of our community by promoting healthy and clearly communicated guidelines and avoiding situations that restrict children’s movement, artistic expression, and human connection, overextend our faculty and staff, or create extra stressors for parents.”
This comprehensive view of child development and education, inclusive of the social health of the community, are hallmarks of Waldorf Education.
Learn more about the Charlottesville Waldorf School and how CWS students and faculty are going Back to School in Safety at www.cwaldorf.org.
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