President's Letter Summer 2023
Working Together Collaboratively and Therapeutically, part 2
Dear Friends,
We send greetings here from AHE for the optimal return to your school year. For many, the climate conditions have brought some serious challenges this summer. In Texas, where I live, with continuous triple-digit temperatures, keeping our children hydrated and healthily engaged through movement has been challenging when outdoor time has been restricted. As Rudolf Steiner mentions in the quote below, we often see the "hurried, external life" and its effects on the children we care for. As educators and therapists, we embark on a new school year, hoping to bring a sense of calm, warmth, and caring observations to the families and children we work with. In addition, we wish to summon the capacities of Imagination, Inspiration, and Intuition to support our work and provide safe, engaging, and nurturing environments.
(Our website contains helpful free downloadable articles on movement and child development, useful videos, and other resources).
“Rudolf Steiner once said that if this hurried, external life of ours continues for a few more decades, the children will be born already trembling. Such words can most forcibly impress upon our souls the seriousness of the mission which we have to ourselves and to our time.” – Friedrich Rittelmeyer in Meditation, 1932.
For this issue, we continue to explore the theme of working together collaboratively and therapeutically. We are pleased to offer three insightful articles dedicated to healing modalities that support healthy growth and development for children we encounter. See below for details.
The AHE program of Pop-up Presentations for Waldorf Educational Support program graduates, their colleagues, and friends working in schools, private practice, and other settings is continuing this fall, as we share topics that provide helpful information and practical tools for educators. For more information see the announcement on the Pop-ups page: Pop-ups
We send our best wishes for a successful beginning of the school year.
Warm regards,
Betty Jane Enno
President, Association for a Healing Education
Engaging the Will through Therapeutic Eurythmy
Engaging students in therapeutic eurythmy movement can be beneficial on many levels, one of which is enabling them to activate their own will in guided movement. In Eurythmy we are given the opportunity to connect directly with the universal archetypes, the cosmic forces which have formed us. Dr. Michaela Glöckler explains , "...eurythmy therapy is a ‘decisive instrument’ and an ‘infinite blessing’ that helps one enter into their body, to act on and give guidance to the formative forces."
To read or download the entire article, click here: Therapeutic Eurythmy
Barbara Bresette-Mills completed her eurythmy training in 1991 at Eurythmy Spring Valley, NY. She has been active as a eurythmy teacher of both children and adults: teaching in Waldorf schools, homeschool groups , Waldorf teacher trainings, Lifeways Trainings, and anthroposophical conferences. As a co-founder of both the Austin Eurythmy Ensemble and Chaparral Eurythmy, she has performed artistically in many venues across the country.
Since completing her therapeutic eurythmy training in 2007 in Copake, NY through the Therapeutic Eurythmy Training of North America, she further trained in eurythmy specific to eye conditions. She has been adjunct faculty for therapists in training and has offered webinars on eye eurythmy exercises for colleagues and the public. She currently lives in Michigan.
In North America there are 75-100 trained therapeutic eurythmists. To find eurythmy therapists in your area please visit the website for ATHENA the Association of Therapeutic Eurythmy in North America at ATHENA
CranioSacral Therapy: An empowering gift to our children
It is the practice of a craniosacral therapist to be present and neutral, offering unconditional positive regard. This sets the tone for a person’s inner self-balancing mechanism, a.k.a, Inner Physician, to do its work. The Art of CranioSacral Therapy is to blend, meld, and listen to this inner mechanism. Dr. John Upledger, the developer of CranioSacral Therapy, was an osteopathic physician trained in manual manipulation and used core concepts from Osteopathy to develop the modality. He was working with autistic children at the time.
To read and/or download the entire article click here: CranioSacral Therapy
MeriJayd O’Connor has supported individuals of every age reconnecting and engaging their inner healers for more than 23 years. She is a certified CranioSacral Therapist at the Diplomate level through the Upledger Institute, an Upledger certified presenter, massage therapist and instructor, and a Certified Lactation Counselor. She presents An Introduction to CST for practitioners, and ShareCare classes for caregivers and those curious about CranioSacral Therapy. She is owner of Austin CranioSacral Therapy and can be reached at www.austincst.com
The Will of the Child
One of the most important points of view in Waldorf pedagogy is Dr. Steiner's framework of the soul qualities of thinking, feeling and willing. Steiner's texts on education contain countless references on this topic. This article highlights some of these references and also what teachers have shared about their more successful practices for building healthy will forces.
To read and/or download the entire article click here: Will of the Child
Mary Jo Oresti was the Educational Support teacher at the Detroit Waldorf School for over 35 years and is one of the founders of the Association for a Healing Education and its Educational Support Teacher Development Program.
