As every summer, our teachers attended for 3 weeks to the Waldorf Teacher Training in the Anthroposophical Development Center in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. This enriching experience, in addition to go deep into the pedagogical principles that we apply daily in our work, serves also to share experiences with teachers coming from very different places and countries. This training is received with enthusiasm and reverence, as it helps our educational community and all of San Marcos La Laguna continue raising awareness of intercultural education for freedom.

The activities cover areas as diverse as methodology courses, anthroposophy, handicraft workshops, working with mud, music or Waldorf dolls. Also, illustrious people share their  pedagogical experience in the form of lectures and conferences. This year we delved into such exciting topics as “The 7 virtues of the Teacher” or “Life, death and reincarnation.”

After three weeks of intense work, we return to the daily rhythm in Escuela Caracol, where we can share with our community our coexistence in Cuernavaca. In the last three months of the school year there is still plenty of time to join our groups and to offer everything  we learned socially, culturally and personally.

This year Escuela Caracol had the opportunity to be represented at the XII Latin American Congress of Waldorf Education, which was held in the city of Cali, Colombia, from 12 to 18 July. The congress is held every three years in different countries and schools in South America. Andrea, Maribel and Enrique shared their experiences in San Marcos La Laguna along with other 470 participants from all Iberoamerica. Being the only representatives of Central America, it was an extraordinary and outstanding participation.

We arrived at the school Luis Horacio Gomez on Sunday 12 July with excitement and expectations of what this meeting would be. With much surprise and joy we saw the facilities in this school that has existed for over 30 years. Every corner and every wall contains artistic details that show the love they put into this education.

There was a beautiful opening concert and welcome by the choir and orchestra made up of primary and secondary students at this school. At the end we attended the first conference on Inner Parth of the Teacher, taught by Florian Osswald, president of the educational section of the Goetheanum (anthroposophy headquarters in Dornach, Switzerland).

The work schedule for this week was intense but very rewarding, with activities from 7am until 9pm. During this time we attended artistic-educational presentations on the Tenth Conference of the Study of Man (Rudolf Steiner), by Colombia, Brazil and Argentina; We worked in small groups to deepen about the conference and presentation; had artistic activities and free enterprise initiatives as deepening in the teaching of mathematics in primary (Andrea), meeting of delegates from all institutions and/or initiatives of each country (Enrique and Maribel), and the presentation of Escuela Caracol at the Eurythmy Hall where we shared our story and presented the documentary; this activity was attended by over 50 people from all the countries represented at the conference. Each of us could participate in a workshop (Maribel: The Light of Kindergarten, Enrique: Modeling, Point and Periphery; Andrea: Transforming Difficult Dialogues), all based on the Tenth Conference and the inner journey of the teacher. Every night we closed with a conference with Mr. Osswald.

Coexistence with other countries and cultures was very beautiful, artistic performances we witnessed much cultural value, such as teachers of Cuzco, Peru; we were impressed. All meeting points allowed talks and exchange of experiences with fellow teachers and parents from Waldorf school of Latin America.

The closing ceremony was accompanied by a play on the history of slavery in the land and how black people came to inhabit this land, represented by Waldorf students. Also there were educational-cultural presentations, verses, rounds and dynamic artistic activities with an educational and cultural approach.

Humbleness, joy, peace and love was always present, available to all the organizers and teachers; the level of organization and knowledge is very high as the Waldorf Education and anthroposophy has been in South America for over 75 years, Argentina being the pioneer in the American continent.

This is and will be an unforgettable experience for the three of us, and we are very grateful for the support of:

Gloria Londoño Elena Valencia, our teacher and guide, who invited,  motivated and accompanied us in this conference.

Our colleagues from the Escuela Caracol for their support.

The organizers, the kneading group, Mario, Bettina, Luz Elena and Beatriz, who always supported us with communication before and during the event.

Mrs. Nana Göble and the Friends of Waldorf Education for their support.

Enrique and Silvia, founders of the school Luis Horacio Gomez.

Without them we would not have been able to attend this Congress that led  Escuela Caracol to share its amazing work in another corner of the world.

• Andrea, Maribel and Enrique

This story is especially emotional for us. The play “Rabbits, a happy family”, performed by a group of students from third and fourth grade, is the culmination of what has been a wonderful year next to Camila. Camila arrived a year ago to Escuela Caracol school to volunteer. During this time she has worked with children and teachers in the classrooms, has participated in the monthly markets and has been a fundamental part of our team.  She created this wonderful play, the first to be played outdoors in ou school.

Camila and their actors and actresses have worked for months, preparing the play with love and enthusiasm. Two afternoons a week, after school classes, they gathered at the palapa to shape this beauty.

This post is also a tribute to her, as she says goodbye to us. Camila, it has been a blessing to have you with us. Your work here has deeply touched the souls of many families, and our educational community will be forever grateful. Good luck in your way, dear Camila!

This week, students of third and fourth grade played Joseph the Dreamer, a class play based on the stories of the Hebrews and created especially for children of 9 and 10 years.

Joseph the Dreamer tells the story of Joseph, sold as a slave by his brothers to the ignorance of the father. Joseph goes to prison in Egypt, where he starts to interpret the dreams of the prisoners. His destiny, however, is ending up being the Pharaoh’s counselor, and his ability to see through dreams led him to earn the respect and admiration of all. He finally meet again with his brothers, they show their repentance, and his father can die peacefully after seeing his disappeared son again.

The story is particularly relevant to this age because it delivers values, emphasizes human errors and their consequences, and reveals the importance of destiny.

The children greatly enjoyed the whole process. There were families who supported in the making of clothing and other members of the team worked for the play to look as beautiful as it looked. Many families and people from the community came to watch the play. It was a great community time! Congratulations girls and boys!

How happy we are! With the support of our friends of Alente, an Aveda spa located in Ellensburg, WA, we could install a water filtration system in our kitchen. Each year, Aveda supports a project that promotes access to clean water, and Alente joins supporting another project. This year they chose us, and as soon as we receive their donation we began installing the water purification system (sediment filters, activated carbon, UV rays and chlorinator).

San Marcos La Laguna tap water is highly contaminated, and is causing a lot of health problems, especially during the rainy season, when the streams coming down from the mountain remove and dirty the water sources. Although we have high quality health and hygiene standards, always ensuring the health of children, having a water filtration system is vital for greater hygiene and food safety in our kitchen, the heart of the Escuela Caracol.

We want to deeply thank our friends from Alente and their community for their support and solidarity. Thank you very much! You have made us very happy! 🙂