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Noviembre es Barriletes – November is Kites

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November is the month of kites at Lake Atitlán. Each year at Escuela Caracol the children look forward to making and flying their kites all over the town. They make them using a reed that grows naturally in the mountains and crate paper of different colors. Sometimes they even cook jocotes (our local fruit) and then use their pulp as a glue. Kite making helps to develop their sense of symmetry (without which the kites won’t fly!) as well as skills in practical geometry.

Kites are a long-standing and treasured tradition in Guatemala. Many places even hold kite festivals where groups come together to make and fly kites that approximate the size of a small plane! It is also a tradition with deep spiritual roots.
The tradition of flying kites in the cemeteries of Guatemala on the Day of the Dead dates back at least 111 years. During this special time of year, when the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead is believed to be most porous, people attach hand-written messages to the tails of the kites. These messages are intended to reach the heavenly spirits when the kites ascend to the sky, letting them know that they are wanted and guiding them on their journey from heaven to earth. The kites test the winds and signal the spirits until four in the afternoon, when they are lowered and families gather at home to await the arrival of the souls.

http://www.grupoquepasa.com/the-kites-of-santiago-sacatepequez/

Learning about Maguey

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Children 5th and 6th grade learned about the process for obtaining maguey fibers. They learned that maguey fibers obtained by processing the leaves. The leaves were cut from the body of the plant and the spines removed. The leaves were then cooked in an oven to make then tender. Once they were cooked, the leaves were used as food or scraped over a pounding slab to obtain long threads to make ropes or to spin to weave textiles.

New Classrooms Grand Opening Event

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We are pleased to invite you to the inauguration of our new classrooms.

We have organized several activities, such as music, food, Festival del Jocote and kite flight.

The event will be covered by the national media.

Come and share with us this special moment!

  • Date: Wednesday, October 23rd 2013 – from 9:00 AM on
  • Location: Escuela Caracol, Barrio 3, San Marcos La Laguna, Sololá, Guatemala

Hike to the Rock & Other Activities

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While our local river still flows from the rains, the classes are making hikes back in the valley to explore the river. Here you see the class 3-4 at the “roca grande”, also called the “elephant rock” sometimes. It is one enormous rock the size of a house with waterfalls on both sides. Other photos here include the class 3-4 visiting the Museum Tzunun Ya’ in San Pedro La Laguna, where they learned about our local volcanoes and ancient Mayan culture.

A Virtual Tour of Escuela Caracol

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Discover a little about the environment in which the Escuela Caracol is located, and some of the spaces where every day our children play and learn.

Dance Classes at La Cambalacha

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When we returned from our mid-year vacations in August, the students in the primary grades began having dance class once a week. The class takes place in the dance studio of La Cambalacha, our neighboring arts center. Gabriela Cordón, who has taught dance classes for Caracol in the past, is teaching the class. The movement work she does with the students is broad in scope (e.g., cross-lateral, balance, stretching, strengthening, coordination) and is both challenging and fun. Certain elements are even similar to eurythmical work, such as interweaving group movement.  In this photo you see the 3rd-6th grades in their class.

Open House at Escuela Caracol

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Empezamos el ciclo de inscripciones y la Escuela Caracol les invita el día 8 de octubre a una Jornada de Puertas Abiertas, a partir de la 8:30 a.m.  En este día podrán conocer las actividades que a diario se realizan en la escuela, así también como conocer sobre la Pedagogía Waldorf y nuestras nuevas aulas.

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We started the enrollment cycle  and Escuela Caracol invites on October 8 an Open Day, from 8:30 a.m. In this day you will learn the every day activities that are conducted in the school, as well you may know about Waldorf education and our new classrooms.

What is Waldorf Education?

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For the Waldorf student, music, dance, and theater, writing, literature, legends and myths are not simply subjects to be read about, ingested and tested. They are experienced. Through these experiences, Waldorf students cultivate a lifelong love of learning as well as the intellectual, emotional, physical and spiritual capacities to be individuals certain of their paths and to be of service to the world.

Developed by Rudolf Steiner in 1919, Waldorf Education is based on a profound understanding of human development that addresses the needs of the growing child. Waldorf teachers strive to transform education into an art that educates the whole child—the heart and the hands, as well as the head.

When you enter a Waldorf school, the first thing you may notice is the care given to the building. The walls are usually painted in lively colors and are adorned with student artwork. Evidence of student activity is everywhere to be found and every desk holds a uniquely created main lesson book.

Another first impression may be the enthusiasm and commitment of the teachers you meet. These teachers are interested in the students as individuals. They are interested in the questions:

  • How do we establish within each child his or her own high level of academic excellence?
  • How do we call forth enthusiasm for learning and work, a healthy self-awareness, interest and concern for fellow human beings, and a respect for the world?
  • How can we help pupils find meaning in their lives?

Teachers in Waldorf schools are dedicated to generating an inner enthusiasm for learning within every child. They achieve this in a variety of ways. Even seemingly dry and academic subjects are presented in a pictorial and dynamic manner. This eliminates the need for competitive testing, academic placement, and behavioristic rewards to motivate learning. It allows motivation to arise from within and helps engender the capacity for joyful lifelong learning.

The Waldorf curriculum is broad and comprehensive, structured to respond to the three developmental phases of childhood: from birth to approximately 6 or 7 years, from 7 to 14 years and from 14 to 18 years. Rudolf Steiner stressed to teachers that the best way to provide meaningful support for the child is to comprehend these phases fully and to bring “age appropriate” content to the children that nourishes healthy growth.

“When children relate what they learn to their own experience, they are interested and alive, and what they learn becomes their own. Waldorf schools are designed to foster this kind of learning.”
—Henry Barnes, a longtime Waldorf teacher and the former Chairman of the Board of AWSNA

Guatemalan National Day Celebration

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The past September 15th we celebrated the Guatemalan National Day. Here you can check some pictures of the event and the participation of Escuela Caracol.