The Tuesday Notice

Thank you for joining us at our first big community event, Michaelmas. The weather was lovely and we had a beautiful festival together. Marking the seasons, gathering together, sharing in food and fun are all such important pieces of the fabric of our Waldorf community. Let's keep the spirit of Micha-el's light alive in us as we venture into these darker months!

Special thanks to Ms. Glatte, Miss Benson, and Sarah Collins for holding large parts of our festival. Thank you Mrs. McNamara, Eve, and the second grade, Star Class, for the inspiring play. Thank you to teachers and staff for supporting our students and school. Thank you students and parents for joining us and being the core of our community. Thank you!

This Week

Wed, Oct 1: Hot Lunch Burrito/Taco Wednesday Begins!

Thurs, Oct 2: Hot Lunch Pizza Thursday Begins!

Thurs, Oct 2: Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN) to visit our Kindergarten program

Next Week

Thurs, Oct 9: Main Lesson Tour, 8:30 am

Fri, Oct 10: Class 5 to Lithia Park botany walk, 9:00 am

Fri, Oct 10: Class 3 to Willow Witt Ranch, 10:00 - 1:00 pm

Looking Ahead!

Mon, Oct 13: NO SCHOOL - Indigenous Peoples' Day

Tues, Oct 14: Board Meeting, 6:00 pm

Wed, Oct 15: Anxious Generation Book Group, 6:00 pm

Thurs, Oct 16: Class 8 Play, performance for our community, 6:30 pm

Fri, Oct 17: Class 8 Play, performance for our school, 8:45 am

Couldn't make it to the first meeting, don't worry! Catch up at this link with what we covered, a great video for parents and helpful resources and join us for the next meeting!

9/21 Meeting Info and resources

NEXT DISCUSSION GROUPS:
6:00 - 7:00 pm Pine Hall

Wednesday, October 15th

Wednesday, November 12th

Sign up here!

In just a few weeks, our 8th grade, Blue Heron Class, will present their play. To complete the set, they need to borrow as many beautiful quilts as they can get! If you have a quilt to lend, please bring it to the front office and we'll get it to the class. Thank you!

Stilts are such a special part of recess for us at the Siskiyou School! They get used nearly every day! Walking on stilts lets kids stretch their balance, coordination, and courage, perfect timing for Michaelmas.

Our stilts do require a lot of care to sand them and make sure they're safe to use. We're looking for someone that would like to take on their care under the guidance of Ms. Glatte. If you'd be interested in helping out, please email her at margie.glatte@siskiyouschool.org or give the office a call.

Thank you!

Please make sure your child leaves home with the necessary outerwear, including rain boots and jacket, to stay dry through the day. Children with clothing suited for the weather will be allowed to play outside at recess; children without proper weather gear will stay indoors at recess times.

If you have a child that would join next year's Siskiyou School Kindergarten or First Grade class, please email their name, date of birth, and current school to Kristin at kristin.beers@siskiyouschool.org. We'll begin enrollment for next academic year in January, but we'd love to have you on our list to ensure you get our initial enrollment email. It will be here in the blink of an eye!

Our Kindergarten for our 2026-27 year is already filling up!

Please note, children must be 5 years old by June 1st of 2026 for Kindergarten or 6 years old for First Grade. Thank you!

We love having parents/guardians on campus! If you’re dropping off lunch or forgotten homework, please stop by the office and let a staff member deliver it to the classroom. As much as we know you’d like to pop in and say hello, classroom visits during the day can be distracting and may pose a safety concern for our students. If the desk is unattended, just ring the bell and someone will be right out to help you. Thank you!

All students, their families, teachers and staff are invited to take advantage of the Ashland Community Compost drop off location at the Siskiyou School! Brought to you for the school year by a donation from a Siskiyou School parent and support from the school administration and faculty. Find the big yellow bucket next to the recycle bins in the school parking lot and help us fill it up each week. See https://ashlandcommunitycomposting.org/ for information on what can be composted and why this small step helps reduce greenhouse gas contamination. No plastic labels, wires, or garbage please. Fully compostable Bio bag liners are fine.

For our first Garden Club this Friday, October 3rd we will be focusing on popular flowers for seed saving, collection techniques, cleaning, drying and storage. If you have flower seeds to share, please bring them. Some ideas are marigolds, sunflowers, zinnias, strawflowers, and poppies! See you in the garden!

~ Ms. Leann

They say time flies when you are having fun and it seems that it passes twice as quickly when you are having fun and working hard! It hardly seems possible that in the first month of the school year the 3rd grade Sunrise class has had two field trips and harvested close to 200lbs of produce (huge thanks to Wandering Roots Farm and Leonard orchard). With this bounty we have canned, dried, juiced, and cooked pears, made salsa, pasta sauce, roasted vegetable soup, and salsa! We have heard, discussed, and explored the beginnings of the Hebrew stories of creation, painted, played flutes, sang our hearts out, and hosted animals in our classroom. The children have embraced the challenge of cursive writing wholeheartedly and are SUCH hard workers. I cannot wait to see what our next block brings. Happy Autumn!

~Ms. Aguilar

The year is off to a great start. Our recent Orientation Trip to the Oregon coast was a clear example of 8th Graders rising to a challenge, overcoming difficulty, and emerging as truly capable individuals in a more closely knit group.

Make no mistake, the four-day backpacking hike from Floras Lake to Cape Blanco is no ordinary field trip. We carry all of our necessary belongings on our backs. We tote our food, cooking utensils, sleeping stuff, rain gear, and everything else we need… while simultaneously coming to realize which things we actually DON’T need to carry along. Before leaving, we assess the load and jettison that which is extraneous. The creature comforts of home are left behind. It may be a bit uncomfortable at first, but we soon learn the reason for bringing just that which is necessary.

Backpacking is not easy! We are miles away from our cars and vans, and miles from campgrounds. We carry everything. We are seriously “on the trail.” We sleep under the stars. We filter our drinking water from a fresh water stream. We poop in the woods! OMG! And ultimately, with the guidance of our beloved Outdoor Ed teacher, Tom Shelstad, we hold evening circles with heightened communication. We share our most arduous moments. We give our classmate’s healthy feedback. We apologize. We speak from the heart. We express gratitude. We truly listen. We find time for quiet solo contemplation. We deepen relationships. We celebrate. These are the capacities of the 14 year old, newly found, and lovingly encouraged.

…And all of it is done right on the edge of the glorious, inimitable Pacific Ocean. That extraordinary beauty and gigantic force is immediately and constantly present with us for the entire journey.

Upon our return to the classroom, we prepared for Michaelmas, and started work on our 8th Grade Play. Everything we do this year is the last waltz for our class and we intend to make each event special. Thank you in advance for helping to support our fund-raising efforts as we earn our way for the 8th Grade Trip of next Spring. We’ll be at Winter Faire selling our wares. We’ll deliver Singing Valentines. And we will serve hot food on Wednesdays and Thursdays to the students of the school. So, thank you, dear Siskiyou community.

Lastly, the mighty Blue Heron Class extends a heartfelt thank you to Tom Shelstad and Kate Fox for their expertise and guidance on our recent coast trip. Together, we had such a great journey, and we couldn’t have done it without Tom and Kate. So,THANK YOU!!

Warmly,

~ Mr. Beech

Our community classifieds are posted as a service to our Siskiyou School families and our broader community. If you would like to include something in the classifieds, email your text (a few lines in length) or an image file (png or jpg only), to kristin.beers@siskiyouschool.org no later than Monday by 3:00 pm. We may edit it for space purposes. Classifieds are included for two weeks, require a break for a week, and then can be renewed upon request.

Step into the Magical Botanical Studio this autumn and discover the colors of the earth. In this six-week journey, we’ll gather in the natural dye garden at Sunny Joy Farm to create art infused with nature’s beauty and rhythm. Together we’ll paint with soy milk and food-waste dyes on soft napkins, press flowers into fabric to make eco-printed bandanas, and craft a walnut and oak table runner filled with the quiet magic of the season.

Each class offers more than making—it’s a gentle space to slow down, breathe, and feel restored. Through the soothing movements of eco-arts, youth will learn simple practices for calming their nervous systems, building self-awareness, and finding balance, while weaving their inner world with the beauty of the outer.

Details:
📍 Sunny Joy Farm, Talent, OR
📅 Tuesdays, Oct. 7–Nov. 11 (6 weeks)
🕓 4:00–6:00 PM
💵 $210 total ($168 tuition + $42 supply fee)
🎟 Limited to 5 students. Scholarships available.

My friend Anya (mom of Misha, classmate of Zoya, alumni 2024) and I are organizing first annual Community Fall Fair event at the Artemisia Institute in Ashland. It was originally created by me long time ago to support our children earning their own pocket money by selling their crafts and backed goods. This year is our first joint Fair with Anya's beautiful, healing and resourceful new place in Downtown. It's free to participate so if you have entrepreneurial kids who love to make stuff, please let me know, we would be glad to have you at the fair! And everyone, please come to support those kids, also Ukrainian refugee families, who are cooking amazing foods for sale, just in time for your Sunday lunch!!! Thank you,

Natalya 408-420-0095

Email: office@siskiyouschool.org
Website: www.siskiyouschool.org
Location: 631 Clay Street, Ashland, OR, USA
Phone: 541-482-8223