THE MESSENGER
Term2 Week 1 Wednesday 22 April 2026
“Come said the wind to the leaves one day, Come o’er the meadows and we will play. Put on your dresses Scarlet and Gold. For summer is gone and the days grow cold.”
- George Elliot
We must have experienced the divine within ourselves, before we can discover it in our environment. - Rudolf Steiner Dear School Community, It’s looking like beautiful weather to start our Autumn/Winter term, and we are looking forward to celebrating the changing seasons with you at the Autumn Festival in Week 4 and then at the Winter Festival at the end of the term. Before that though, there are many opportunities to connect with the rest of the school community at our Working Bee on Saturday 2 May from 8am - 12pm and through the parent sessions with Melanie Deefholts from Developing the Self during Week 1.
Melanie will work directly with students from Class 4 to 12 during the school day and will focus on supporting students with the key developmental stages and challenges associated with their age group. She will also run sessions for parents (not students) in the evenings on Tuesday (Ages 2-7), Wednesday (Ages: 7-12), Thursday (Ages: 12-18).
These sessions are a great way to learn and share about the stages of development that our children pass through and to consider the challenges that face children and families navigating a complex world with competing pressures. Please do your best to support these sessions with your attendance.
A warm welcome to Lily Jones our new cello teacher, we are thrilled to have her join us - and a special hello to her four legged companion Bailey too!.
We are excited to welcome our ten French exchange students who will be here for the term. I know you will make them feel welcome and I encourage everyone to take any opportunity you can to connect with them during school or extracurricular activities. We wish them well and thank their host families for making this experience possible.
Thank you to those of you who attended the Emergency Pedagogy sessions in the holidays. These sessions focused on bushfire recovery and were made available in Mansfield, Ruffy and Alexandra. Thank you to Sandi Valerio who was instrumental in enabling these sessions to happen. From Wednesday in the second week Classes 3-12 will run together first thing in the morning. Students are encouraged to get as far as they can (up Highett St toward the Monkey Gully intersection) before being turned around when time runs out. This is not a race with others, but it is an opportunity to build fitness which requires a capacity to deal with physical discomfort. We will encourage
each student to do their best and to practice pushing (and pacing) themselves. I hope your family has a positive Term 2. We look forward to seeing the students back at school and thank you in advance for your efforts and support for our school.
Happy Term 2!
Glenn Hood | PRINCIPAL
Snow Gum Strings are playing with the Flinders Quartet at Delatite Winery Sunday 3 May 3:30 - 5pm This event is Free to attend.
Parent Workshops at Mansfield Steiner School. All parent workshops
The World is Good, Beautiful & True 0 - 7 years
Early Childhood - Tuesday 21st @7pm
Parents and carers of children in early childhood are warmly invited to join an evening of exploring the first seven years as the foundational place for the future. What are our intentions as parents and what are we working towards is an essential question that we continue to strive and grow towards actively living. In a world of overload of information, stresses and busyness our small but meaningful actions not only support the future growing for our children but can change our lives in positive ways.
Faith, Hope, Love 7-14 years
Primary - Wednesday 22nd @ 7pm
Nourishing the inner life of the 7-14 year old child is an essential gift for their future and a protective factor as they navigate middle childhood. Hand in hand with understanding the child’s experience we also have an opportunity to grow parts of our adult self in order to become a helper of their path and feel equipped to meet their needs with joy and confidence.
Living a Compassionate & Loving Life with Teenagers 14 - 21 years
Secondary - Thursday 23rd @ 5.30pm
Living a compassionate life with teenagers asks us to see where they are and stand beside them as they enter the very significant years of waking up to their Love Filled Light. Even though living with teenagers can be challenging, understanding where they are, we can become a helper of their journey and can turn our tears into a joyous effort. This truly is where the saying ‘the community raises the baby’ turns into loving action, it is a community effort to gather around the group as they seek what will carry them through with strength and clarity into adult years.