Welcome to the website of the Irish Steiner Kindergarten
Association (ISKA), which is Ireland's national voluntary association of
Steiner Waldorf childcare practitioners. Members are based throughout the 32 counties of Ireland.
Associate membership is open to all who support the work of the Association.
The ISKA website is Ireland's primary source of information about Steiner Waldorf
education in early childhood for parents, our members, government and funding
agencies, childcare practitioners and other childcare organisations.
Our activities
ISKA provides support for members as well as responding to the increasing
level of interest in Steiner Waldorf early childhood education more generally in
Ireland. The association has established a programme of workshops on aspects of
Steiner Waldorf education for childcare practitioners and it runs a three-year
part-time training programme (the Early Childhood Education Programme). ISKA
and its activities are supported through the National Childcare Investment Programme.
The ISKA National Co-ordinator, Audrey Flynn, provides general advice, support and information on ISKA services, talks,
workshops, annual conference, newsletters and maintains the mailing list. She is based in the ISKA Office in County Clare
and can be contacted on info@steinerireland.org. The National Development Officer and Siolta Co-ordinator Ulrike Farnleitner
provides pedagogical and quality assurance support and mentoring for Kindergartens and members nationally and can be
contacted on advisory@steinerireland.org.
Further information on Siolta the national early years quality assurance process
here: www.siolta.ie, and the free preschool year
here: www.omc.gov.ie.
More general information on Childcare supports and regulations in Ireland may also be found
at www.omc.gov.ie.
Kindling Journal available
Kinding, the Journal for the Steiner Waldorf Early Years Education (UK) is
be printed twice yearly (Spring and Autumn) and subscriptions are available from
ISKA. Subscribe online...
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Early Writing and the Nursery School Gender Gap
Here is an article (PDF)
in the UK Independent that describes new government measures designed to
accelerate readiness to write among boys in nursery school. Meanwhile multiple current studies,
described here, indicate
that, by age 11, there is no difference between children who are taught to read at ages 5 and 7!
see list of other articles
ISKA Annual Conference – September 18th 2010
Theme: Play, a Remedial Tool
Keynote Speaker: Ulrike Farnleitner.
Venue: Camphill Community Dunshane, Co Kildare.
We look forward to another interesting and inspiring Annual Conference and all are warmly welcome,
whether you work from a Steiner approach or not. Steiner Education has always placed a great
emphasis on Play and has built up valuable expertise and insight in this area which
can be of benefit to all who work with young children, whatever their pedagogical base.
If you are an ISKA Member, it coincides with annual membership fees falling due,
and the cost is combined with the conference fee, making it extra good value for ISKA members.
For full details see the
brochure here.
ISKA 2010 Autumn Newsletter
A new Kindling newsletter is now available. Read it or download a copy
of it here.
Waldorf Education - public lectures
Announcing the 2nd and 3rd in a series of 6 talks on Steiner/Waldorf education,
working towards the opening of a Steiner/Waldorf primary school in Dublin in 2011 and
supporting the existing network of kindergartens.
Pearse O'Shiel (MA ed.) is a gifted and inspiring speaker
dedicated to nurturing the spirit of creativity and wholeness in each
child, a leading light in the movement for real alternatives to mainstream education,
he has been a driving force behind the development of Steiner/Waldorf education in Ireland at all levels, from early
childhood to active learning for adolescents.
Lecture 2: Freedom, Equality, Solidarity. Thursday, 9 September at 7.30pm
Lecture 3: Re-imagining the future. Thursday, 21 October at 7.30pm
Location: Cultivate Centre, St Andrews Street, Dublin 2
€10 to cover costs
€5 for ISKA members (you can join on the night)
Organised by the Saoirse Waldorf kindergarten and ISKA
Contact: Orfhlaith@saoirsewaldorf.com or 087 614 8979
News from Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America
We have been sent an 'update for members and friends' for January 2010 from WECAN. It contains very interesting
news of conferences, courses, books, activities, and worldwide and regional updates and links.
A copy is available here.
Maintaining our Steiner Ethos in the Context of Government Funding
Saturday, January 23.
This is to give advance notice
that there will be a workshop in Cork City on Jan 23rd looking at maintaining our Steiner Ethos
in the context of Government Funding schemes and the pressures of modern Irish Society.
It will be a full day workshop with speakers on the Government Funding Schemes, Aistear Early
Years Curriculum, Siolta Quality Assurance, Kg responses to such pressures in other countries and
meeting the world while maintaining our integrity.
It is highly recommended for all Kindergarten teachers and committee members and to make that
easier, we are charging not per person, but €30 per Kindergarten group.
Full details will be circulated shortly, in the meantime you can get it in your diaries and
start planning who will attend, lift sharing etc.
Helle Heckmann's new book:
Childhood's Garden, Shaping everyday life around the needs of young children
is now available through ISKA. Helle is from Denmark and is active in teacher education throughout
the world. For details on her book, which includes a DVD, click
here.
Healing Stories for Challenging Behaviour, a
new book by Susan Perrow
is appreciatively reviewed here
by Ruth Marshall
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