REVIEW OF Trillium Waldorf School BY parent, Nicole Nasvytis

(4.5) Student Experience

The atmosphere at Trillium Waldorf is like the storybook school we long for. My son's favorite aspect is definitely the outdoor space and the amount of time he gets to spend there. Unfortunately, his public school only had a small blacktop and a climber that you weren't allowed to use during the winter months, regardless. Trillium features a giant sandpit and little streams, allowing my son to engage his engineering mind and social skills by collaborating with other children (from various grades) to build elaborate forts and waterways. We took one semester off to navigate some life changes, and returning to the same teachers and classmates made the transition back much simpler (at least that's how I feel). He may occasionally complain, as kids do, about teachers or school, but honestly, he's started urging me in the morning to get to school early and always wants to stay in the aftercare program. When I've asked him, he says his complaint is that 'sometimes the teachers can be very silly about little things that don't matter.'

(4) School Leadership

The Tri-Pillar system at the school stands out, and I appreciate the effort to promote open communication between the board, teachers, and parents. I truly valued the administration's support for their community values when I decided we needed a semester off and requested some accommodations before and after that differed from the official rules. They also organize 'parents go to school' activities during the Parent Council meetings, which are a wonderful way to experience the school's atmosphere. Whether someone speaks at a meeting or a fundraiser, I marvel at how engaging the speakers are. It's never dull, and everyone appears quite comfortable with themselves. I would appreciate handouts or posters for upcoming events. They send an email every Friday and try to keep it concise, but with a full inbox, I tend to overlook their emails. They also provide a school calendar that you can integrate with your Google Calendar, but it doesn't show up on my phone. We could have benefitted from a stronger communication system when I felt uncertain about taking that semester off. However, they did communicate well to accommodate us and arranged an excellent meeting before our return, which left me feeling very clear about coming back to the school.

(5) Teaching

The teachers are clearly very passionate about what they do, and I can tell/feel that my son's teacher has legitimately connected with and cares about him. I love that they run parent nights where our grade teacher (Mr. Orme) shows us what the kids are doing and leads us through a few sample activities so we can really get a feel for their daily classes. They also do similar 'teachers go to school' activities during parent council meetings. During one of these activities, I was shocked to find that in Grade 7 they taught the students to understand how our number system is entirely made up, by teaching them how math works if you shift from Base 10 (which we have) to a Base 7 system. It was great!

(4.5) Academics

I believe the school's system for integrating movement and rhythm into learning is ahead of its time. The activation of the body is crucial for processing information, as that information literally needs to flow through the body as electrical and electromagnetic signals. They teach math in a way that's quite easy for my son to grasp. I am a little worried about the school's strong focus on a non-tech environment, and I have a feeling their science curriculum might not be as robust as what I experienced in school decades ago. However, my son is in grade 2, so I can't comment on the upper grades. Of course, I can introduce technology to my son at home, and we're already science enthusiasts in our own right. I feel we need to put in the effort to ensure the transition from Grade 8 to Grade 9 is as smooth as possible. I'm not sure how well Trillium prepares kids for this.

(2.5) Extracurriculars

It doesn't seem that there are any extracurricular activities at Trillium, at least not as far as I've seen. One of the few things I enjoyed about school as a child was joining after-school clubs, as they allowed me to connect with other students who shared similar interests, with whom I otherwise might not socialize. That said, Trillium's lack of extracurriculars isn't necessarily a problem. We all have so many activities for our kids outside of school that adding even more can make our days unnecessarily stressful. Trillium understands this and encourages parents to give their kids plenty of downtime. The events Trillium hosts are wonderful, feeling very community-oriented and magical. If extracurriculars include performances that occur outside of school hours, then those are something the children really look forward to and practice hard for.

(5) Students

I can't remember how many families are in our school; I feel like it could be 140-160 families, many with 2-4 children. The feeling I get at the school is that all the children are quite friendly and comfortable. Somehow, in Grade 1, my son was known by all the children very quickly, and even the grade 8s were quite affectionate with him. The older kids at Trillium really still look and feel like kids. I know shifting from Grade 8 to Grade 9 can be a shock for them, but I feel like it is important to let them experience the safety of being a developing human for as long as possible. The students don't appear to be focused on their appearance at Trillium, and that's healthy.

(4.5) School Life

Yes, my son loves going to school at Trillium. He rushes me to go early in the morning and is upset when I pick him up at 3:30. He would love it if I left him in aftercare every day, which is certainly not how I felt about school growing up. The events they organize are lovely and community-oriented. Each grade is responsible for one of the annual events. The kids definitely look forward to participating in the older grades' events or plays. I'd say that school life is pretty relaxed, possibly as a side effect of not having a heavy load of extracurriculars, which would add to whatever classes we've already signed our kids up for outside of school. This means it's a healthy, lower-stress experience. This is not a school-wide phenomenon by any means, but I absolutely love that the parents in our grade are making such an effort to bond with each other. Last year we had a few events when the kids wanted to have a big outdoor playdate, and the parents also came along with snacks and drinks, creating an impromptu event. This year we just had our first Parents' Night, where our teacher and us went out for a kid-free night to socialize, and it was such a special and fun experience.

(4) Community

Parents are encouraged to volunteer. In the early grades, they can attend the Friday Forest Walk. We can also volunteer as drivers for field trips, which I prefer over using a school bus. One parent mentioned she discovered that you're allowed to request to sit in on a class, and it meant a lot to her to see how sweet the children were during class time. Additionally, we have the parent council. There are also days when parents pitch in to tidy up the yard and perform maintenance together. I appreciate knowing that certain features of the playground were literally built by this parent, or that another parent repaired the swings. It adds a sense of meaning to the environment to have so many small stories interwoven with all the positive aspects of the school.

(5) School Location

It's lovely that the school is within walking distance of the Victoria Road forest/trail. The young kids go there every Friday afternoon for a forest walk, and it's so sweet. We have Victoria Road at our entrance, an elderly home on the playground side, and quiet streets and homes lining the other two boundaries of the school (obviously fenced off). I don't imagine the students leave the school property unless it's for a class-related reason. It would be convenient if the school were closer to where I lived, but that can't be helped!

(5) Admissions

The application process was straightforward. I remember thinking how interesting it was that the prospective teacher (and I believe another staff member?) interacted with my son and subtly assessed aspects of his development that I had never heard mentioned before - like whether he could cross the midline while drawing or switch hands. It demonstrated that they genuinely pay attention to the child's physicality and development, not just their memorization skills. I don't think there's anything I would change about the admissions process.