Vibrant Academics + Inspired Arts + Nature Connection
The Hedge is a place where children's nervous systems are balanced, their minds are inspired, their physical bodies are engaged and their spirits are honored.
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The Hedge Way
Hedges are spaces between the wild and the cultivated, where both worlds can be accessed and explored. The Hedge School offers a holistic education rooted in nature connection, a small student to teacher ratio, and an earth honoring pedagogy supported by Rudolf Steiner’s insights.
Nature at Teacher
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
Wendell Berry
from The Peace of Wild Things And Other Poems (Penguin, 2018)
The Research
“The studies “point in one direction: Nature is not only nice to have, but it’s a have-to-have for physical health and cognitive function.” (Yale University Research)
Scientific investigation (and our own intuition) shows that ample time spent in nature has dramatic cognitive impacts including increased focus, creativity, problem solving and social skills. It also lowers stress levels, improves immunity and reduces symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).
The gesture of honoring the earth permeates all we do at The Hedge. It is foundational to who we are and how we do things. This reverence is woven throughout our day and especially present during our morning circle, where we call to the directions: East-Air, South-Fire, West-Water, North-Earth and Center-Spirit. We celebrate the wheel of the year, honoring the solstices, equinoxes and cross quarter festivals that fall in between. All faiths are welcomed and respected at The Hedge.