An introductory workshop on the unique Waldorf Education system was conducted by Kristina Doering, an experienced Waldorf teacher from Germany from 26 December to 29 December, 2008 at the Samata Office premises.This widely known system of education which stresses on the holistic development of a child through the three-fold formulae of the 'thinking, feeling and willing' processes of development was an eye opener to the participants, who were from the mainstream curriculum. The workshop, open to educational institutions and individuals was attended by about 35 members from the teaching fraternity.

On Day 1, the participants had Rudolf Steiner's philosophy in a nutshell. Kristina introduced the system touching up on the various aspects of Waldorf education. Commencing the workshop with the customary singing and rhythmic sessions the teachers were initiated into the Waldorf way of teaching and learning. On days 2, 3 and 4 the teachers went through the wonderful experience of learning methods to open children's minds to the world of imaginations. The teachers participated enthusiastically, shedding all their initial inhibitions and it was quite encouraging to see the zeal with which the teachers imbibed the methodology. Kristina's creativity, originality and fresh approach to every aspect of teaching gave the participants a lot of food for thought. The workshop included lessons in reading, narrating stories, rhythmic activities, singing and painting. The last day was kept aside for innovative Maths teaching, which was done by a senior teacher, Mr.Jagannatham from The Sun School, Vijayanagaram. He demonstrated how learning Maths can be made more pleasurable through various simple activities.

In all these days of practical learning, Balamitra teachers and students proved their mettle by exhibiting their skills and expertise. Our teachers' expertise in teaching was an eye-opener for the mainstream teachers.

The workshop ended with an overwhelming feedback from the participating teachers. They reiterated that the instant result that they got from trying out the various pointers which Kristina had given was very encouraging. This workshop has succeeded in changing the way a teacher would look at the prospect of 'teaching' children. From now on we can expect that 'Schooling' would be a 'Happy' experience for both the teachers and the little children.

Dhaatri Trust and Balamitra thank Kristina for bringing 'happiness' to teaching and learning.