"Crisol de Micael" – little school in far away Patagonia

Argentina is seven times as big as Germany and has a North-South dimension of 3.700 km. Waldorf schools exist not only in Buenos Aires, but also in Patagonia. The villages of El Bolson and Lago Ouelo are situated around 1.700 km South East of Buenos Aires, near the tourist city of San Carlos de Bariloche and the border with Chile. Unsatisfied with the state school system, some parents started their own school in 1998 - "La Escuelita" (today "Crisol de Micael"). Sometime later they got to know about Waldorf Education and so in 2003 the teacher training seminar in Buenos Aires organised an external seminar there. Today the initiative has 70 children.

 
Our school was born in 1998 after a convocation made by the mother of a student. In August of that year the initiative began to work with a group of 10 students and one teacher in a rented building.

At the end of 1998 a very difficult economic situation made it necessary for the school to move to the teacher´s house. At that moment we had 17 students divided in two groups.

The school worked at first in the afternoon from 2 to 6 p.m. The classes began with games or songs with the whole group of students, then stories were read, continuing with activities peculiar of the different groups. In a break all children had a prepared snack followed by new activities for the two groups and being concluded with songs, dances or games. There were also recreational or investigative outings, baking bread and festivals, always organized together by teachers, parents and students.

In August 1999 the school moved to the building of a carpentry school. The school had already four teachers, who met weekly to organize in detail the pedagogic aspect of the school. They began with weekly educational outings culminating with a two-day camp closing the term. At the end of the school year there were a performance with marionettes by the students and an exhibition of student works.

In the year 2001 new parents began a "bakery workshop" – the first step of a bakery that could contribute to the school finances. The school began taking part at the “Club of Exchange”, where every Saturday people had an exchange of goods and services governed by rules of solidarity, trust and honesty.
In the year 2002 we rent a new building in the village Lago Puelo. This year the school had 30 students in kindergarten and primary.

Begin as Waldorf initiative

In the year 2003 the all teachers took part at the “Distance Seminar” organised by the Waldorf teacher training seminar Buenos Aires.

At the end of that year there was a workshop “Natural Construction” organized by the School, the Association Civil Diversity of our town and the group Kleiwerk (USA). A clay kindergarten building was built with help from people of many countries! The land was provided by a school mother.

In 2005 the first group of students left the school and had an exam to be admitted in public schools. We observed with satisfaction that they were able to adapt to the new working modality without any problems. In 2006 the school hat 65 children and built a new class room for the primary school – and in 2007 there are 70 children.

Location and Finances

The school is located in a property of 1,5 hectares in an semirural area only 300 mts away of a river and with a view to the Andes Mountain range. There is a strait contact with the nature and a daily life of their changes and rhythms, and the majestic presence of the mountains is very inspiring.
The school now has three buildings. The primary works in a rented house with three classrooms, a kitchen and a central living room where we begin every morning. The kindergarten is located in a neighboring property. The third building is not yet finished and will be the future bakery and hence a contribution to the school finances.
We also have a vegetable garden with hothouse and wide and beautiful spaces of fruit-bearing forests and gardens with games and hammocks.

Regarding the school fees, our monthly quota is determined by dividing the annual budget into the number of families. In accordance with the solidarity spirit that sustains the school, each family is encouraged to make a bigger contribution, if their situation allows it.

The financial situation is often very difficult and asks for great sacrifices of the teachers. But on the basis of solidarity something very precious is growing: The unconditioned love for a common aim.
 
Gustavo Attadia