Haleakala Waldorf School

Academic Programs

Early Childhood FAQ

Thank you very much for your interest in Haleakala Waldorf School’s Early Childhood Program. We hope that this information will help to outline our process. Our Admissions Coordinator is available to answer any further questions you may have.

Download this FAQ as a PDF.

What are we looking for?

The Early Childhood Department is looking for children and their families that are a good fit with our school and its philosophy of play based/nature oriented curriculum. Specifically, we are looking for families that want to enroll their children in our school all the way through the 8th grade. This is a long term relationship with the school and with the co-parents in your children’s class. To facilitate this we are looking for those who share our values and are interested in:

• Preserving a play-filled childhood for their child, in which formal academic instruction begins in the first grade,
• Learning about child development and the stages of childhood within the Waldorf tradition,
• Helping to create a peace-filled, kind, tolerant, media free, community environment allowing each child to safely unfold at his/her own pace,
• Creating a healthy and nurturing, rhythmical life at home that allows the young child to develop to their full potential in mind, body, and spirit.

What do we offer?

• The ‘Apapane preschool—serves 16 children daily with two, three and five day programs offered, each with a 12:30 pm or 2:30 pm dismissal option.
• The Nene and Pueo kindergartens—serve up to 22 students per day on a five day a week program, with a 1 pm or 2:30 pm dismissal option.
• Parent/Child Program—a playgroup, in 6 week sessions, where toddlers age 1 - 2 years and one or both parents/guardians attend together. (Times & details TBA.)

Who Should Apply?

• To the ‘Apapane preschool—children who are 3 years old by June 1st of the year they are applying through ‘young’ four year olds. All children should be weaned and potty trained.
• To the Nene and Pueo kindergartens—children who are ‘older’ four year olds through 5 years old. These children will move up to first grade when they are six by June 1st prior to going to first grade.
• For our Parent/Child Program—families in our inquiry or application pool with children ages 1 & 2 years old will receive a first-come-first-served invitation to join, as dates are finalized. This playgroup is designed to introduce families to Waldorf early childhood education through observation, play and discussion. Each session will include circle time, a small snack, playtime and articles for parents on different topics.

When and how do we apply?

• Read the materials included in this packet.
• Call to arrange a campus tour.
• Complete an Application for Admissions and submit with a current photo of the child, a copy of his/her birth certificate, a reference from current or past teacher if they are attending or have attended another program, and the application fee. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
• We will call to arrange an interview with your family and the teachers at the appropriate time. This could be during open enrollment (January – March) for Fall or during the school year if space allows.
• We strongly encourage you to read the packet and attend the school tour prior to applying. This way you will have a general understanding of our particular school, our philosophy and our program which will be reinforced and expanded upon during the tour. The tour is your opportunity to see the classrooms, the teachers, and the children as well as your opportunity to ask questions that the general information may have sparked. If you are still interested in the program after reading the information and attending the tour, please submit an Application for Admissions. Applications for Fall consideration are available in January, and should be submitted by the first week in March. Late applicants will be considered and processed only when space allows.

What should we expect during the interview?

We use a group interview process during ‘open enrollment’ that lasts for about an hour. While the children are observed amongst their peers by the early childhood teachers, their parents are part of a group session in a nearby classroom. A follow-up survey is completed by the parents so that teachers have a better understanding of the whole family. Children who are physically healthy, well rested, and fed, fare the best on interview day. Please prepare your child for this day by letting them know they will be playing with new friends while mom and dad visit with teachers nearby.

How and when are decisions made?

A large part of the decision to accept your family is based on the group interview. The remaining components include the information gained from the application and the follow-up survey handed out at the interview.

In order to ensure a balanced class configuration, when we add “new” children we take into account:

• The children’s ages in relation to our June 1 cut-off date
• The number of children within each age group
• The gender balance in each age group and in each class, to foster friendships and peers
• Diversity, including cultural, financial, and temperamental aspects of the children
• The children’s developmental milestones within each age group, including physical, social, emotional, and cognitive
• The children’s ability to integrate into a large peer group and/or ability to separate from parents
• The family’s possibility for a long-term relationship with HWS

During our open enrollment process, our notification deadline is typically April 1st. If your family is being considered for mid-year acceptance, we will make every attempt to notify you with a decision within a week of the interview. (In some cases this may not be possible, but in most cases it is sooner rather than later.) The office, not the teachers, will notify you of our decision.

What about registration?

When an acceptance is made, registration materials are included with your letter. You will then have two weeks with which to make a decision and submit the required fees, forms and health requirements to register your child. Please remember that all new families are on a six week probation period.

What if we are not accepted?

If it is determined during the interview that your child/family would not be a good fit for our school and/or vise versa, you will receive our regrets and we wish you well in finding the right program for your child. However, should our regrets be because we have filled all available spots in our program, we will hold the application in our ‘applicant pool’ (we do not use a ‘waitlist’) and we will contact you in the event that movement occurs and we would like to set up another visit. If your family has not been contacted as the year progresses and you would like to be included in the following year’s ‘open enrollment’ process, please call us in January to find out how to ‘roll over’ the application.