Cedarwood Principles
*Group bonding & socialization
*Nature immersion & unstructured free time
*Emphasis on individual empowerment
*Place-Based education
*Inquiry-Based teaching style
*Low teacher:student ratio
*Small class size
*Positive reinforcement approach
*Respect for others, self, and all life
"The first five years of life are the most important for a child to learn lifelong skills and attitudes. Close contact with nature contributes to young children's motor, sensory, social, emotional, moral, cognitive, physical, and mental development."
-Erin Kenny Cedarsong Forest Kindergarten
"Our task, regarding creativity, is to help children climb their own mountains, as high as possible. No one can do more. Things children learn by themselves without our intervention are the most important things. Each child has a hundred ways of playing."
-Loris Malaguzzi Reggio Emilia Approach
"Receive the children in reverence, educate them in love, and send them forth in freedom. Our highest endeavor must be to develop free human beings who are able of themselves to impart purpose and direction to their lives."
-Rudolf Steiner Waldorf Education
Cedarwood Nature School: Meet our teachers
Miss Cedella
Co-Founder & Lead Teacher at Cedarwood Nature School
- Certified in CPR, AED, and first aid through the American Red Cross
- Miss Cedella is our Lead Teacher here at Cedarwood Nature School. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and Early Childhood Education from Winona State University, MN. Having a lead teacher that holds dual degrees ensures that the curriculum will bridge the gap between Waldorf play and kindergarten readiness seamlessly. She has worked at Bluffview Montessori Charter School in Winona where she found the Montessori method to be empowering for children to learn at their own pace as well as follow their interests. She has also worked in special education through the MN public school and values the uniqueness of each child. She was a student of two Waldorf schools while growing up and has a profound respect for the importance of play-based learning in early childhood development. Miss Cedella has cared for newborns through school age kids for five years at Winona YMCA Child Watch. She was the Lead Teacher for the Youth Summer Program at the YMCA Winona as well. She has many years of experience providing exceptional private in home nanny care for toddlers and multiple aged kids. She has a decade of experience working with infants and children. Cedella is deeply passionate about creating healthy, wholesome, and natural learning environments. She has a kind, patient, and caring personality. We are very excited to have her lead the way here at Cedarwood Nature School!
Miss Melissa
Co-Founder & Assistant Teacher at Cedarwood Nature School
- Certified in BLS, AED, and first aid through the American Heart Association
- Miss Melissa is our Assistant Teacher and School Nurse here at Cedarwood Nature School. Her first Bachelor's Degree is in Botany from Montana State University with emphasis on native land restoration, sustainable permaculture, ethnobotanical medicine, and edible indigenous xeriscaping. She loves to do organic gardening with children and teach about the wonders of nature. Having a teacher with a degree in botany is the gold standard for a nature-based curriculum. Melissa enjoys teaching children deep, authentic lessons about local Minnesota plants, foraging, ecosystems, and wildlife. She was a Waldorf and wildschooling parent for many years. Wildschooling is an education style that connects children to nature and involves outdoor play learning. Melissa also has decades of experience working as a Registered Nurse in pediatrics, family practice, urgent care, naturopathic medicine, functional medicine, and currently works weekends at Mayo Rochester. Having a seasoned Registered Nurse with pediatric and urgent care experience on-site is a valuable part of Cedarwood Nature School. In a nature-based program with kids using real tools, climbing trees, and exploring outdoors, having immediate triage is a premium feature of our learning environment. Melissa has decades of personal experience in nature based education and Waldorf education. She also volunteered as a School Nurse in The Driftless Region at Three Rivers Waldorf School. Melissa has a very nurturing energy and we are grateful to have her here at Cedarwood Nature School!
