Arbor Day Takes Root

On Friday, April 24, Arbor Day came to life in the best possible way at the Waldorf School of Baltimore.

Baltimore City Forestry officers joined us outside, reading aloud a proclamation about Arbor Day's origins while students from grades 1 through 8 gathered in a circle around them. Then came a planting demonstration of a new native elm, chosen for its fast growth and the shade it will one day bring to the Cherry Tree play yard. From there, students broke into mixed-age groups and spread across campus with Forestry volunteers by their side, answering every question the kids could dream up. By morning's end, more than 25 native trees were in the ground.

Planted by the same hands that had been raised with questions the whole way through.

This is what we mean when we talk about learning that is lived rather than delivered. At the Waldorf School of Baltimore, a proud U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School, Arbor Day isn't just a date on the calendar. It's a reminder that our deepest work is raising the next generation of caretakers for this earth. And on days like this one, you can feel exactly that taking root.