Winter 2024
Leslie Wetzonis Woolverton and Lynn Turner, co-founders of WIDEN Arts, have shared this blog with us!
Life is told through story. We experience life through our senses and learn about the world and our place in it through the stories we see, hear, feel and tell. As such, when we actively develop an intimate relationship with story and storytelling we are able to bring warmth, learning and healing to our human story, nurturing a sense of belonging for all of life and creation.
Lynn and I have known each other for over a decade as colleagues. Our working together in Waldorf early childhood spaces has led to a deep and lasting friendship that has immeasurably enriched our lives in our work, our love for each other, and the full world around us. Plant dyeing, making puppetry, telling tales and bringing many stories and fairytales to life is transformative. It is soul nourishment for young and old alike that centers our imaginations. Working with all of these steps, from selecting a story or fairy tale, singing and practicing together developed the inner confidence needed to embody stories. In turn, every effort and exploration enriches the inner imagination and landscape for young children. This joy is what we will share with you throughout the workshop.
Here are two pictures of practicing before sharing with our class children.
Leslie and Lynn have an upcoming online class series with us here at LifeWays!
Click the image below to learn more about the class and enroll today!
Lynn Turner (she/her) is a native Washingtonian, wife, mother of two children. She is of mixed heritage and the proud descendant of enslaved African American people. She has been a culturally responsive early childhood educator, teacher trainer, and leader in the movement of Waldorf Education in Northern America for over fourteen years. Lynn holds a BA in Fine Arts, and an MAT in Early Childhood Education, and received her Waldorf Early Childhood Teaching Certificate in 2017. She is a Biography Worker, currently completing her third year of training in Biography and Social Art. Lynn has been published in Gateways and Kindling Magazines and has been a workshop presenter and keynote speaker at WECAN conferences. She was the Director and Core Faculty member of the Great Lakes Waldorf Institute, Early Childhood Training Cohort from 2020-2023. She currently serves on the Biography as Social Art Board of Directors.
Leslie Wetzonis Woolverton (she/her) For more than twenty years, Leslie Wetzonis Woolverton has taught Waldorf Parent-Child and Nursery classes at Acorn Hill Waldorf Kindergarten & Nursery School located in Silver Spring, Maryland. Currently, Leslie is a member of the WECAN Early Childhood Research Group (Two recent WECAN Publications), and works also as a WECAN Site Visitor and Teacher Trainer for several Teaching Institutes in North America. As a third generation Anthroposophist, Leslie brings a broad scope of wisdom and knowledge to Waldorf Early Childhood Education from her own early childhood. Now out of the classroom, Leslie loves her work with adults as a teacher trainer, mentor and evaluator, visiting many schools and new teachers across the country. Leslie is also a skilled textile artist and interior designer for close to forty years. Leslie enjoys writing and compiling early childhood stories that reflect the world in the interest of advancing inclusion, diversity, equity, and access by creating puppetry to bring classics, cultural tales and her own new stories to life. When not working, Leslie spends time with her family and friends at her beloved beach home in Chincoteague Island, Virginia.