FESTIVALS & CELEBRATIONSAt Willowsong, festivals are the beating heart of our yearly rhythm. Steiner education sees the year as a living being that breathes — flowing outward into activity and connection, then inward into stillness and reflection — and our festivals mark these turning points with story, song, movement, and shared kai. They nourish both the spirit of the child and the bonds of our whānau community. Some celebrations are held quietly within the kindergarten day; others are shared more widely with families and the Tairāwhiti community. Together, they anchor the year in beauty, wonder, and belonging.
Spring Fair
Held each spring, our Spring Fair is one of the highlights of our community calendar — a joyful gathering open to kindergarten whānau and the wider Tairāwhiti community alike. It's also our main fundraiser of the year, with proceeds going directly back into supporting our kindergarten. In the Steiner calendar, spring is the great outward breath of the year — a time of awakening, growth, and expansion — and this festival mirrors that energy through stalls, seasonal crafts, kai, and celebration, bringing our community together in a shared spirit of connection, generosity, and fun.
Whitsun
A gentle celebration within the kindergarten, Whitsun falls within the Steiner festival calendar as a festival of individual spirit and inspiration, traditionally associated with the descent of insight and inner light. For our tamariki, it is a quiet turning point in the year — a time for reflection, story, and togetherness as a small kindergarten community.
Matariki
We honour Matariki, the rising of the star cluster that marks the Māori New Year, as one of our most meaningful celebrations. Steiner education holds deep reverence for the wisdom of the stars and the living connection between the cosmos and the earth, and Matariki offers a beautiful, place-based expression of that same reverence here in Aotearoa. Within the kindergarten, tamariki learn the stories of Matariki through song, story, and reflection — a time to remember those who have passed, celebrate the present, and look with hope toward the year ahead.
Autumn/Harvest
Autumn brings a celebration of harvest and gratitude, honoured both within the kindergarten and, at certain times, together with our wider community. In the Steiner rhythm of the year, autumn is a great in-breath — the earth's forces drawing inward as we gather and give thanks. Tamariki take part in gathering, preparing, and sharing kai, connecting with the rhythms of the land, the courage needed to meet the coming darker months, and the generosity of the season.
Easter
Easter is marked within the kindergarten as a gentle celebration of renewal and new life. In the Steiner calendar, it marks the turning back toward the year's outward breath — new growth rising after winter's rest — welcomed through story, seasonal craft, and the simple wonders of springtime.
Christmas
In Aotearoa New Zealand, Christmas arrives in the warmth and abundance of summer. Long days, flowering gardens, and time shared with family create a season of joy and celebration.
Within our kindergarten, we honour Christmas as a festival of light, love, and quiet wonder. Through gentle stories, songs, crafts, and simple seasonal traditions, we create a sense of reverence that speaks to the young child. Rather than focusing on the excitement of gifts, we nurture gratitude, kindness, and the magic that lives in simple moments shared together.
Birthdays
Each child's birthday is celebrated as a special and sacred day within our kindergarten community. Steiner education honours each birthday as a marker of the child's own unfolding biography — a celebration of the unique spirit and journey each tamaiti brings into the world. With story, song, and celebration, we honour each child and the path that has brought them to this moment.