RECEIVE THE CHILDREN WITH REVERENCE.
EDUCATE THEM WITH LOVE.
SEND THEM FORTH IN FREEDOM.
- Rudolf Steiner

It is hard to say in words what a tremendous experience it is to spend eight years teaching one group of children. To witness the first day of school in first grade and to prepare them to cross the final threshold of graduation is amazing. Nearly every student in the Sapphire Class has traveled together since first grade in 2004. This lively, fun-loving group came together before there even was a Siskiyou School. Their parents began to form the class when they were still preschoolers! Our early days together were very much like embarking on a voyage in unknown waters.

In the past eight years we’ve heard many legends, docked our ship on foreign shores, explored under the earth and into outer space, and met with many challenges. Singing and laughing all the way, we camped at Box R Ranch, played drums in the rain at Silver Falls, competed with other athletes at an Olympiad, fired the trebuchet at the Medieval Games in Portland, and hiked part of the Pacific Crest Trail. Now we’re set to embark on our final voyage before saying farewell. Students in this class have literally traveled the world, but few have explored our own Pacific Northwest. So, it’s off to Canada (our favorite country since 5th grade) and to Puget Sound where we’ll spend time sailing on a tall ship, serving on watch at night, and perhaps climbing an 80 foot mast! In the process we’ll help with scientific study to help preserve the purity of the eco-system that supports marine life around the San Juan Islands.

We hope you can help us on our way by supporting the class in their fund-raising efforts for this final journey. Please enjoy your “trip” through our site, read what the students have to say, and see the photos of our eight years together. Thank you!

Debbie Murphy, Class Teacher