Teachers and Community
Yasmeen Osman - Lead Kindergarten Teacher
Yasmeen was born in South Africa, where she had a strong experience of living in community and spending a lot of downtime outdoors, 'just playing', with a lot of freedom. She also internalized deeply the need to recognize the humanity in all people and to contribute to the creating a better world. She moved to Ottawa when she was 12 years old, and has been mostly rooted here since then.
With a university degree in biology and studies in child development and psychology, she then felt drawn to her long-standing interest in children and education. She was first inspired by the focus on beauty , reverence and and lively engagement of the children in the Waldorf approach. Her interest grew when her daughters attended Waldorf schools, and she completed the Waldorf Teacher Training at Sunbridge College in New York. She has had the privilege of leading Kindergarten programs for the past 23 years, including at École Parsifal and the Garden Gate Program.
Learning and integrating her personal and professional experience continues to be a priority, with the children as treasured among her many teachers. "My task is to hold a space that celebrates the precious un-hurried nature of childhood. I feel honoured to be witness to the profound richness of the children's play and to be in the presence of their joy and wonder." Connecting with family and friends, long chats at the kitchen table, singing together, reading, being in Nature and long walks beside water are cherished activities. Alan Krueger-Lead Grade School Teacher
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Oana grew up in Romania, spending most of her childhood on a small ranch in the village, where she developed an interest in nature, knitting and traditional dancing.
She graduated from the Bucharest University of Economic Studies in 2007 with a Bachelor's in Economics. After several years of working in that field, she |
decided to dedicate her time to things that she was really passionate about, teaching being one of them.
She moved to Mexico in 2013, and has worked as an English teacher since. It was during a volunteering program at an indigenous high school in Mexico that she came across Waldorf education, and so, started her teacher training in Cuernavaca, Mexico in 2018. In 2019 she moved to Canada, graduating from the full-time Waldorf teacher training program at the Rudolf Steiner Centre in Toronto the following year. She is interested in remedial teaching and psychology. She enjoys reading, painting and hiking.
She moved to Mexico in 2013, and has worked as an English teacher since. It was during a volunteering program at an indigenous high school in Mexico that she came across Waldorf education, and so, started her teacher training in Cuernavaca, Mexico in 2018. In 2019 she moved to Canada, graduating from the full-time Waldorf teacher training program at the Rudolf Steiner Centre in Toronto the following year. She is interested in remedial teaching and psychology. She enjoys reading, painting and hiking.
Véronica Lacourcière - Grade School Teacher - Grade 1
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Veronica was born and raised in Chelsea Quebec to a Venezuelan mother and a French-Canadian father. Growing up in the countryside, Veronica was able to experience a simple life in nature while still living in a multicultural and multilingual environment at home. She grew up playing music, dancing, drawing, and playing team sports.
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Combining her interest for fitness and the environment, Veronica planted trees in Northern Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta for 5 years. Planting camps taught her the value of community and the importance of a connection to mother nature.
Veronica has had the opportunity to live overseas for several years and has visited two dozen countries and counting . It was during her travels that she discovered her love for teaching and to start working in a language school in Montreal where she taught English, French, and Spanish. During this time she also attended Concordia University and studied translation and linguistics.
In 2020, Veronica moved to the Rockies in Canmore, Alberta where she discovered Waldorf education. She started her training at The West Coast Institute of Anthroposophy and is continuing her training at The Rudolf Steiner College Canada.
Today, she enjoys practicing yoga, hiking, and spending quality time with friends and family.
Veronica has had the opportunity to live overseas for several years and has visited two dozen countries and counting . It was during her travels that she discovered her love for teaching and to start working in a language school in Montreal where she taught English, French, and Spanish. During this time she also attended Concordia University and studied translation and linguistics.
In 2020, Veronica moved to the Rockies in Canmore, Alberta where she discovered Waldorf education. She started her training at The West Coast Institute of Anthroposophy and is continuing her training at The Rudolf Steiner College Canada.
Today, she enjoys practicing yoga, hiking, and spending quality time with friends and family.
Cole McLaughlin - Nature Connect
Lead Outdoor Facilitator
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Cole is a naturalist, nature mentor, scholar, craftsman and artist. He comes to us having led our first iterations of Nature connect with an organization called Earth Path back in 2017.
Throughout his career, working with kids and adults connecting with nature, Cole has led many day programs and camps with various organizations and communities. His journey started |
with the guidance of a caring mother who inspired by Rudolf Steiner’s work but unable to send him to a local Waldorf school, brought him into his body, mind and spirit through craft, music, story and time in nature. Later, through enrolment in an outdoor group led by his grade six teacher, Cole embarked on a journey that went deep into philosophy, wilderness living and naturalism.
Cole continued through his youth as a participant and eventually leader for young boys and into a career after searching for a way to keep growing his skills and doing meaningful work in his early 20’s. Right around the time that he was enrolled as a undergrad student at University, Cole began planning adult programs with the hopes that he might once again have a cohort to deepen his skills and love for nature and teaching. It was serendipity or chance that Cole stumbled upon an outdoor school at that time called the P.I.N.E. Project and discovered that the Director, Andrew McMartin, had already started building what he though didn’t exist in Toronto and the rest is history.
From 2011 on Cole led and developed programs through the P.I.N.E. Now since moving to the nation’s capital Cole has been sharing his love for nature and craft through his work with various organizations in the area.
He brings a special love of working with local plants to turn their barks into threads and textiles and continues to bring cohorts of kids and adults out and into relationships with the world all around.
Cole continued through his youth as a participant and eventually leader for young boys and into a career after searching for a way to keep growing his skills and doing meaningful work in his early 20’s. Right around the time that he was enrolled as a undergrad student at University, Cole began planning adult programs with the hopes that he might once again have a cohort to deepen his skills and love for nature and teaching. It was serendipity or chance that Cole stumbled upon an outdoor school at that time called the P.I.N.E. Project and discovered that the Director, Andrew McMartin, had already started building what he though didn’t exist in Toronto and the rest is history.
From 2011 on Cole led and developed programs through the P.I.N.E. Now since moving to the nation’s capital Cole has been sharing his love for nature and craft through his work with various organizations in the area.
He brings a special love of working with local plants to turn their barks into threads and textiles and continues to bring cohorts of kids and adults out and into relationships with the world all around.
Amy Edwards - Nature Connect
Outdoor Facilitator
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Amy has been bringing people outside for many years. With a background in early childhood education, Amy decided many years ago that there must be a very good reason why recess is the universal favourite subject. She then embarked on a joyful path of weaving naturalist knowledge and inquiry, storytelling, song, ecology, wilderness skills, and good old-fashioned dirt, mud, and
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snow into her work with young people. She brings experience and gratitude from facilitating the Nature Connect program at Polaris, as well as working for the Pine Project in Toronto and Chelsea Forest School in the Gatineau hills. She and her own children have felt very nurtured by the Polaris community and she feels inspired to compliment the Waldorf curriculum by extending the classroom to the natural world outside.
Dina Cristino - Administrator
Dina was the former administrator of the Ottawa Waldorf School. She comes to Polaris with over 14 years of experience in school administration. She completed her Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Law and Justice before travelling to Portugal, where she completed her ESL teacher training and then became the owner of a language and tutoring centre there for over 11 years. Apart from valuable teaching experience, she also gained vital skills in communication, bookkeeping, human resource management, and more, which she has been able to bring to Polaris.
A number of coincidental events lead her to Waldorf Education upon her return to Canada, and she began her journey a number of years ago after joining a Parent and Child class with her daughter. Waldorf Education’s focus on movement, art, music, storytelling and creating a “lived experience” for the children all spoke to Dina’s own teaching methods and philosophies. That combined with its focus on reverence for the earth and natural toys and lifestyle, fit so well with her family values.
She is grateful for all that Waldorf Education has brought to her personal and family life and thankful to be a part of Polaris and working with the whole community to ensure that all families seeking this unique education have the opportunity available to them.
Growing up in a very small town in Northern Ontario, surrounded by forests and lakes, Dina developed a love for the outdoors and nature. She enjoys spending time hiking and gardening or can be found curled up with a book, when she can find the time, which is her other passion.
A number of coincidental events lead her to Waldorf Education upon her return to Canada, and she began her journey a number of years ago after joining a Parent and Child class with her daughter. Waldorf Education’s focus on movement, art, music, storytelling and creating a “lived experience” for the children all spoke to Dina’s own teaching methods and philosophies. That combined with its focus on reverence for the earth and natural toys and lifestyle, fit so well with her family values.
She is grateful for all that Waldorf Education has brought to her personal and family life and thankful to be a part of Polaris and working with the whole community to ensure that all families seeking this unique education have the opportunity available to them.
Growing up in a very small town in Northern Ontario, surrounded by forests and lakes, Dina developed a love for the outdoors and nature. She enjoys spending time hiking and gardening or can be found curled up with a book, when she can find the time, which is her other passion.
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