School History

Lorien Novalis School opened on Monday, September 13, 1971, at Pymble with eight children. By the end of the first term the school had grown to 30 students and relocated to a large house in Normanhurst.

During 1972 five hectares of native bushland with its own orchard (a reminder of past rural days) was found in Dural and the school officially opened its doors there for Term 1, 1973. The road we are situated on is an ancient pathway that has significance to our cultural heritage since Settlement, and to that of the traditional inhabitants of the lands as it is the path to the river Muru Durubbin.

With a combination of helpful benefactors, dedicated hard work by parents, teachers, friends and government grants, Lorien Novalis has grown to a large complex of buildings housing a vital, creative education community providing Playgroup, Little Kindy Prep, Kindergarten, Primary and High School education up to Year 12, as well as Teacher Development and Parent Education.

Our architect, David Jacobson, himself a Steiner school graduate, designed our buildings keeping in mind the developmental and educational needs of the students. This focus on retaining the natural surrounding environment helps younger children nurture imaginative forces and creative play while allowing older students to relate to the outer world. Biologically the school grounds have been developed through Steiner’s guidelines of biodynamics and maintained in this way for 40+ years.