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Libraries Rec. Dpts/YMCA's And More....
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When you send your children off to school, you place them in an environment where they will spend more ‘awake’ time each day than in your home with you. Just consider what this means. The school now becomes an overwhelming influence in shaping the future of your children in all aspects of their development, from social to moral and from aesthetic to cultural. In school they will be influenced by teachers, the school’s aesthetic environment, their classmates, and the particular educational philosophy on which the school is founded. The choice you make in selecting a school for your children during these formative years is a most important decision in your life.
When you enter a Waldorf school, the first thing you may notice is the care given to the building. The walls are usually painted in lively colors and are adorned with student art work. Evidence of student activity is everywhere to be found and every desk holds a uniquely created main lesson book.
Another first impression may be the enthusiasm and commitment of the teachers you meet. These teachers are interested in the students as individuals. They are interested in the questions:
· How do we establish within each child his or her own high level of academic excellence? · How do we call forth enthusiasm for learning and work, a healthy self-awareness, interest and concern for fellow human beings, and a respect for the world? · How can we help pupils find meaning in their lives?
THE WALDORF APPROACH
Waldorf education values: · family and community life · a healthy unfolding of childhood · joy in the learning process · education focused on wholeness in body, soul and spirit · intellectual excellence, imagination, strong memory, and problem-solving skills · viable alternatives to high-stakes testing · age-appropriate use of the media · training of ethical and moral judgment · beauty of the environment as a formative force in the child’s world
Every Waldorf school, each in its own way, seeks to meet these objectives.
Teachers in Waldorf schools are dedicated to generating an inner enthusiasm for learning within every child. They achieve this in a variety of ways. Even seemingly dry and academic subjects are presented in a pictorial and dynamic manner. This eliminates the need for competitive testing, academic placement, and behaviorist rewards to motivate learning. It allows motivation to arise from within and helps engender the capacity for joyful life-long learning.
One notable and unique aspect of Waldorf education is the alignment of the curriculum and the phases of child development and cognitive awakening. Related to this is the evolving social relationship between teacher and child through each of these various phases.
HOW DID WALDORF BEGIN?
The Waldorf founder, Rudolf Steiner, was an Austrian scientist and philosopher born in 1861. He was well-known in the artistic and intellectual circles of the German-speaking world as an original thinker and scientist at the turn of the century. He was invited by industrialist, Emil Molt, to form a new school for the children of the employees of the Stuttgart Waldorf Astoria Cigarette Factory.
Steiner took this opportunity to demonstrate how a school curriculum and teaching methods might be effected so that clarity of thought, sensitivity of feeling and strength of will would best be developed in human beings.
The first school was opened in 1919. In 1928 the first school in North America was opened in 1928 in New York City. The number of schools outside Germany grew slowly until the early 1970s, when an explosive growth began. There are now over 900 schools in 83 countries, making Waldorf education the fastest growing independent educational movement in the world, offering the full range of education for children from 3 to 18 years of age.
Waldorf schools are part of an international movement, though not part of a regulated organization. The schools are united by the shared dedication to the Waldorf curriculum and pedagogy and a conviction that this schooling can help children to become free-thinking, socially-responsible, and strong-willed adults.
Virtually all Waldorf schools are self-administered. The teachers and staff meet weekly and make decisions regarding the social, administrative, and educational life of the school. The faculty and staff also study together particular aspects of Waldorf education.
WHAT MAKES WALDORF EDUCATION UNIQUE?
· The curriculum is designed to appropriately match the developmental stages of children, with specific subject matter brought at certain ages and brought in an artistic and lively way.
· The class teacher leads his/her class from grade one to grade eight, teaching the core academic subjects.
· The arts are an integral part of the curriculum. All children sing, model, draw, paint, play instruments, do movement and act in plays.
· A strong literature-based curriculum instills in children a sense of wonder, appreciation for the written word, a moral compass, and a lifelong love of reading.
· Two foreign languages are taught from grade one to grade twelve.
· Lessons are taught in blocks of 3 to 6 weeks, with one subject being taught during the two-hour main lesson each morning during that time.
· Children create their own “main lesson” books from grade one to grade 12 filling the books with summaries and colorful illustrations of the lessons learned.
· All children enjoy recess every day.
· Children are evaluated through observations of the teacher and the portfolio method rather than standardized testing.
· Practical life skills are taught: knitting, crochet, woodworking, metal working, cooking, gardening, sewing.
· The people who are most closely involved with the children—the teachers—make the decisions about curriculum and teaching staff.
· The schools are non-profit and founded b they grassroots efforts of parents, teachers and other individuals seeking to bring a renewal to education.
· There is a strong belief in the sanctity of early childhood so that the kindergartens (for ages 3 to 6) nurture the children, protect the development of their senses, allow time for child-initiated play, and provide adult models in the teachers that are worthy of imitation.
· The aim of Waldorf is not to fill the students with information, but rather to develop capacities such as strength and flexibility of thinking, depth of feeling, enthusiasm, initiative, physical grace, creativity, memory, imagination, empathy, and a love of the world.
WHAT IS A TYPICAL DAY?
8:30: Main Lesson. The class teacher meets his/her students at the door each day, shaking each child’s hand and pausing to exchange greetings. When children are settled, the day begins with morning exercises of rhythmical movement, recitation of verses and poems, flute-playing and singing.
The children review and recount the previous day’s lesson which can be done through conversation, drama, artistic work or other hands-on activities. The children work in their main lesson books.
The teacher brings, through oral presentation, the new content which is often in the form of a story.
10:30: Snack time and recess outside. 11:00: Spanish 11:45: Woodworking or knitting 12:30: Lunch and recess 1:15: Handwork or chorus 2:00: Painting or modeling or Games class 2:45 Room cleaning 3:00 Dismissal
THE WALDORF SCHOOL COMMUNITY Many festivals bring families together to enjoy the seasonal changes throughout the year. Each festival has its own distinctive flavor of activities, songs, foods and special stories.
On Friday mornings the Parent Council sells coffee and muffins and parents enjoy this special time to socialize for just a bit before the work day begins.
On Fridays after school, the Parent Council sells popsicles and this is another time of social gathering, talk and laughter as we end our week together and look forward to the weekend.
Parents and Faculty come together for special workshops such as dollmaking, painting, eurythmy (a special form of movement), and for classes and lectures on the Waldorf philosophy.
Special work days find parents and teachers together planting, painting, cleaning and fixing up to keep the building and grounds safe and beautiful.
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