Rudolf Steiner - Waldorf Education

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I've been reading The Education of the Child by Rudolf Steiner; This book is amazing thus far. I'm curious if any of you are familiar with his work, or the Waldorf Education methods? So far, I've did quite a bit of research regarding it, cause I have an 8 month year old son whom I want to homeschool.
 
yeh l thought of sending my kids to the waldorf school but knew it involved driving them to town etc so took the easy option of state so they got picked up by a local school bus.

l like the fact they focus on creative expression and don't teach them to properly write until the age of reason [7] until then using eurythmy, music and art and their body to shape meaning into words.

some children l know did find it difficult to integrate into secondary afterwards since there wasn't the facilities to do their o grades and highers but you may have that where you are. there was a high percentage of german swiss and dutch parents and folk affiliated to a local rudolf steiner institute caring for the mentally handicapped, teaching them farming [organic and particularly bio-dynamic ie according to the stars], wood crafts etc; they also had an excellent bakery. the crafts were emphasised at school and parents are expected to involve in it much more [fund raising etc]

if theres one near you l would recommend visiting them a few times; they my have books to lend you.
 
I've had both my children at a Waldorf/Steiner school for 5 years now. It's been a great experience; it has really honoured all of us (we are an inter-faith family). I am someone who in any case is more spiritually than religiously oriented (non-creedal) and the school fits like a glove in this respect. The community is also exciting - a lot of dynamic, creative people are attracted to the school.

Challenges: one of my child's teachers is really excellent; the other is academically weaker. Not sure that 8 years of one teacher is always appropriate (some teachers are better in the early years, others later); I'm hoping the school will be open to looking at this (it has in some cases in the past).

Exploring

nativeastral said:
yeh l thought of sending my kids to the waldorf school but knew it involved driving them to town etc so took the easy option of state so they got picked up by a local school bus.

l like the fact they focus on creative expression and don't teach them to properly write until the age of reason [7] until then using eurythmy, music and art and their body to shape meaning into words.

some children l know did find it difficult to integrate into secondary afterwards since there wasn't the facilities to do their o grades and highers but you may have that where you are. there was a high percentage of german swiss and dutch parents and folk affiliated to a local rudolf steiner institute caring for the mentally handicapped, teaching them farming [organic and particularly bio-dynamic ie according to the stars], wood crafts etc; they also had an excellent bakery. the crafts were emphasised at school and parents are expected to involve in it much more [fund raising etc]

if theres one near you l would recommend visiting them a few times; they my have books to lend you.
Click to expand...
 
Exploring said:
I've had both my children at a Waldorf/Steiner school for 5 years now. It's been a great experience; it has really honoured all of us (we are an inter-faith family). I am someone who in any case is more spiritually than religiously oriented (non-creedal) and the school fits like a glove in this respect. The community is also exciting - a lot of dynamic, creative people are attracted to the school.

Challenges: one of my child's teachers is really excellent; the other is academically weaker. Not sure that 8 years of one teacher is always appropriate (some teachers are better in the early years, others later); I'm hoping the school will be open to looking at this (it has in some cases in the past).

Exploring
Click to expand...

hello exploring

l forgot about that one, brilliant if the child gells with the teacher but not so good if there is a personality clash; lets face it outside of family and peers the school teacher has an immense influence on your life.

does the school inculcate steiners teaching in a formal way?
 
Well, I wouldn't actually be sending my child to a school. I would be doing the homeschooling programs.

Although, I thought it would be nice to go to their school to train to become a waldorf educator. Then i would probably try to come back here and start a small school. Maybe just start out with my son and a friend or twos kids, and basically raise them through the whole curriculum, hoping that along the way I picked up more students.

But yes, nativeastral, eurhythmy seems like a genius notion.
 
No, the children don't ever hear about Steiner's ideas from the teachers, if that's what you mean. There was just a gathering of the graduating high school class and they had glowing testimonials of how free the school had left them - that they encountered ideas by reading authors like Emerson and Goethe and Dante but were free to form their own ideas about these. I suspect the choice of authors was strongly influenced by the teachers' own ideas, but that's true everywhere, and I really liked the works the pupils mentioned.

The pupils did say that at the end of their last year of high school they had a class about the school: why they had been taught in this particular way. Steiner's ideas were mentioned there for the first time; they seemed to like having understood what their education was all about, though.

Exploring

nativeastral said:
hello exploring

l forgot about that one, brilliant if the child gells with the teacher but not so good if there is a personality clash; lets face it outside of family and peers the school teacher has an immense influence on your life.

does the school inculcate steiners teaching in a formal way?
Click to expand...
 
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