Waldorf Education

[Guest guest]

Hi Deb & everyone,

 

A couple of people have mentioned Waldorf education and I got an

off-list note from Deb, so I thought I would just write this to

everyone just in case others are interested....

 

I'll say first that we're not a " Waldorf family " although I have a

great respect for their methods. Their private schools are very

expensive and we (mostly my husband) couldn't justify sacrificing

their college education fund to pay for elementary school! <g>

 

IMO, the best web site with Waldorf information is www.bobnancy.com.

They have reproduced presentations/papers by Waldorf professionals,

information on the Waldorf e-mail list, a bookstore (their business)

and lots of other information.

 

The Waldorf (Rudolf Steiner) philosophy is essentially Christian, but

Waldorf school populations usually represent a wide range of religious

leanings so they try to be aware of/sensitive to other beliefs. Each

school/community is different, though, so you would have to

investigate yours. (There is a complicated (kind of weird in my

opinion!) background philosophy that goes along with Waldorf education

called anthroposophy - you may find it intriguing, or you may not -

many people who end up choosing Waldorf education do so without

becoming students of anthroposophy).

 

Even if you don't pursue their schooling (and it's really too early

for a 22-month-old anyway), you may very well find great company in

one of their play groups, and you would certainly find lots of support

for a no-frills, no plastic lifestyle if you attended any of their

presentations (usually schools have lectures or other events that are

open to the public).

 

Waldorf is not vegan - they use lots of wool, beeswax (crayons), silk,

etc. in their schools. But they are much more sympathetic to the

ovo-lacto-vegetarian than conventional schools.

 

Well, there's a lot more I could say (e.g., about how they delay

reading until about age 7 and why I think that's a good idea, etc...)

but I'll stop rambling now. Take a look at bobnancy.com and see what

you think. If it looks interesting, call your local school and see if

they have any activities for pre-kindergarten age children (they don't

do " preschool " per se, so you might not want to use that particular

term) that you could visit.

 

Warmly,

Emily in Boulder, Colo.