Waldorf Education

Rudolf Steiner, visionary philosopher, scientist, and teacher, conceived of Waldorf education to address the need for social renewal in the aftermath of World War I. Based on Steiner’s view of human development that addresses the needs of the growing child, the Waldorf curriculum cultivates the child’s unfolding and awakening intellectual, physical, and emotional capacities.

To provide relevance and meaning to education, Waldorf program decisions are made in response to the profound consideration of what it means to be human and what the task of humankind is perceived to be. The Waldorf school recognizes this approach as a pressing need of our time, and provides teachers with the freedom to respond to this need creatively, intelligently, and sensitively. Since 1919, parents and teachers in nearly 1,000 Waldorf schools throughout the world share the conviction that…

The role of an educator is to stimulate the emergence of a child’s innate capacities to the fullest. It is not to fill an empty vessel.

Discernible stages of child development make accessible differing learning modalities, which must be respected to ensure healthy growth – physically, emotionally, and intellectually.

Both content and form of presentation are learning experiences. To be effective and healthy, both must suit the age of the child.

A broad-based, universal integration of sciences, humanities and arts, avoiding specialization, serves the elementary years best.

The arts provide a valuable cognitive and affective educational experience. Academic subjects are more thoroughly comprehended when taught artistically.

The school provides a community experience for both child and family. The community should reflect the same values as the education..

The school responsibly informs parents of its curriculum in relation to child development and describes how it intends to foster the values of self-confidence, creativity, and morality, as well as academic learning.